Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!
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My PCP sent me to the BS after the DCIS diagnosis. BS made recommendations for RO & MO when IDC was found . I met with the RO the day before surgery for an extended visit; he told me to call the office after the surgical follow-up. I saw him a week later and he insisted on a full 5 weeks healing time before he would start radiation. I saw the MO two weeks after the surgical follow-up. I started with him three weeks after radiation finished, but couldn't start the letrozole because my liver levels were too high. I didn't start hormone therapy until two and a half months later.
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Taco, It's been seven months since my surgery and I won't have my mammo till June... the last time I saw my MO, she said it was better to wait till I healed more...
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My GYN recommended one of two BSes upon my IDC diagnosis. I picked the one who could operate the soonest (2 weeks post-dx), and was and am very satisfied with her. At the pre-op “teaching session," her NP scheduled the followup appt. with the BS, and the initial consults with MO and RO. The BS and MO appts. were the day after I got path results (w/in 5 days after surgery), and the initial RO appt. 3 wks post-op.
I too have a bit of “survivor's guilt" over what a relatively easy time I've had with my own cancer & treatments. It occasionally feels like the other shoe will drop, so I am not going to "go looking for trouble because trouble will find me" (as the old blues song goes). I do feel awkward at times at my support group meetings because nearly everyone else there has gone through much worse (except the aging hippie with a giant tumor she refuses to have removed, who had one neoadjuvant chemo session and stopped taking anything other than herbs & mushrooms). I tend to speak up more than the others, and was surprised to hear from the facilitator that my presence was missed by the other patients when I couldn't attend meetings due to travel. I know that acquaintances look at me puzzled, as if to ask how could I have had breast cancer if I still have long hair and big boobs?
Neither bragging nor complaining, just thankful and cautiously hopeful (not to jinx it).
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I did not meet with MO or RO until I was finished with surgeries and my BS office took care of referrals and scheduled initial appts with them. I got my first post BC mammo 6 mos after last surgery. I now see RO and MO every 3 mos and BS every 6 mos. Getting ready for my second post BC mammo in May and then will see all three doctors.
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I no longer see my RO. He said there was no need once I finished. Just my BS (or her NP) plus mammo, and MO every 6 months. I also see my derm & my LE doc every 6 months. GYN is on an every-3-yrs rotation.
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My BS suggested a couple of ROs for me and just one MO. I met with the RO a couple weeks after surgery and it was about 5 weeks when they did the tattoos etc. MO I met the day I started rads. Now I just have an MO since I moved and I love him.
HUGS!
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My RO wanted to see my last fall but since I was here and he was still not able to practice from his stem cell transplant, that didn't happen. I was part of a study the University of Michigan was doing on changes in the breast from rads. I would guess they would have taken more pictures at that 2 year followup.
HUGS!
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Bummed. MRI apparently found something and so they canceled surgeon appt. for tomorrow (which I thought would finally have my lumpectomy surgery date) and instead I have a second US in the morning. It is a reminder that nothing is for sure. Hubby has a point, it is good to know as much as we can prior to surgery to make the best medical plan.
Hubby asked on his way home from work what I would like for dinner. My reply "Bailey's Irish Crème".
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Gardennerd, so sorry. This journey we're on is full of so many twists and turns that have us on an emotional rollercoaster. But you're husband is right, it's better to know as much as you can early on. After my initial biopsy that showed DCIS, BS decided to order an MRI. MRI showed an area of concern in same breast so had to wait another week to have a second biopsy done and then another week for results. I remember feeling mad, because I thought I had my plan & was now back to not knowing, and scared that it was going to show worse than I already had. But in the end I kept telling myself I'd rather know now and tried to keep myself busy so I wouldn't over think things while I waited. Sending prayers for peace of mind and praying US doesn't find anything of concern. Hugs!
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GardenNerd, That is discouraging. While this may not be relevant for your MRI, I also had one prior to surgery. But my biopsy had left a huge hematoma. My surgeon said that the MRI didn't show anything new but some on the tumor board thought there was lots more cancer there. She "won" that one. And she made sure to have as wide margins as possible so took a big chunk and they were clear and nothing else showed up. She was right.
HUGS!
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GardenNerd, be glad you had an MRI before surgery. I didn't so ended up with mastectomy after lumpectomy. Hopefully whatever the scan saw is nothing and you can continue as planned. I will be praying for you.
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~Gardennerd~
I was diagnosed with DCIS in the first biopsy; the plan was going to be a simple lumpectomy & back to work in four days, but the radiologist decided to broaden the magnification and found what she thought was a tiny mass. The second biopsy showed IDC. My BS went as wide as she could with margins hoping not to have to go back in later and, like Peggy took out a large chunk (in my case, two large chunks). They were clear and so were my nodes. I didn't have an MRI.
