Jul 11, 2007 05:11PM karen1956 wrote:

I went for my annual mammo in January 2006. the tech who did the mammo told me that they needed to get another view as they could not see everything. She was so calm and matter of fact I was not the least bit worried. Three days later I got a called back to come in for a spot compression mammo and ultrasound - now I am WORRIED!!! I had several mammos and had never been called back before. I had been for my annual gyn exam the month before and gyn didn't feel anything. Ultrasound found two suspicious spots and I was sent for a biopsy. On 2/3/06 I was told that I had BC - ILC and IDC. Then sent for MRI. MRI light up another spot on the right breast, lymph nodes and something on the left breast so sent for more biopsies. Three places of cancer on right breast plus lymph involvement. Told left was cyst. My journey has begun looking for breast surgeon, plastic surgeon, oncologist and tests and more tests. Bilat mastectomy was recommended by the two surgeons I interviewed, so that is what I decided to do - and thank goodness as the "prohy" side came back atypical lobular hyperplasia. Axillary dissection revealed 8/12 positive lymph nodes. TAC chemo followed mastectomy, then radiation, ooph, AI's (first Arimidex, then Femara) then tried Tamox, and now on Aromasin after a 3 week break from all the meds. Recon (expanders removed and gel implants put in) in March and more recon to fix the radiated side in a couple weeks. I am currently NED. BRCA testing is negative, so thank goodness my girls are not at such a high risk, other than the fact that their mother had BC. 4 more years to go on AI's. First person in my family to have BC!!! I pray that one day, there will be not only a cure, but a prevention so that no other women will have to journey down this road. Karen in Denver

Jul 16, 2007 02:12PM snicklefritz wrote:

Aug 1, 2007 03:02PM bbmom wrote:

I was 42 when I found a lump in my rt breast in Nov. 05. After a couple of weeks of continuing to check the lump to make sure I really had something there I called my doctor. I went for a mammo, got sent for an ultrasound and a week later I was in a surgeon's office. I had a biopsy 2 days before Thanksgiving and found out I had cancer that Friday. On 12/09 I had a rt mast., expander put in and my port for chemo. Path report came back ILC, ER/PR+, HER2-,14 nodes +. I was told stage IIIC. I had dd A/T/C starting on 12/30. I cried my eyes out New Year's day just thinking about what the new year was going to be like. I spent 8 days in the hospital for a staff infection after my first treatment. I took Neupogin shots every day for 8 days after each treatment and Procrit once a week. I finished chemo 6/15, started rads 2 weeks later and in mid August I started on tamoxifen. After discussing a prophy for the left with my surgeon and onc, both felt like it would be a good thing to do, I decided that's what I would do. On 11/27 I had a lft mast and bilateral DIEP reconstruction. My onc has told me he would change me from tamox to an A1 in a couple of years.

Aug 12, 2007 03:24PM 1Cathi wrote:

My ILC journey began sometime in February of '06 while showering, there it was, and the only way I can describe the way it felt was it was a feeling as if a tiny pencil point had been placed under my skin and it was trying to work it's way out, left upper outer area. I knew right from the start it was wrong, but I was getting married in May to the most wonderful man I had met 4yr before after a 20+ year violent horrific marriage, I thought it could wait just a bit longer, but for 3 months all I did was feel it & know there was something wrong, the wedding the honeymoon (my 1st cruise) were fantastic, then it was back to work and normal life, my honey kept saying everyday make a doc's app yet? No , i'll do it tomorrow, then finally in June @ work I had such terrible pain in my arm I finally called my GP, he actaully felt another lump in R, that I could not, sent me for mamo & US and scheduled an app w/general surgeon, that was June 6, June 13th I saw surgeon w/reports, Birads4, excisional on both on June 27, told I had ILC, LCIS, ALh on June 29th (L Breast) R was B9 but ALH & A million other things. I fell apart - I had cancer, for sure I was going to die @46. Had lumpectomy, and 33Rad treatments, tried tamoxifen (side effects unbearable), I have had 3 more biopsy's since all on R breast, It has been a ruff hard year, I am finally trying to take control of my life, new doc's , seriously onsidering bilat, to many scares, I can't do that anymore. I used to think that I would live a good long life, now I know that I must live the life I have been given. And that really sucks sometimes. This site has been the most helpful to me these past months I wish I had found it sooner, I thank you all!!!!

Aug 18, 2007 02:23AM NancyNY wrote:

In May 2004 I noticed a crease in my right breast. I didn't feel anything. I insisted on a mammogram, and two weeks later they told me it was cancer. According to the first biopsy they thought it "favored ductal cancer grade 3" However, when they actually looked at the lump it was 2.3 cm. ILC involving the ducts, both classical and pleomorphic. What concerns me is that it had a high proliferation index. I did dose dense ACT rads and am now on arimidex. My oncologist told me that I was very lucky that the cancer grew where it did, so it was visible on a mammogram before it got very big.