Ladies in their 30s?
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I had my tumor markers drawn on Friday and I'm so nervous for the results. My last PET scan was so good (no active cancer, liver lesion resolved) and I really just want to enjoy the good news for awhile! I really hope they stay the same or go down from when they were drawn in December! I HATE waiting for test results *sigh*.
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How long til you generally get he results?
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I could get them as early as this afternoon. Or they may wait until I see my Oncologist on Wednesday. You would think I would used to this waiting by now, but it doesn't ever seem to get any easier!
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Brandall - good luck with your test results! I'll keep you in my thoughts & prayers!
I had tumor markers drawn 2 weeks ago before my 6th chemo, and they had come down about 5 points each. I'm within 15 of normal for one & 35 of normal for the other. Its getting so close, that it is hard to be happy with just a decrease b/c I want that normal so badly. I have a petscan on Wednesday, and will get the results on Friday. I know that even this won't be definitive as I'm only 2 weeks out of the last chemo, and I know I need to be happy as long as things are shrinking and not growing. I just have to keep reminding myself of that. I'd appreciate any thoughts and prayers over this week as I battle scanxiety!
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My kids are 8 and 22 months! Boy and girl, respectively. Boy did i screw up...I went to a check up with one of the PA's and I told her about my side effects from taxol. When I told her about my neurapothy, she said "I'm going to have to talk to the doctor about that and see what he recommends." Back in November, early in my treatment, I had a stomach virus...since then i stopped taking my b6 and glutamine...which is supposed to ward off neuropathy...so dang me, I have to delay my taxol until next week!! I'll still get my h&p...and to tell you the truth, I'm a little excited about a break because i feel so good right now...and I won't have to get neupogen shots either! Hopefully, just pushing it back a week won't be too detrimental to my health?!?
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Hello Everyone!
I'm 33 now, dx last February as stage IIIc at age 32. I have 3 small kids ages 8,6, and 2.
I had a prophylactic oopherectomy and hysterectomy last week because I cannot take Tamoxifen. My doctor actually came to my house friday afternoon to tell me the preliminary reports show cancer all over my ovaries. So today I'm waiting for a call to tell me if the cancer cells are consistent with my breast cancer or if this is a new cancer. I don't think the waiting game ever gets easier. If it's my breast cancer, I obviously go straight to stage IV, but if not, now I have 2 different types of cancer to worry about.
It stinks. I just finished my radiation therapy in December 2012, so my "Cancer free' feeling only lasted about a month before I was hit again with bad news.
It's nice to meet all of you. It's so hard to feel like the only "Young" person going through this. You know...you walk into the oncology office and everyone stares and gives you that look like "Bless her heart". Ugh.
Anyway best of luck to everyone.
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that irks me when they WAIT til i see my dr face to face- hey i am a big girl and can take the news over the phone! Its the waiting that kills me! Hopefully you get the results today.
nbnotes- Agh, the waiting game is a killer! I have scans next week to sorta have a look see at what the chemo is doing for me- i am on my third cycle if memory serves... You are def in my prayers Got a first name? i am pretty sure God knows who i am talking about, but to be on the safe side
kjones- Ah to have a little one again... Are you starting potty training yet?
A weeks delay shouldnt hurt you at all... the medicine is still in your body, just not as strong... thats why you can still have shrinkage on a scan months after chemo ends... I know what you mean i am on my 2 weeks "on" after the week off and i totally feel in a fog right now! Hubby said to take a nap but i got things to do! (checking BCO is a treat lol) in the back of my mind i am thinking- why do i even take this medicine- i feel so great w/o it....
Onestep- I pray you dont have to "join" the stage 4 club, but it isnt uncommon to get a new cancer, even after going through everything. 2 gals that are the thread of ppl that went through chemo at the same time both had a secondary cancer. Ovarian and another i think... Hoping the best for you! Keep us posted!
