Which test can detect the cancer cells as early as possible?

EmmaL

Hi, ALL

i finished my treatment (chemo and radiotherapy) 1.5 months ago (20/06). because i am TN, i don't have ANY treatment since then. i ve read a few of us having the recurrence just 6 months after finishing the chemo. i am scared of recurrence very much because my oncologist once did mention that my cancer was (is?) present very aggressive and i ve got a 'high risk' label in my file.

for me, bc is the most inexplicable thing that ever happened to me. this time. this time, i would much rather find it as early as possible which typically may not be symptomatic than wait for symptoms to present themselves.

So far,  i've had a few physical exams from my breast cancer consultant and oncologist, cheing the wound, chin, armpit and the other breast left. i don't think these checks can pick up cancer cells. so i d like to ask a scan. Here is the problem - i dont know WHICH ONE?！

i ve read some posts here before posting mine. you have all kinds of scans after the treatment, e.g. mammogram, bone and ct scan, pet scan, mri, ultrasound etc. i did the researching on my own. it seems all these tests have their advantages and disadvantages.

personally, i d like to try all of them if possible but that is not going to happen. so which ONE is the best choice to my situation? i ll ask my doc about it when my next appointment but i d like  to get some advices and suggestions here as well . 

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

 

Luah

EmmaL: You may want to post this question in the Calling all TNs in UK thread, as you may get more information about standard practices locally. In Canada, for lower-risk BC patients, it's pretty standard to see your onc for regular clinical exams and have an annual mammogram as follow-up, other scans only if symptoms present. Your doctor is probably in the best position to know what scans would be beneficial given your risk profile. 

EmmaL

Thank you very much, Luah!

many thread here, i thought about it, idc? stage3? tn? or young age？i will follow your suggestion and have a look!

my cancer start from the sympton present. this bump flys me directly to stage 3. sometimes, i do feel very lucky for those ladies who find their cancer in situ.

ProfTNBC

Your concern has been mine too.  I don't have an answer to your question, but I do want to mention something that was told to me by a TNBC researcher - those with TNBC with highly agressive tumors seem to be likely to respond well to chemotherapy treatment - at least that is what the research seems to be saying.  (Patients with a Ki67 stain of over 45% have a very strong survival rate - this was told to me by a research doctor at the City of Hope here in California)  I was told that the best way to know if cancer is coming back after treatment is to be in tune with my body and to tell my doctors when I feel something is wrong.  I'd prefer to have a test that can be run that's more definitive than my own intuition.