My mother --breast cancer round 2

knotguilty69

My mother --breast cancer round 2

knotguilty69

Can anyone help me to understand......my wonderful, beautiful, loving mother has been fighting breast cancer now for 2 years...July 06, she was diagnosed with cancer and they removed her left breast...39+ chemo treatments..including the "red dragon" and 46+ radiation treatments later they tell us she's in remission...(July 07)  Whew!!! so we thought...Jan. 16-08,  it has spred to her liver, lungs,and sternum...We start aggressive treatment.....Her hair falls out again after 1st treatment....Feb.01-08 it's now in her right breast and growing.....I'm stumped, numb, never felt  so helpless in my life...Help me,,,please understand   Her diagnosis; invasive ductal carcinoma

leaf

I am so sorry you are going through this, knotgulity. BC is a unfair fighter. It is a beast, as many women here say! It fights completely unfair!



I think a model of breast cancer is that in the usual case, it takes about 6-10 years for a breast cancer to reach the size it can be detected by *any* means. So usually breast cancers have been in the breast for some time. Some people think that some/often times if it metastasizes, it does this at about year 2, still long before it is a size big enough to be detected. When things happen in the time frame like your mother, I think the usual thought is that the cancers that are in her liver, etc. were there before she had chemo.





There is a forum below about recurant breast cancer, where there are a lot of women in similar circumstances.



Please know I am thinking of you. You must be going through a horrible time. We are here for you.

knotguilty69

Thank you Leaf....I feel so helpless...I would take this and do this for her if I could...She is an amazing woman, mother, and my very best friend

Anonymous

Oh, I am so sorry.  

I always tell people that it seems the cancer is just as hard for the caregiver as it is for the "patient."  I know it's different for both parties involved, but I also know that watching my dh watch me go through what sounds like very similar treatments 2.5 years ago, it broke my heart.  He tried to stay "strong" until the night before my last tx. I told him I needed to stop at the Post Office the next day and he finally burst into sobbing tears.  Watching him feel those emotions were like daggers stabbing me. 

Anyway, the treatments that are out there have been very successful at helping women like your mom.  It's going to be a journey and a half once again, but it can be done.  There are a lot of women here who can help you both and offer lots of support and love.  

I'll keep you guys in my prayers.  Please keep us posted. 
Love and prayers, Deb

mimi1030

I understand how you feel, I have been watching mom fight BC for 4 years.  She was initially dx Aug 04 with Left Breast DCIS with .5mm microinvasion, Stage 1, grade 1, Her2+++, clear nodes, clear margins after mastectomy, 4 rounds of toxic chemo that put her in the hospital in isolation.  She was not given Herceptin back then as it was not given to early stagers.  She was told you are cured and go home enjoy your life, we did that.  Then after having a failed TRAM flap with problems, she underwent a PET scan.  It was at this time Sept 07 she was dx with Stage 4 mets to the liver and bones.  When we sat in the room and were told this, the bottom fell out of my world, and my mom's.  We couldn't believe it, how could this happen, my mom had such a small cancer.  It is hard to receive the news, I can tell you it does get better with time, my mom is doing very well she is responding to treatment and after 5 months she is 2 tiny spots away from NED.  Remember there is always hope, do not listen to statistics, each person is there own individual.  There are people alove with mets that have been for 5, 10, 15 years and counting.  So, as hard as it is right now, just know that things will get better especially once you start seeing good news with scans and that treatment is working.

If you need to chat, drop me a line anytime as I know exactly what you are going through.

Hugs to you and mom,

Michelle