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texasrose - Sorry that you will be doing the waiting game next week. It is never fun. My first name is Nancy -- sorry for not including that before.
onestep - I'm sorry to hear that news. I know that neither scenario is one you want to deal with, but I hope you get some answers quickly. I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
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Wow there are so many of us here. dx'ed stage 4 from the get go, I currently have mets in the pleura, skin, nodes, both breasts, bones (guess almost all ! it aches everywhere) for now. Will have anotheer BT to check if everything is stable, for my TM's have been skyrocketing since I switched to hormonals, from 400 to 2200 in just 5 months. I feel OK, though. I try to comfort myself with the fact that TM's not reliable 100% of the time.
Blessed with my wonderful DH & 8 year-old son along with my wonderful family & friends, I am living each minute of each day at a time, trying to spare my remaining energy to what matters most now. I took a break from work to have more time with my family, enjoy life more as much as I can. I was a career bitch before
. Well MBC surely proved life's not THAT alone. Now I enjoy the stay home mom role, though have already delegated the house chores due to my extensive bone mets.I hope we all get to see our little ones grow & enjoy each second we have yet with our loved ones.
Ebru
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Nancy- No worries, i dont think i ever go by my name on here LOL
Ebru it does seem like us younger gals go straight to stage 4!
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Hey! I'm 37. Orginally diagnosed at 32. Here to help if I can. It can be a lonley diagnosis!
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What do you take when a bone met starts hurting? I have one on a left rib that is really bothering me.
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Speaking of how many of us were Dx'd at stage IV... I was just wondering if any of you were told the "you are to young for it to be cancer" crap by your doctors? If I hadn't believed that, it would have been found years sooner, and I'm sure before it had spread to my bones. That whole thing just makes me so mad.
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Rose, I actually feel relieved with dx that I didn't go through the surgeries, the hope of cure crap in early stages only to find out in a short while I have mets all over my body! Even feel blessed to have had God-knows how long I happily lived out of the Cancerland, which I later found out was my final destination (with my previous "cured" cancer & genes from almost all mom's women relatives). Now I prefer frequent visits to Denialand & spend my time as a shopaholic! My current best friend is my son's betafish, we stare at each other all day long & I enjoy it! Watching it do nothing but swim around, sleep & wait for his food reminds me of how similar we really are with the little guy than I ever thought we were before
.kshammond, I use Tramadol Retard (100mg) which I can tolerate so far SE-wise. But told by MO, the best pain control against my extensive mets is resting as much as possible. I try to delegate each & everything as much as possible to save my limited energy to my son. He is very active & needs me with him at least for a while each day. Sometimes I pay the price of crazy bonepain when I push my limits too far & have to take 2 pills.
Stormy, nobody's perfect, docs definitely not! But their mistakes can & do cause lives. I'm glad I'm not a doctor. I couldn't live with such a responsibility. I had similar experience as you had, felt pissed at them (yes, more than once & docs from different fields!) for years, only to find out I was doing myself the harm of causing negative energy in my body, which certainly didn't help my condition. And the ones responsible for all this crap still had their noses up, with their overconfidence of themselves. Yeah they know everything right, with their considerable input to our current situation. I'd rather be the one suffering, then the one causing it. I believe there's a payback date & what we are going through cannot be just for nothing.
hugs, Ebru
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I was dx with metastatic BC in January of 2008. Every year about this time I get very freaked....always waiting quietly for the other shoe to drop. Thought this cancer bull sh** was going to end when I finished chemo. in 2007, but a year later it was back. I truly shouldn't complain--I was told that I had a year or so to live and I am still here raising my boys. They were only two and seven when I was first dx in Aug. of 2006. I was shocked then and even more shocked when a routine scan resulted in a biopsy, which thru me back into cancerland. Well, I'm here and have been for almost 5 years. It has been a while, but I remember the ride home from Sloan like it was yesterday. I feel so blessed to be around to watch my boys grow and teach them all the things a mother should, but I can't help feeling as tho I need to teach them quicker. I feel like I'm on borrowed time and hate that I have death and cancer in the back of my mind ALWAYS. To look at me and think "sick girl" doesn't happen and I keep most of my fears inside, so most of MY WORLD thinks I'm happy go lucky Tammy. I put on a good front and feel like a liar...I'm tired of hearing how strong, brave, and wonderful I am--if they only knew that my brain is in constant "prepare" mode they would truly know that I'm weak and scared. Anyway, I hate that you are in this room, but I'm glad I had a chance to vent. Now time to put on my Mommy Smile and make dinner. Thanks for allowing me this outlet. How are you doing with the news?