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Hi everyone!
Judy, I am very sorry to hear about your brother. May he rest in peace. I hope you are doing well other than the sorrow of his passing.
Poodles, I am glad your mother is in a safe place now despite her continued mental confusion. I am glad you will be able to relax on that front pretty soon. You need a break!
On Sunday I will be doing the 21 mile walk in the Big Sur Marathon with CJ Sharma who posts here on a different forum. Thank you CJ for suggesting this event! Hopefully we will both complete the walk within the six hour 30 minute time limit and show the world that breast cancer is not the end of a vigorous life. I will post an update when I get home.
I have been taking Tamoxifen for a little over two weeks now. So far, so good. I did not even realize how many aches I had on letrozole until I went off it for 6 weeks. My painful neck is gone and my shoulders do not ache even when I am cold. I will keep monitoring the side effects. I am scheduled to get a baseline scan of my uterus soon, to monitor for changes over time, which is one possible downside of tamoxifen. Eventually I know I'll switch back to an AI, but maybe not for a few years.
My mammo last week was "stable", whatever that means. They want me back in another 6 months. It must be very hard to see much of anything on the radiated side with the scans. My bone density decreased very slightly over the past year, which I attribute mostly to being on the AI for 6 months. It will be interesting to see if the tamoxifen reverses the decline, or at least stops it.
Good luck to everyone having procedures this week! I think positive thoughts every day for all of my breast cancer sisters!!
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Thanks to all for your concern and sharing. Oddly enough it helps to know that others have had that one step forward, two step backward effect . . . . although I wish no one would have to deal with that. There is something about getting a diagnosis (whatever it is) and wrapping your head around that and going forward. Taking a pause for further tests and the possibility of a different outcome just plays with the mind.
So the update for now is. . . Radiologist says what was seen on MRI, the Mammogram reads "something" and the US is not so in agreement that something is there.
So another biopsy ordered for a new location and presently don't know what there after. Radiologist, as much as I believe he wanted to narrow down the possibilities, could not. I say this as my first US, he immediately said he would recommend surgery even before I had biopsy.
He was not so sure of himself on the 2nd spot it appeared. He said if it is benign then we could go with original plan. If cancer, it is possible the surgeon could indicate a mastectomy needed as Radiologist said when two spots in two different quadrants of the breast are found they don't generally do two lumpectomy's. That sort of surprised me. If the two spots are so tiny, why not two lumpectomies? ( I have very large breasts so lots to work with?) So I'm back to square one until the pathology report on second spot.
So with that said, whats my sisters thoughts? What am I not asking that I should ask? or considering? I hate the wait, but again . . . I'm okay also. Its a blip on the screen and eventually we will proceed with healthy decisions.
And yes, I am saying that last line like a mantra.
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Gardennerd the same thing happened to me - I was all set to do a lumpectomy but the surgeon wanted an MRI first and then i needed to get more biopsies which all turned out to be benign. So I was back to the original plan, just a couple weeks later.
As for what else to ask, you might as well ask why not two lumpectomies instead of mastectomy (ask the surgeon, not the radiologist). There may be a good reason but they should tell you what it is. They told me that if I have a recurrence on the same side it would mean mastectomy but I think that is because they can't do radiation twice, not that they can't do two lumpectomies. But hopefully your second spot will be benign and you will not need to worry about it.0 -
Argentina 36: I'm 74 and about to have surgery that will include a biopsy and -- depending on results-- a lumpectomy as well.
I'm seriously considering rejecting the radiation or chemo due to my age, and the fact that i have congestive heart failure already and don't want to aggravate that condition. Not sure what a holistic approach is, but am interested in finding out more.
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~Gardennerd~
I had two lumpectomies. I had two spots of DCIS in the same duct at 12 o'clock and IDC at 10 o'clock on the same breast. The BS did them both at the same time. My pathology report even said "lumpectomy x 2". My spots were also very tiny (they were actually removed with the biopsies) and my breasts are large.
I was also told I would have to have a mastectomy if the cancer came back in the same breast because of the radiation.
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Hi all. I learned a lesson this week about not being so stoic that my needs are underestimated.
I am a month out from Lumpectomy. I healed kinda slowly and always had a large and tender "hard boiled egg" lump in my breast. Instead of getting smaller it started getting bigger and more painful.
I sent a photo (lovely!) to the doc's assistant who assured me everything was fine... even though I said I was concerned and wanted the doc to take a look. So I figured I must have been making a big deal out of it.
At my regular check up this week the surgeon took one look and said, "that's not right!" She did a needle aspiration and removed a LOT of a hematoma that looked like a combo of pus and blood. Two ounces.
