Newly diagnosed and trying hard to cope

Jstarling

I was diagnosed a week ago today and have a lumpectomy scheduled for February 12. That will by followed by some kind of chemo and finally with a month of radiation treatments. The sugeon is just great, she is calm, reassuring and very matter of fact. I left our meeting feeling this will be long but very doable and all will be fine.

I am a retired (age 63)librarian, live north of Atlanta, and amno stranger to research but this really has me unnerved. My diagnosis is E+P positive and HER 2/Neu -3+ KI-67 16%. I felt pretty good learning about positive hormone receptors but now all this information about HER status has left me quivering in my boots! Afraid to even read about the proliferation rate stuff. I see that i’m Not the only newly diagnosed person to fall apart.

I’d appreciate any wisdom or advice any of you can share. I have a great deal of support from my family, my knitting group, aqua aerobics pals and other friends but am trying so hard to be upbeat. Just take a day at a time.

ElaineTherese

Hi!

I'm also Triple Positive ER+/PR+/HER2+, and there's an awesome Triple Positive Board here. How big is your tumor? If it's less than 2 cm., your prognosis is really quite good, triple positive or no. Plus, the chemo regimen for smaller HER2+ tumors is milder.

I had a big tumor (5 cm.+), and one node was compromised. So, I got the works as you can see from my signature. Just focus on one step of the process at a time. For now, it's your lumpectomy. I also had a lumpectomy, and it was very doable. I was happy to avoid reconstruction, which can have all its own complications.

I was very concerned when I was first diagnosed, as I have three children at home. But, now that I'm 3.5 years out, I feel more confident that I will be here for years to come.

Keep busy, and focus on the next step. If you are having anxiety, depression, or insomnia, please let your doctors know. I used to keep a small stash of Ativan around the house for sleep emergencies (those nights when you just toss and turn).

My mom is a retired librarian!

((Hugs)) and take care.

The Triple Positive Board can be found here:

https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/80/topics/764183?page=1160#idx_34800

Anonymous

Dear Starling,

Nothing in the world can prepare us for news like this. It takes time to adjust and to understand that although things have changed dramatically, our lives are still intact and we will be intact in them, too; that treatment is what we do now, but it is temporary, and that feeling abject fear is absolutely a normal reaction no matter how we try to logically make sense of what we've been told.

These discussion boards were so helpful to me; are still helpful to me years later. I hope that you can drop in here and feel the support and understanding of hundreds of thousands of members who have gathered here to offer compassion, information, and hope.

I am also an academic and I had to draw back from over-researching in the early days. I had to remind myself that often the not-so-great information I found lacked credibility or was years and years old. One thing that helped me was reading about women who had a worse dx that I did, and finding out that they were 20 years or more out from their dx and still here, enjoying life.

I hated the stigma of getting this dx for no obvious reason--now I know it was pretty much just bad luck and probably a misfire in a cell copy, but I felt singled out. Coming here regularly helped me realize that I wasn't alone and that this dx was yes, a disease dx, but not any different than one like diabetes, or heart disease, or anything else that if left untreated will kill us. I've been talked off a cliff more than once by other members, and I'm so grateful.

Hugs, and know you are among friends and b.c. vets who will help you!

Claire in AZ

Jstarling

What a comforting response. Thank you so much. Will keep reading. Jan

moth

The beginning and waiting and trying to not freak out parts are hard but it gets better - esp once we have a clear plan and something to actually do, kwim?

I have an online bc survivor friend who offered to be my googler so I wouldn't go down any rabbit holes & freak myself out. Even parts of this board overwhelm me. Be careful looking up stuff. So much is out of date or not really applicable to us as individuals. Stats are useful to epidemiologists to see trends, and to oncologists to decide on best treatment plans but much less applicable to us....

One of the first articles breastcancer.org served me up on my profile page was an article about preventing recurrence through lifestyle modifications. This was stuff I could control! I found the original research this article refers to and read it. That gave me comfort and encouragement. The surgeons will cut it out, the oncologists will use chemicals & radiation & meds to zap stray cells, and WE can reduce recurrence risk through exercise. http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/most-imp...

Jstarling

You are so right, this makes sense and I can do these things. I have done water aerobics for years-mostly because of the great group of ladies and the lovely feeling of being in the water. I wonder how long it will take for my lumpectomy to heal. I was in the water within a week of the biopsy. Thanks for positive vibes