Just Diagnosed .... Again!

123abc1611

I'm looking for individuals who have had a similar situation to mine. I was originally diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997. My tumor was less than 2 cm and was ER positive. I had 6 positive nodes. I was treated with breast conserving surgery, chemo, radiation, and 5+ years of estrogen blocking drugs.

Now, fast forward, over 19 years later! When I went in for my annual mammogram last week, a suspicious place at 2 o'clock position in my left breast was discovered. This was the same exact spot as my original cancer almost 20 years ago and right on the surgical scar. They did an ultra-sound which resulted in the radiologist recommendation of a biopsy. He stated he really thought maybe it was just scar tissue or fatty tissue, but that it looked different than my last mammogram so, in light of my history, he didn't want to take any chances. That spot had always seemed hard to me so it made my self-exams difficult.

I heard from my doctor this morning. News was not too good. I have a new primary cancer in my breast at the same spot as my last cancer 19 years ago. She said it's a new primary rather than a recurrence of the old cancer and has formed since my mammogram in 2015. They have me scheduled for MRI on Friday morning and appointment to meet with surgeon on Friday afternoon. I am looking at mastectomy definitely on at least one breast (maybe both) and then after MRI they will be better able to discuss my course of treatment. I am so sick! I don't want to go through that sh*t again! Here is part of what the pathology report said:

Microscopic description is "invasive carcinoma is present in all three tissue cores with a maximum linear extent of 1.7 cm. The tumor exhibits no lubule formation, moderate nuclear atypia and a low mitolic rate, for a combined Nottingham grade II. No in-situ carcinoma or lymphatic vascular space invasion is identified. Much of the tumor exhibits plasmacytoid morphology, suggestive of pleomorphic lobular carcinoma. An immunohistochemical stain for E-cadherin is negative, supporting this classification.

ER (clone 6F11): Positive (30% weak, with focal "hot spot" that is 80%, intermediate)

PR (clone 16); positive (95% strong)

KI-67 (clong MIB-1): approximately 10%

I apologize for any typos. It's hard to read and type when you're crying! If anyone could help me understand in plain english what the above says, I would appreciate it. Also, anyone out there who has went through the same thing? I'm praying the MRI doesn't show anything anywhere else!

Moderators

Hi 123abc,

We're so sorry to hear this news! You're sure to get some great support here soon. Once you have more answers, you should start feeling better about your diagnosis and treatment.

To help reach others who are experiencing a new primary diagnosis, you may want to check out the Second or Third Breast Cancer forum.

We hope this helps, and that you get answers soon. We're all here for you! Big hugs!

--The Mods