I watched my boob deflate like a balloon and was so happy! Hurray!!! My doctor said from now on, I need to stopworrying about being perceived as a whiner. She felt bad that I had not been seen earlier.
Who knew a needle aspiration and a deflated boob would make my day? Lesson learned.
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ChiSandy, we have much in common. I had very long course hair and have been busty all my life.
When I told my daughter I had breast cancer, she assumed that meant chemo. She said... " Oh no, mom! Your hair and boobs!!!!!"
Exactly, my dear. Exactly.
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Gardennerd, whether they can do multiple lumpectomies depends on the location of the tumors and the amount of tissue that would need to be removed relative to the size of the breast. If the breast is small to begin with, it could be considerably misshapen to the point where mastectomy makes more sense. And there is an exception to the rule that the same breast cannot be irradiated twice: one of the reasons for doing targeted partial-breast rather than whole-breast radiation is that if there’s an ipsilateral recurrence or new primary tumor but in a quadrant not previously radiated, a lumpectomy & second round of radiation is possible.
I have been considering what might happen if, like Robin, my R breast seroma were to be aspirated and my breast deflated; I certainly wouldn’t reconstruct to augment it to match the extremely large L one. I would probably get the L one reduced and maybe have some fat transferred into the R for symmetry.
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ChiSandy, We talked about the difference in breast size at my original visit with surgeon. My right breast was already a bit smaller, but only noticeable to me. Since cancer is involved, my insurance would pay to make both breasts match.
But at 62, I just don't care enough about that to go through more procedures. I am just ready to move on! My radiation will be whole breast, since they left some very small little cancers in there. So that breast will get even smaller.
If it really noticeable with clothing, I will likely buy a little filler/lifter to put in my bra.
But I am actually enjoying having one of my girls not be so heavy. And I will finally know what it's like to stuff my bra
I am still here. So it's all good!
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This just in from Clinical Oncology News: Breast Conserving Surgery Better than Mastectomy for Certain Subtypes
http://www.clinicaloncology.com/Breast-Cancer/Arti...=ogst?enl=true
This reinforces my decision to have had lumpectomy + radiation, rather than mastectomy or BMX. In Stage IA (T1-2) node-negative cancers for which chemo was not indicated, for patients over age 50, lx+rads outperformed mx in terms of both disease-free and overall survival (time until death from all causes), regardless of whether invasive vs in situ or hormone-receptor status. For those with smaller, lower-grade tumors and lower Oncotype scores than mine who claim that BMX is superior for “peace of mind," it's proof (at least for me) that “peace" is most often dependent on one's individual “mindset."
Mets can happen to anyone regardless of whether they used every weapon—including BMX—in the arsenal, so with bc there's no such thing as true “peace of mind." These boards are full of patients who can attest to that. "Doing all we can" is not necessarily the same as doing all we should or even need to do. And sometimes doing all we can is futile. That's life.
If you remove a healthy appendix or gall bladder it can never get infected and burst; if you remove a 4mm. in situ or even Stage IA melanoma from a forearm, you don't amputate the arm; if you develop a Stage IA malignant polyp in your lower bowel, you don't remove the whole colon; if you remove a healthy set of reproductive organs they can't develop cancer; if you remove healthy tonsils & adenoids, they can't also become infected; But we no longer perform appendectomies, tonsilectomies, and hysterectomies on healthy organs without known serious risk factors (in fact, hysterectomy for small fibroids has fallen out of favor). So why, absent a known genetic or familial risk, remove a healthy breast (or even the healthy majority of a cancerous breast that had only a small unifocal node-negative tumor)?
Sure, those procedures can give you "peace of mind" that those organs will never develop cancer, but what about primary cancers of the lungs, stomach, colon, pancreas, kidneys, brain, larynx, liver…never mind cardiovascular or other pulmonary diseases, diabetes complications, epidemics, violence, natural disasters or accidents? We can't beat the Reaper.
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ChiSandy, I had trouble accessing the link; can you please check it and provide it again? Thanks!
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Hi JuniperCat:
Googling the title yields this feature from clinical oncology news:
The underlying meeting abstract from ECCO 2017 is:
Abstract number: 4LBA, Lagendijk et al.
LATE-BREAKING ABSTRACT: Breast conserving therapy and mastectomy revisited: Breast cancer-specific survival and the influence of prognostic factors in 129,692 patients
http://www.eccocongress.org/en/Scientific-Programme/Abstract-search?abstractid=30829
Please keep in mind that meeting abstracts are not peer-reviewed and can be preliminary in nature. They also lack useful background, an explanation of the results, with associated caveats and limitations, or a discussion of similar studies in the area (conflicting or otherwise), which provide important context. Because of this, for those with pending treatment decisions, if this feature or abstract influences your thinking, please be certain to discuss them with your breast surgeon to ensure accurate understanding and applicability.
