DCIS, Stage 2 Grade II - can someone explain ER/PR

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juri
juri Member Posts: 4
edited June 2014 in DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ)

Hello Everyone, I'm 48 yrs old, working mother of 7 yrs old daughter living in Austria. I've been diagnosed with DCIS Stage 2 Grade 2 on my right breast. I have two tumors with 12 & 9 o'clock position. Due to this, i have to go for mastectomy which will be next Thursday.  I noticed that everyone here stated their diagnosis with ER/PR. Can someone explain to me what is ER /PR. Being a Singaporean (english speaking) living in Austria where German is the language, can be quite difficult for me. So far from the report that i've been given (in german language), there's no mention of ER/PR and the doctor also did not mention anything to me on this.

To tell the truth, as the days drawing nearer...I'm really really scared. Worst still, i have no family around to give me support..other than my husband and little daughter. Unfortunately my husband is the only son and both his parents had passed away. I'm feeling very depressed eversince i was diagnosed with breast cancer. Yes, i tried to stay strong and positive but it's really hard. I hope by joining this club it helps me to be more positive. 

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  • SpecialK
    SpecialK Member Posts: 16,486
    edited July 2012

    juri - I am sorry that you find yourself here - this is the most frightening time, when you know there is a problem but are still learning about it and formulating a treatment plan.  I am going to paste a link from breastcancer.org that explains hormonal receptors (ER/PR), and hopefully that will explain things for you.

    http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/diagnosis/hormone_status/

    The ladies on this site are here to help you in any way possible - you have come to the right place!  Best to you!

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  • BikerLee
    BikerLee Member Posts: 355
    edited July 2012

    ER = Östrogen-Rezeptor

    On a German report, it might have a different acronym.  Perhaps ÖR?

    PR = Progesteron-Rezeptor

    On a German report, it might be the same?  PR?

    Basically, the ER value tells you whether the cancer cells are sensitive to estrogen.  PR value tells you whether the cancer cells are sensitive to progesterone.  The percentage is the percentage of cells that stain positive for sensitivity to each hormone.

    Her2 is another one they test for:  HER2 is human epidermal growth factor receptor 2.

    humanen epidermalen Wachstumsfaktor-Rezeptor

    So, this is another one that the Germans may have a different acronym for.

    Do they have translators available at your doctor's office?  SOmeone fluent in both German and one of your major languages?  That might help you figure a lot of this out....

    Also, google translate is a pretty darn good resource.  If you learn about a particular issue related to breast cancer in one language, you could look up the words in German.  It works pretty well - not perfect - but darn good.

    Good luck.  I'm so sorry you are dealing with this diagnosis IN A SECOND LANGUAGE!!!!

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  • mckenna
    mckenna Member Posts: 413
    edited July 2012

    i would ask for clarification about the stage of your DCIS.  i believe that all DCIS is stage 0.  there are different grades but all stage is 0. sorry you don't have a lot of family near.  i am sure your dd and dh will be a great support to you.

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  • julz4
    julz4 Member Posts: 2,490
    edited July 2012

    I also have DCIS but am a grade 1 because of my Tumor size of 2.8 cm. But I have never heard of a larger stage in DCIS. I heard from my Breast Surgeon that there is talk of staging DCIS A,B,C sometime in the future. I'm not sure if other Countries are taking a different approach than the US. I wonder how large an area you have & maybe it's because you have several areas of DCIS. Good Luck! No matter what language it can be very confusing! Unfortunately more so in yours! BikerLee has really good ideas!

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  • juri
    juri Member Posts: 4
    edited July 2012

    Thank you Special K.....the link gave me better understanding about ER/PR.

    Hi Biker Lee, thank you very much... great reply. Now after going through the report again, i realised that I'm ER+/PR+.  As for the HER2, I'm yet to figure out what exactly it mean...because it stated as Ünberexpression (over expression) with a score of 2+. Do you know what does this mean?? In addition to this, there is also mention of B-Classification: B5b, I wonder what this mean.

    Hello McKenna & Julz4, thanks to you both because from your reply..it went to check again my report. From what i can gather from the report, the one at 9 o'clock position is ILC while the 12 o'clock is DCIS. 

    I am thankful and grateful to all of you for being so helpful.

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  • SpecialK
    SpecialK Member Posts: 16,486
    edited July 2012

    juri - you are welcome!  I will post a link from this site that will give an explanation of Her2neu for you - we are all either positive or negative for it, although there are some gradations and ambiguity.  Generally if the score is weak sometimes another test is done for more clarification.  Her2neu status is very important in invasive cancer because it determines whether or not the drug Herceptin needs to be given.  My understanding is that much of DCIS can be Her2positive but is of less consequence unless it contains an invasive component.  Many docs do not order Her2 testing on pure DCIS.  Here is the link:

    http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/diagnosis/her2.jsp

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  • juri
    juri Member Posts: 4
    edited July 2012

    Special K, I am Her2positive with score of 2+. (IHC test done ) From the link that you sent to me, 2+ is borderline. Fish test is to follow. Well, I'm learning bit by bit from everyone of you. Thank you.

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  • BikerLee
    BikerLee Member Posts: 355
    edited July 2012

    B5b means invasive and B5a means noninvasive....

    Your DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) is noninvasive but your ILC (infiltrating lobular carcinoma) is invasive.

    The Her2 status - that SOUNDS like you're positive for Her2, but without knowing exactly what the report says, it's difficult to know.  This is where a translator could really help you out.

    What Special K writes is important - the DCIS is quite different than the ILC.  Each of those may have different ER/PR/Her2 statuses.  

    Is it possible for you to have an interpreter at your next appointment?

    Best wishes

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  • BikerLee
    BikerLee Member Posts: 355
    edited July 2012

    Hi there - one more thing... You might find this group quite helpful - the triple positive group:

    Topic: TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP

    Forum: HER2/neu Positive Breast Cancer

    I'm a member of the triple negative club - that means no sensitivity to estrogen and progesterone and no Her2 overexpression....

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  • juri
    juri Member Posts: 4
    edited July 2012

    hi there, thank you for the info.  Have not been on this site for couple of days due to i was down bad flu and sore throat. Oh, i must correct on the error that 've made. The tumor at 9hr is IDC instead of ILC. Thanks to you Biker, otherwise i didn't realised that i had typed as ILC. 

    On this coming Wed (18th Jul), i have to be admitted and the operation will be on the next day. I hope all will goes smoothly.

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