where can I get more info?

maggie101

My 80 y.o. Mom probably has ILC w/lymph nodes involved - we'll find out for sure Fri. She had IDC in 2002 in the other breast. I researched alot then, but I am now having trouble finding good sources of info on lobular cancer - so much is out there about ductal, but lobular is harder to find. Also harder to find info on second bc in the other breast. Can anyone make any recommendations of books and or websites? Thank you ladies. Maggie

nash

This website is one of the best out there--just read your way around, and you'll find out what you need to know. Here's the section that summarizes ILC (sorry I can't post a live link with my browser):

http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/ilc/   

What was your mom's treatment for the IDC in 2002? Has she been on an aromatase inhibitor as treatment for it (Femara, Arimidex)?  If she has been on an AI, I'm surprsed that she developed ILC, as ILC is usually hormone positive, and the AI's are supposed to stop another hormone positive tumor from developing. At any rate, most oncs don't differentiate between IDC and ILC, and just look at receptor status to determine treatment options.

Positive nodes usually buy one chemo, but I don't know what they will suggest for a patient who is 80 years old. They may just go with hormone therapy, unless she's already been on it and it obviously hasn't been working, if they feel the risks of chemo outweigh the benefits at her age.

Hope that help a little. 

maggie101

thanks for the reply nash, it does help. the 1st ca was stage 3 + nodes - but hormone receptor negative. would that lead this one to be hr negative too? does the fact that she had a hysterectomy at age 49 have any bearing on this?

nash

It makes sense that she was triple neg the first time around, b/c like I said, it would be surprising to develop a hormone positive tumor while on hormone therapy. ILC is almost always (almost being the key word) hormone positive. Your mom's first primary and this one are unrelated, and you have to just think of them as two separate entities. The only thing that might tie them together is BRCA status. You may want to have your mom talk to a genetic counselor about BRCA testing, b/c triple negative tumors and the propensity for a second primary are often BRCA1 or 2 driven. If she gets tested and it comes back positive, you'd have a 50/50 chance of being BRCA positive as well. It's something you might want to look into.

Did they take her ovaries out with her hysterectomy? If so, that should have cut down on the risk of a new hormone positive tumor, but wouldn't have eliminated the risk. Really, the main thing with breast cancer and one's ovaries is whether one is pre or post-menopausal, b/c that drives the choice of hormone therapy. Obviously, your mom would be post-meno at 80 anyhow, so the fact that she had a hysterectomy, and I assume, oophrectomy wouldn't come into play here.

maggie101

Didn't know about the BRCA tendency - was thinking of getting tested for it, but I don't know if I want to know.... I'm pretty good about getting mammos and pushing for extra tests, but thanks for that info - because I will tell my sisters.

Guess at this point we have to see what happens. The surgeon is recommending a mastectomy. I'm just wondering what kind of effect that will have on her. 6 years ago she had a lumpectomy/node disection, chemo & rad and handled it well. It was after all the treatment that I think really took it's toll. The emotional, the psychological. At 80, I don't know if she's going to want any treatment at all. What are the AI side effects like?

nash

I'm on Tamoxifen, so I don't know about the AI's, but in general I think people get joint pain and some mood issues. I did have side effects with the Tamoxifen the first few weeks, but they subsided and now I'm fine. You might want to ask the girls over on the hormone therapy section what their experiences have been on AI's.

Good luck--I know how tough this is--my mom had bc, too.  

maggie101

Thanks for the info and the replies - I wish you all the best