TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP

Pbrain,

Special K is so right about fatty dairy products. I discussed it with both my mo's and neither would commit to agreeing that fatty dairy products might have a role in BC and recurrence but there are many years of research that point that way. Strikes a real blow for me because cheese is by far my favorite food. Maybe that's why I'm here in fact because the only other traditional risk factor I have is dense breasts. This is a recent study on the subject. I still eat non fat yoghurt , a small piece of cheese & pizza occasionally but I've pretty much given it up.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23492346
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/257782.php

Lago

I agree with you about the stress. I was under unrelenting stress for years prior to dx.... My own business , taking care of aging parents... Etc

Bovine growth hormone was introduced into the American milk supply beginning in 1985, but who knew?  I use organic low fat yogurt, one-half cup daily with frozen organic fruit for a smoothy and eat low fat, hormone free cheeses only.  I also eat a little organic beef and chicken plus wild-caught fish and seafood.  Some breast cancer survivors go totally vegan.  Let's face it, this stinking disease is a mind-boggling mystery as to causes, prevention, and cure.  I have even given up my wine and I reallly miss it. 

Hi all havn't posted for a little..finished FEC..now just wait for surgery oct.8th. continue with hercephtin on sept 9 till march. rads after surgery..I swear this is such a mental journey...some days i'm fine and other's I've got myself in the worst place.. I was crying thinking how do i know the chemo worked? how do i know it's not still spreading? I am stage 2b grade 3...but all my scans were negative inititally and the bump that was there is no longer.. you think i would use  my logicall mind but sometimes it's not working cause i'm to busy freaking myself out.. how do yu all cope with your brainS? i have been in the house all weeek out to run errands with family..i think i get cabin fever... can't wait to go to work this wed. so i can feel somewhat normal...this is such a bullshit ride!!!!

Thanks Ashland, I know it's all mind of matter, I've been really good since march when I was diagnosed... My spirits are up.. Guess I should give myself a break.. And let my emotions drain.i always want people to think I'm ok.. So I guess I'm not allowing myself to emotionally throw up;)

Just came across this article about probiotics - thought it was interesting, and possibly another good reason to take them.

http://now.msn.com/probiotics-psychiatry-may-be-linked-according-to-research

Oh, and another interesting thing--I was fed formula as a baby and the brand I had was pulled off of the market for making babies super fat and leading to adult obesity.  To this day I think my weight struggles have been due to that.  I have 3 slender siblings who didn't get that formula.  I wonder if it contributes to BC?  Yeah, just the scientist in me, pondering on a sunny Sunday...

Pbrain I am not convinced that eating cheese gave you breast cancer. IMO your biggest risk was being female and dense tissue (like me). Granted I didn't have kids but I am not a big cheese or red meat eater and never had a weight problem and I got  it. There are plenty of overweight and obese women that eat crap and are sedentary yet don't get it. Then there are the super althetic vegan types wit kids who do. I think it's a combination of things. But again there are plenty of women that have a glass of wine a day and never get it.

But cheese and shellfish are not good for cholesterol. Also the problem with cheese is it's such a dense food. Just a little bit  has lots of calories. I would say best to cut way down on the cheese and wine… you'll see some weight come off too.

I think lots of women get DCIS that goes away. Problem with us dense tissue gals is not that the dense tissue causes breast cancer but breast cancer likes to grow in that environment… my old boobs were a petri dish for it.

Ladies, I am not a cheese eater, only once in a while when I ordered a cheese burger. I don't drink or smoke, no formala in me, breast fed only(my poor mom). I only drink milk during my pregnancy (2 kids). I did drink coffee with cream one cup a day n drink pepsi almost daily during lunch time, but I also drink lots of water. Always skinny 5'4 110lbs all my life :-( . To me I don't think my diet was bad. I seen my co workers eat junk n crappy food than me n they dontthave cancer. I kno, I don't eat enough fruits n veggie as they recommeded. Yes I do have dense breast tissue.