BarredOwl
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Thanks, BarredOwl! 😉
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Hi Ladies - I love reading the posts. I have been taking advantage of the post chemo/post surgery/good weather situation. I have a question regarding menopause and the symptoms related to it. I am full blown menopause as a result of my chemo. I am not able to take HRT - too risky. My biggest issue is my joints hips and knees. I was in good shape before diagnosis - now I can barely make it down the stairs. I stretch, I exercise, I stretch. I was thinking of a massage but only waist down. Any advice? Also - a few pages ago there was a libido discussion. Mine went out the door the day of diagnosis. And now with menopause, I am not sure what to expect. I am 48 yo. And, starting radiation 5/9.
Kathy
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I just gritted my teeth and booked the next two weeks of sessions with my personal trainer, who's recovered from his own knee surgery. Sadly, the surest way to ease the pain of moving our joints is to keep moving them, lest they stiffen further and hurt more. I have found 1300 mg. (two tabs) of time-release (8-hr) arthritis-formula acetaminophen at bedtime and 200 mg. of celecoxib (which is OTC in some parts of the E.U. and easier on the gut and esophagus than conventional NSAIDs like Voltaren, naproxen or ibuprofen) help me immensely. That, and having artificial knees—their slick plastic articulating surfaces can't shred like cartilage or grow spurs like bare bone. So whatever other joints may hurt, it's not my knees.
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Law193- Thanks. You are right. I just need to cover this with the surgeon.
VelvetPoppy - Good to know that they will do more than one lumpectomy on a breast. I am curious why did you have two lumpectomy's a month apart? Was the second found from follow up biopsy of original lumpectomy?
ChiSandy - thanks for clarification on having more than one lumpectomy. So essentially, "if" my second site comes up benign then I could still go with original plan in having lumpectomy with brachytherapy (internal radiation) and still have the rest of the breast on the table to accept radiation possibly down the road if needed.
Aside, in preparation of the weeks worth brachytherapy, only sponge baths, wearing bra 24 hour I went with one of your suggestions of getting a Leisure bra. And getting a front hook to aid with easy access for treatment was important. And probably the selling point for me was to have an all cotton bra, no wires to sleep in. I ordered three larger then my normal size as they didn't offer the cup size I needed. I thought I would have to modify the band width but I think they will work just fine as is. But you are right, they are not as supportive but I'm thinking the all cotton will be much more comfortable.
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ChiSandy- Thanks for the Clinical Oncology News info. (for those reading this, I am posting to have conversation about the subject and nothing should be taken as guidance into your choices whether past of future. My goal is to bounce ideas off fellow posters so I can become more informed to make my own choices. The more info I have the better I serve myself)
I cannot reference info, but in my "dive in and learn everything mode" since I was diagnosed I had the impression that studies have pretty much concluded that partial vs mastectomy provided basically the same results. And of course that is with generalities. That no treatment is 100%. And I am learning rapidly that we are each afforded a certain level of medical guidance that differs geographically, from types of medical facilities and of course the dreaded insurance companies hand in all this.
ChiSandy I did agree with your post on "peace of mind" and it depending on ones' "mindset". And I am glad this study provides you that added support in your own decisions. You make excellent points when comparing to cancers of other parts of the body. An interesting point of view I had not considered.
Just reading on the various boards it is easy to see that although we are all here for the same reason that we certainly have a wide spectrum of how we each proceeded or will proceed. Which for me, being new all this, is very confusing.
For me, the feedback here, medical group, friends, family, internet and even my dogs vet have been sources of information for me. And I appreciate them all greatly and hope to continue to pick their brain. And eventually when I get off the more tests run I am on presently, I will have to either agree or not agree with suggested path of my surgeon. I didn't have a choice having cancer, but ultimately I do have a choice in treatment and how I will find my new normal.
I appreciate your posts. Thanks
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~Gardennerd~
I didn't have the lumpectomies a month apart. I had them in the same surgery. The radiologist 'saw something' on my December post-biopsy mammogram . She sent her recommendation to the BS that it be looked into when she sent the results for the first biopsy. The holidays were coming up and I couldn't get an appointment for the second biopsy (and I wanted to have Christmas with my family), so it was done as quickly after the New Year as possible. So, the first biopsy showed DCIS and the second was IDC. My BS said she could get them both with one surgery because they were close together and very small. I had one incision, but two areas (12 o'clock & 10 o'clock) where she went in to clear margins and remove lymph nodes. I have a significant dent under my armpit (IDC) and a "trough" that goes from my nipple up to the top of my breast because that duct was "completely plugged".
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