Mammatest after BMX?

noodlesmom

Curious if anyone has information or thoughts about the necessity of a Mammatest if I've already had a BMX (had it 6 weeks ago so tissue samples are still available). Can it provide insight into the occurrence of uterine or ovarian? If it's limited to breast cancer recurrence and I no longer have my breasts, is there any benefit?

Thanks for an insight! You ladies are the experts.

MTwoman

noodlesmom, if you are referring to the Mammaprint test, that test is to determine the risk of recurrence in order to make recommendations about chemo (whether the benefits outweigh the risks). Read more here:

http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/testing/types/mammaprint

If you are referring to genetic testing (provide insight about whether you are at increased risk for uterine or ovarian ca based on certain genetic mutations), read more here: http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/testing/genetic

Good luck!

gb2115

Hey noodlesmom, are you referring to a Mammaprint test?

Won't help determine uterine or ovarian risk, but BRCA testing would help with that!!!

Mammaprint is done to identify the cell biology to see it's characteristics, how likely it is to recur (even metastatic), and whether or not chemo is worth it. I had it done because with one positive lymph node, chemo was on the table. But we decided not to do it because of the Mammaprint results. What type of cancer do you have? Has your oncologist mentioned the need for any sort of genomic testing?

noodlesmom

Oops. Yes, I meant Mammaprint. Sometimes my fingers move faster than my thought process! My oncologist did not mention it to me, but a friend said something in passing. I was Stage 1 (papillary carcinoma) and opted forthe BMX. I did not need chemo since lymph nodes were not involved. I didn't feel like Mammaprint would really be a necessary test for me but just figured I'd ask the experts here.

MTwoman

noodlesmom, did you meet with an MO?

obsolete

Hi Noodles, hope you're recovering well from your BMX surgery. From my past experiences in having consulted with multiple oncologists, surgeons & breast pathologists on Invasive Solid Papillary Carcinoma, the consensus recommended against genomic testing because it had not yet been proven beneficial due to it's rarity (1%) and "insufficient quantitative historical sample study data". You noted you also had papillary.

Additionally, it's my understanding that MammaPrint prerequisites include that it be an invasive cancer.

Papillary Carcinoma includes both "in situ" (encapsulated & intracystic), "solid" and "invasive" subtypes, which are each considered a separate disease subtype within the Papillary cancer family. If your Papillary BC was multi-focal or multi-centric & located within the periphery areas (chest wall, outer edges), there's research that suggests that peripheral papillary sometimes tends to be or become multi-centric or multi-focal. You can read more about this at links provided on the Papillary Carcinoma thread.

I had Invasive Solid Papillary, etc. and my onc had recommended that I choose between either radiation therapy and/or 5 yrs anti-hormone therapy following my BMX, but mainly because I also had multi-centric Mixed Invasive Mucinous Carcinoma. Fortunately average Oncotype scores for Papillary patients usually score low in the single digits for estrogen-positive papillary grades-I-II. However, I had elected against doing RT because my BC was not located in proximity to chest wall. I felt LX, BMX & hormone therapy was enough for me.

Wishing you the best in your treatment plan...

noodlesmom

MTwoman--No, I did not meet with a MO. Since my type of papillary carcinoma was encapsulated, there was very low risk that it had spread. My surgeon did check lymph nodes during surgery to be safe and sure enough, they were not involved.

I was offered radiation and/or tamoxifen post surgery to reduce the risk by another percentage point(s), but considering that my surgeon felt the risk for reoccurance was low (and I don't react well to most medication), we decided against it.

With my type of cancer and choice of treatment (BMX), I feel like I'm in a safe place, but I also don't want to be complacent. My focus in the past month has been diverted to recovery from my BMX and I just want to make sure that I'm not missing anything in the cancer department.

Thank you!

Obsolete- Thank you for all of the information. You have NO doubt done a ton of research. Judging by what I've read, along with the information you provided, I don't feel like there is any need to do additional testing. Honestly, other than radiation and/or tamoxifen, there's nothing I can do; the boobs are gone.