Dcis grade 3
Diagnosed after first routine mammogram. Large area so mastectomy booked for January. Very scared, also having sentinal lymph node biopsy whilst having mastectomy, scared of the recovery pain for both and also very scared they find something, looking for microinvasion they said. Havent had any information about hormones after by vacuum.biopsy , just that its grade 3, is that normal ? Any advice would be appreciated
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Hi @rainclouds, I'm sorry that you have to join us here. When there is a large area of DCIS a mastectomy is the only way of removing everything. A sentinel node biopsy is standard of care with a mastectomy. In your case it would be unusual to find anything in the nodes. A biopsy is just a sample of what is present so nobody knows the whole situation until after the surgical pathology. Anti hormone treatment depends on the results of that so that is why you haven't been given any information yet. Microinvasion would most probably mean estrogen blockers but doctors want to know the whole picture before advising next steps.
I can't comment on a mastectomy since I had a lumpectomy but there are many threads on this site that deal with that surgery and options for reconstruction if you want that. After SNB I had nerve pain in my arm but used desensitization techniques to help deal with it as the nerves healed. One helpful piece of advice is to faithfully follow whatever postsurgical instructions (exercises, lifting restrictions) your team prescribes to help you heal and regain your range of motion. This is not something anyone would choose to do but here you are with others who have gone through the same things. All the best.
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Thankyou for your reply, its all getting overwhelming the nearer my surgery date is, google has so many conflicting stories about treatment and what to expect , trying to stay positive but its all been so quick and scary
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There are many conflicting stories about treatment and what to expect out there since everyone's situation is unique. I had been under the impression that breast cancer was "one size fits all" but that is very far from the reality. It is a scary situation since you don't have all the answers yet but once you have a treatment plan things really do get better. Then, if you have questions about a specific aspect of your personal plan you can find others here who have been through the same thing. Below is the breastcancer.org link to information on mastectomy. Hang in there and let us know how it turns out.
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