Symptoms of recurrent breast cancer?

jltandreilly

Symptoms of recurrent breast cancer?

jltandreilly

Hi - Over the past month I have had some pretty intense middle back pain that intensifies at night/early morning. It wakes me up and nearly takes my breath away. Different info and forums indicate it could be recurrent BC, but the flood of info and varying opinions has become a bit overwhelming in determining what direction I should go in. I had a bone scan last week and thankfully it was clean, but the pain persists and my onco is willing to do a CT. I haven't had an injury or tweaked my back in any way and as I try to "listen to my body" it's definitely something internal and am just trying to look for an answer. Obviously, given my history, it makes sense to start with my oncologist but looking for any stories, thoughts or others who may have or are experiencing anything similar. I'm now starting to struggle with my decision not to do chemo after my BMX but also don't want to live in the past. Thank you for any insight!

dlb823

It's a relief that your bone scan was clean, but if you continue to have the persistent pain, maybe ask your onc about doing an MRI.   I'm not sure a CTScan will show as much as the bone scan, but an MRI should pick up any soft tissue or bone irregularities. 

As far as second guessing your earlier tx decisions, please try not to go there.  We each make the best decisions we can with the information we have at the time.  BC can be so unpredictable, and recurrences happen in spite of the most aggressive tx and lifestyle changes, as do occasional horrible SEs and residual damage from chemo.  There's just no sense in second guessing a past decision using information you didn't have back then because you don't know if the outcome would have been the same, different or had other  complications.  

Your back pain could be due to so many things, including Tamox or an A/I, if you're on one of those.  Did you possibly move furniture or lift anything heavy around the time the pain started?  A kidney stone also comes to mind.  Whatever the cause, you clearly need the peace of mind of knowing what's causing your pain, so don't hesitate to ask for additional testing if it doesn't go away on its own.   (((Hugs))), and please keep us posted on what you find out.     Deanna

edwards750

Totally agree with Deanna. We understand why you might think its BC related but you know it might not be. Def check it out. There have been cases when BC is the culprit but again no way to know for sure. Def don't second guess yourself about treatment. You will make yourself crazy doing that. Diane 

Moderators

Dear jltandreilly, We are so sorry that you are dealing with pain and the worry that accompanies it and concerned that  you are feeling overwhelmed.  It looks like you are getting good support and ideas in this forum. Please keep in touch and let us know how you make out. Our thoughts are with you. The Mods

jltandreilly

Thanks, all, for your support and insight. Deanna, I am vacillating between MRI and CT which my onco has mentioned but seemed to settle on the CT - not sure why. In full disclosure, I haven't taken my Tamox regularly for fear of side-effects, and I'm not on an A/I. Last year, because of a large cyst on my ovary, I did a hyster, but they left my right ovary as not to throw me into surgical menopause. Unfortunately, it shut down anyway and am now post-menopausal. With that came 40 pounds in short order (my biggest initial fear of Tamox). Have managed to get 30 off and now working on the other 20 - so...starting Tamox regularly at this point makes me even more hesitant. I know it may sound vain, but mental and emotional well-being in my opinion is equally as important to good health and that's something that's always been a struggle, but I know I'm taking a gamble which, too, is in the back of my mind. Any advice on this topic is also welcome. Sorry to divulge more than you all probably care to know. Just trying to balance all of this even if this pain issue turns out to be something minute.