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Well made it through my first whole brain radiation treatment today. My brain is screaming saying help me. Only 14 more treatments. yay me
Stormynyte I have been told that i am to young and then they always say awwww. I was originally diagnosed at age 27 and it was worse then.
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I didn't get "your too young" from the doctors exactly, I got the "it would be very rare, but not impossible, that your lump is cancer given your age". Which I guess is the same, but they didn't ignore me. Although, when I was 22 I had a "cyst" in the exact same spot my cancer turned up in. The doctor didn't do any kind of testing, just felt it and said it was a cyst. Now I wonder...
I am FREAKING out right now. I had my tumor markers drawn on Friday and I know the results are back. I have Kaiser insurance so they release results electronically for some tests (including the tumor markers) and they haven't been released yet. I'm terrified this means that they are going to tell me that they are rising at my Onc appointment tomorrow
I've been worrying myself to pieces for the last few days!!0 -
Recently I have had my first scans results since starting chemo and they are looking good so far: there are no signs of tumor in my breast anymore and the 3 liver tumors have shrunk by half. Thank you Lord! I hope it keeps going down.
Thinking of you Brandall. Hope you get good news!
Is anyone else pre-menauposal? I think I may have started. It's been 47 days that I haven't had my periods and I usually have them on day 27. Plus I am having night sweats, and feeling hot and cold.
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Brandall, I will be thinking of you and hoping for good news! Try not to stress....easier said than done, I know. Kaelia, I am sorry to hear about your Angel in heaven
Hugs to you. Isn't it nice to have a supportive ex husband?! I have one of those too. Glad to hear you had such good results! I was on that regime too.0 -
Brandall, I have Kaiser too. I just email my oncologist and tell him to please release the tumor marker results. This allows me to mentally prepare and get questions together. But I always have to ask......even when they're good. So don't assume they're bad because they haven't been released. Let us know how it goes!
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About the pre menopausal... I had one period before I started chemo in September and one in December. My onc said it may or may not come back. Curious to hear what others have experienced.
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Well ladies, my doctor called last night and said he had just gotten off the phone with the pathologists...it appears I am now joining the Stage IV mets group as they found breast cancer cells in my ovaries when I had my oopherectomy. I can't seem to find much of anything online about this- seems to be rather rare. Now waiting for a call from my MO to tell me the newest plan...Not excited at all about going back to battle so soon. I'm only 1 month out from rads and 5 months out from chemo. Haven't even had my reconstruction yet...
Lots of emotions going through my head. I don't like the feeling of being on "borrowed time" and planning my funeral in my head all the time. Anyone ever heard of or experience this type of mets before?
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Brandall- its hard not to get worried when we have results of any kind coming in! Sending prayers your way
Kaelia- Welcome
first off I love your name! I am not premenopausal, i am ovulating just fine (my gyno sent me in for all these tests like blood work and a uterine wall measurement thing) but i am not bleeding. I have had maybe 3 periods in 2+ years. Only light spotting though. Although chemo can cause them to stop just while you're on it, after you're done they may resume.Onestep- So sorry to hear of that! Its strange because there are "common" places for bc mets to appear (brain, bones, liver, lungs) but still it does pop up in other areas. Since chemo is sytemic, wether its found in your lungs or ovaries it still will be exposed to the chemo. (except in the brain because of the blood-brain barrier) Yeah i went with only 1 month between my last 2 chemos and it does suck. But you sorta just dust yourself off and try again. (easier said than done i know) Keep us posted!
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I did hear the "you're too young". They also told me that there was less than 1% chance of it being cancer. I am so glad that I followed up and had the biopsy. At first I always felt like I was youngest in the chemo room but I have seen some younger ones recently.
Brandall, If it's getting to you I would call them and just ask what your markers are. I use to hate to bother my doctor and her staff but have learned......that is what they are payed for. I hate waiting for results and if I start to stress out about it I just call them.