I think we all would like a good damn reason why we got BC cause it F'd up our lives when we least expect it. I go through the what did I do's..... Why.... All that. I guess it's normal.. I just came from apicnic meetimg new people. I met a man with prostrate cancer going through rads.. He was so funny about his cancer as I am also... His wife myself and many others were having a good laugh at our cancer stories..I left feeling better than I did earlier.. Needed to laugh:)

I Love cheese specially pizza.  I had chocolate milk every morning. I don't like coffee or tea Drank coke or Pepsi everyday. I ate  meat every day I am way over weight for me but have not been that way my whole life. Only after I had kids. Bottle fed my kids, Smoked a pack a day. Drank on weekends with my husband for years.  Did not exercise and no one on either side of my family has had breast cancer. 

On to today I still drink chocolate milk, still love pizza, eat meat, I do not smoke anymore, I still drink on weekends with hubby. And I do exercise now BUT that is really a struggle to do everyday.  I don't drink Pepsi or coke much anymore as the nurse told me that drinking to much caffeine may cause cyst in the beast if drink to much they told me to cut back that was about less then 2 years before DX. 

Well the reason I said about menstrual bc less chance of recurrence if u dont get it after chemo...So I wanted to see who had ovaries taken out and any problem ...The issue is my age....If I was 50-60 I say take them...but i Dont want problems with heart

Ladies, any recomendation on vitamin? I am taking vitamin D complex right now.



Thank you!

On pondering how I got this dreadful disease...

That's just the way I am. I try to understand everything around me. I don't blame myself or anyone else for it. Who knows? Maybe our discussions may light a fire in a reader to do some research and discover the reason.

Morning ladies! Ugh.....WHY did we get this? That certainly is the question isn't it? Most of the time I agree with Lago, sometimes shit just happens and sometimes it happens to us, but that doesn't keep me from obsessing over the "what did I DOOOOOO!?" question.

As far as diet, when I was first diagnosed I freaked out about diet so much that I was basically not eating. I was told that really the ONLY thing that I did to "cause" this was "being a girl person".....that's it. That said, I did meet with an oncology dietician and here is what she stressed 1) maintain weight {or lose weight if over BMI} 2) exercise 3) eat more fruits and vegetables. She did say that women with bc shouldn't eat a whole lot of full fat dairy and should try to stick to low fat varieties. We only have hormone free milk in the house now, but I rarely drink it even though it's skim. I do try and by reduced fat cheese, but I will eat it if it's on other things. I really doubt, knowing that everyone I know drinks milk, that it caused my breast cancer. I DO however agree strongly with the stress thing. The past 3 years have been hard for us. Horror show of a twin pregnancy, NICU stay and various health scares with the boys, nto to mention a wonky thyroid US for myself - these past 3 years have been a constant state of stress/ anxiety for me and this certainly isn't helping. So, I guess, in that way, I DID do this to myself b/c I have stress. :~/

Speaking of anxiety, I do have a question for the ladies that did neoadjuvant chemo AND palpable nodes. I am currently doing neo chemo, this friday is my 12th taxane/ herceptin, then I start AC after that. I can no longer feel the primary tumor {although last time it was still visible on US}, but I can still feel my 2 palbable nodes. To me they feel like they have become WAAAAAAAY smaller, but on US it shows that they aren't that much smaller. I honestly find that hard to believe just based on what I feel, but whatever. Anyway, I am worried b/c I feel like the nodes haven't shrunk at all in the past 6 week, like at all. For those of you with palpable nodes {if there are any of you} did you nodes completely shrink to where they could no longer be detected by palpation? I, of course, have a lot of fears about this whole thing and currently I am obsessing over whether neo chemo was really the appropriate route to take. I am really worried that if the node is not shrinking down all the way that that means there is still cancer in there and that that cancer is able to send cells out to the remainder of my body. I have tears in my eyes as I sit here and worry about this.

I am sure you ladies get tired of the freaking out/ anxiety/ Debbie Downer posts, but I just need a little help from my friends this morning. If any of you could help me by sharing your experience that would be great. Much love.

~Heather