Pregnant with IDC and delaying treatment until after delivery?

Rubyroo

Hi everyone. I am 31 and was diagnosed a month ago with IDC. I am 19 weeks pregnant so I am told I can't get rads or hormone therapies until after I deliver. I got my path report from my lumpectomy yesterday. My tumour is multifocal, but I am at stage 1, grade 2. They removed four lumps in total (only three lumps were anticipated so I found this disconcerting) and a 4 cm area of DCIS, but all 5 lymph nodes are clear.

The surgeon said a committee of surgeons/oncologists reviewed my case and couldn't decide whether to recommend chemo to me based on the pathology report and said it would likely be my decision. I'm waiting to talk to my oncologist on Thursday, but in the meantime I am wondering if anyone had delayed radiation and hormone therapy, approximately 5 months after surgery? I am hoping my oncologist will order an Oncotype test for more clarification but am not sure how common that is here.

I don't want to opt for chemo if the benefits don't outweigh the adverse effects, but I feel nervous about not having any further treatments until after I am due at the end of October. I have come across certain articles that mention rads as being a possibility later in pregnancy if the fetus is properly shielded - has anyone heard of this?

Hoping for any insights at all - I fear I have a very difficult decision ahead of me. I don't want to get chemo if the benefits don't outweigh the side effects and I am hopeful to enjoy the rest of this pregnancy this summer without undergoing chemo, but I also don't want to have anxiety about declining chemo. I tend to lean towards less intervention when it comes to my health, but obviously I am out of my league with cancer...

Racy

http://www.breastcancer.org/tips/fert_preg_adopt/bc_pregnancy/treatment

e12345e

Rubyroo,

I was diagnosed with IDC when I was 20 weeks pregnant back in Dec. After multiple biopsies, they found a tumor that's slightly less than 2cm and a DCIS on the same breast. I decided to postpone chemo until after birth, hence went for a lumpectomy (along with an re-excision) at 24 and 28 weeks. The tumor was 1.7CM and tested as grade 3 triple positive.

It was a difficult decision for me to make as I want to make sure I live a long life for my family but at the same time, I could not imagine putting my baby through chemo. I had 2 second opinions at different hospitals and all 3 MOs did suggest for me to start AC while pregnant and induce at 37/38 weeks. Ultimately, I made the decision not to start chemo nor induce. My baby decided on her own to come around 38 weeks mark (end of April) and I just started my first round of TCH.

Looking back, I would not change a thing because I looked at all my options and chose the one that's right for me. I would suggest you talk to different doctors to understand all of your treatment options and ultimately, choose the one you know you won't regret.

Best of luck to you and happy to chat if you have questions.

kira1234

Bump

Rubyroo

e12345e - thanks for your response. I admire your conviction in your decision making! And also wonderful that your babe came on her own. Hope you and the little one are doing well.

Just curious, did you get an oncotype score done? Or did they give you a sense of your recurrence risk? How are you doing with the treatments now?

I got my score today and I am in a grey zone. My recurrence risk overall with just tamoxifen is apparently only 11%. Chemo would reduce it by only 4 or 5. I wish I had more of a gut feeling but I'm still struggling with my decision on how to proceed