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Whew! Thanks for thinking of me ladies. I had my appointment today and my tumor markers were actually down 4 from the last time they were drawn in December. So they are at 24 right now - which is in normal range - YAY! I did get an x-ray today because of some pain I've been having in my thoracic spine. It will only show if there are fractures or anything like that, but it's at least something until my next PET scan. I don't think the thoracic thing is anything (fingers crossed), I'm hoping it is just related to the fact that I started running recently. *sigh* it's always SOMETHING right
Kaelia - Welcome
I was pre-menopausal when I started and chemo put me into "chemopause" I'm still in it (a month after chemo ended) but they said there is an excellent chance I would go back to pre-menopausal without intervention. So I'm having an oophorectomy/hysterectomy in March to take care of that permanently. I had the hot flashes too - yuck! Hang in there!! I'm glad that you are seeing some results! I'm very sorry about your angel in heaven. Hugs!Onestep - I thought I read a thread here where someone mentioned something about finding breast cancer cells in their ovaries. I thought it was with ILC vs. IDC. I'm sorry that it seems to have migrated there for you
I know exactly what you mean about thinking about your funeral and dark thoughts like that. I try not to, but it is hard not to go there! If you look at this board, you will see MANY ladies who are beating the odds and have lived for a long time with mets, they have given me hope Hi Ango - It's a shame there are so many uneducated doctors out there. I just don't think anyone should be hearing "you're too young" anymore!!!
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Hi everyone, I just came across this board and it was nice to find one specific to stage 4 with women around my age. I am actually from Canada and can't seem to find one out here that's a active so I hope you don't mind me joining
I'm 38 and was diagnosed with stage 4 BC with mets to my liver and spine earlier this month with no other previous diagnoses of cancer in my past. I was in shock to get the news since I feel fine and have always been in "good" health. Since my diagnoses, I have had a week of radiation which has greatly helped reduce the pain in my back and I just had my first chemo treatment this past Monday and so far, no side effects so fingers crossed that's a good sign for future treatments. I know I will lose my hair from chemo but that's something I can easily manage.
I have great support from my friends and family which makes this journey a lot easier to go through. I have a wonderful husband of 9 years and a beautiful 20 year daughter currently in University.
I am still working and try to go in as much as possible in order to keep a normal life and keep my mind busy. I was very disappointed at my employers today though when I was told that because of the possible side effects of chemo and not knowing the exact days I will be in that they have dropped me from a salary position to hourly until my treatments are over. It was VERY heartbreaking to hear since I have almost 6 years with them and was told at the time of my diagnoses "not to worry about my job, nothing will change"....... Although they kept some of their word and I have not lost my position or anything earned throughout my years there and once the treatments are over I can go back on salary but what they failed to realize is that they have now put a lot of stress on me feeling "forced" to work when I'm not feeling up to it just so I can keep the money coming in to pay the bills, etc.
I am a fighter and although I am having my ups and downs right now, I have no plans on giving up. The toughest part about this though is waking up every night and walking around all day "knowing" that I'm dying. I'm doing my best not to let that thought take over me but it's hard not to think about and it's hard to talk to others about without worrying or upsetting my friends and family so it's something I usually keep inside but I needed to let that out so what better place than here right??
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Yay Brandall! Great news! Welcome Forever...glad you found our thread. A lot of us were stage IV initially. I remember thinking a whole lot about dying in the beginning. I do think a lot of us get to the point where we push that thought to the back for lack of a better way to say it. I hope in time you can too. It takes time and we all have our days or weeks etc
I'm so sorry to hear that about your job. How frustrating. Are they allowed to do that legally? On a good note, I am glad treatment is so tolerable for you. Vent away! That is what we are here for. No matter how great our support system...there are some things only our bco sisters can relate to.0 -
Welcome onestep and ango. Ugh...there are just too many of us
I am so glad we have each other to vent to and lean on for support. 0 -
Ok...I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer...I know quite a bit about her2 + stuff, but not so much about er/pr stuff...what the heck are markers?
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Markers are cancer antigens produced in your body in response to a present tumor or tumors. The general rule is that they go up when cancer is active, growing, and spreading. They go down when cancer is shrinking or dying due to chemo or other treatment. They aren't a reliable measure for a lot of people so most doctors prefer to use scans to determine progression or regression. To my knowledge, markers don't have anything to do with er/pr status.
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