Nine Years Out

dsj

Just a little under nine years ago I was diagnosed with DCIS. Like everyone I was startled and scared. Those first few weeks I started to talk to doctors, did my own research, and found this board were terrifying. But I got through it, hurdle by hurdle: lumpectomy, radiation, tamoxifen. Now I hardly ever think about breast cancer. Except when I have my annual mammogram. Which I had yesterday. This week the memories came back but once again everything was fine—as it has been since my original treatment. Today my oncologist said he was good with seeing me once a year instead of every six months

I write this to those of you with DCIS who are at the beginning and are scared as I was. For the vast, vast majority of us breast cancer will become a thing of the past. It won’t be the first thing you think about every day. You will probably be nervous when regular mammogram comes around, but then your life will return to normal. This is NOT to deny how real your fear is or your worries legitimate. But for most of us DCIS will eventually recede from our everyday concerns. Love and best wishes to all my BC sisters

Moderators

Thanks for the reminder and the inspiration, dsj! This is all very important to remember, especially for newbies. It's hard to believe that at some point, your diagnosis and treatment will be in the past, and you'll be moving full steam ahead with a fulfilling happy life. So, we thank you for encouraging us all!

--The Mods

LAstar

Congratulations! I'm nearly to the 7-year mark. It's not something I think about every day, thankfully. I have a new appreciation for a good boring productive life rut now.

SusieInSeattle

Thank you dsj. I needed to read that today.

dsj

Dear Susie. I just read your thread. You have had a lot to deal with. But you have great docs and a great prognosis. The planning process was the worst for me. Once I made my decisions and and had my plan in place, I felt much better. And onceyou start your treatment, just keep remembering that everything you are doing is one more step to getting better and getting cancer behind you. Hugs, dsj.