Perimenopause and Type 2 with 1 lymph node

noey69

Hi all,

I've just joined this site and now have posted 3 different questions all in 1 day. I cannot thank people enough for their willingness to share stories and well-earned bits of wisdom.

Anyway, I have just learned my oncotype score is 19. I was told by radiologist that b/c there was 1 positive lymph node, this puts me in the "gray area" on chemo. I will meet with oncologist next week and will hear about pros/ cons and then will have a decision to make.

I wish I was in the clear "yes" or "no" group - I am so bad about second guessing myself.

I am 53, had a period in February and, before that, November. So, I guess I'm not solidly menopausal yet (or I could be if Feb was the last). There was only 1 lymph node that was positive with 2.1mm.

Is there anyone with a similar situation who might have some input or experience to share?

jrnj

Hi noey, yes my situation was similar and also ILC, which is supposed to be less aggressive. I wanted to be aggressive though. I had 2 impacted nodes, 2mm and 3mm. LVI and extra nodal extension and pleomorphic features. My oncotype was 15. I had one dr. tell me I don't know what to do with you, he sent me to another at an NCI cancer center that said no chemo. But I wasn't satisfied, I wanted an opinion from MSK. She said yes to chemo, not maybe, yes. But a less toxic CMF chemo which really only sloan is recommending. So I did it. But I also had a 2.4 cm tumor, and a 13 cm LCIS. But the nodes really freaked me out, especially as they don't do full dissection anymore. Two years later, the AIs are killing me. They are worse than the chemo. I suspect they'll tell you no chemo. Not supposed to work great on ILC, but that doesn't mean it doesn't work at all. Although I just saw your other thread and you said you have ductile features also and PR-. I would do the chemo, but that's me, I wanted to be aggressive, no regrets. Good luck with your decision.

noey69

Hey jrnj,

Thank you for sharing. I have my MO appointment today. I've just been trying to find out as much information as possible before hand so I know what to expect. I've been trying to find information on mixed ductal and lobular features, but it seems like there is limited data on that - or at least I'm having trouble finding clear information.

I vacillate between choosing a more aggressive approach and just "kicking the can down the road", so to speak. I mean, there's more of a chance that I won't have recurrence... but, there was also more of a chance that I wouldn't have had BC in the first place! I eat healthy, exercise regularly, maintain healthy weight, rarely drink, no genetic predisposition... Only real risk-factor is being female. Ugh.

Decisions are hard!

What AI are you taking? What are the problems? I'm probably more freaked out about 5-10 years of medication than anything. I hate taking pills.