Good news!!!

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sunshinegal
sunshinegal Member Posts: 209

I had a single mastectomy on Monday with SNB and immediate reconstruction with TE.

My biopsy diagnosis in October was high grade DCIS with comedonecrosis, and "microinvasion could not be ruled out."

During surgery 4 nodes were removed and all were negative (whew!).

This morning the final pathology came back from the mastectomy and the nodes were confirmed to be negative and....drumroll please....there was no invasion whatsoever in my 9cm lesion!! And it was intermediate grade, not high grade.

 I feel both giddy and in shock... the odds really seemed to suggest that there would be microinvasion (or more) in there due to its size and grade.

 The surgeon is going to discuss my case with his board in a couple of weeks...one margin was close though "not involved" so the question will be whether I will need radiation.

He didn't mention Tamixofen when he called this morning, so that is my major outstanding question to discuss with him next week. My husband and I want to start a family so we'll need to understand the implications of anti-hormone treatment and/or other risk reduction measures (i.e. prophylactic mastectomy on the other side).

But for now I am just going to embrace the incredible good news and smile my way through the weekend. I was prepared for much worse news - DCIS feels like such a gift.

 \\

Comments

  • Jelson
    Jelson Member Posts: 1,535
    edited November 2010

    Thank you for sharing your good news.

    Your upbeat attitude will serve you well.

    Have a Happy Thanksgiving, you have much to be thankful for. 

    Julie E

  • Sherryc
    Sherryc Member Posts: 5,938
    edited November 2010
    Happy dance on the good news.  Have a wonderful thanksgving.Smile
  • PlantLover
    PlantLover Member Posts: 622
    edited November 2010

    I love reading good news! 

    I will always remember the feeling of relief my husband and I had when my brain MRI and PET scan reports were in.  We were expecting METS - I had prepared myself for that over and over while waiting for the results.

    When the doctor said "No other tumors or suspicious spots found" I honestly thought she was fibbing.  I said, "Seriously, please tell us the truth."  She assured me that they could not withhold that info.

    I'm not trying to go on and on about me.  I just wanted to say I know how much relief you feel when the news is better than what you had prepared yourself for. Yes, giddy and shocked sums it up nicely,

    Enjoy!!   

  • HantaYo
    HantaYo Member Posts: 280
    edited November 2010

    Namaste!

    What great news!!!.  I am aiming my smiles East for you (I am in the midwest). 

    Karla

  • AsiaYM
    AsiaYM Member Posts: 2,216
    edited November 2010

    So happy for you, yeah!

  • sunshinegal
    sunshinegal Member Posts: 209
    edited November 2010

    Thank you, everyone. I know that every woman's battle is different and it is sheer luck that my diagnosis has turned out to be so favorable. I will be hugging everyone tightly this weekend and no doubt will be more grateful than I have ever been on Thanksgiving Day next week.

  • 3monstmama
    3monstmama Member Posts: 1,447
    edited November 2010

    Hurrah!  Have a great weekend and a happy Thanksgiving.

  • BikerBabe1
    BikerBabe1 Member Posts: 74
    edited November 2010
  • sunshinegal
    sunshinegal Member Posts: 209
    edited November 2010

    Thank you all again for chiming in on my thread. Just a quick update, based on having met with my surgeon this morning. He gave me a copy of my path report, confirming DCIS only, negative nodes. My TNM stage is pTis, pN0, pMX.

    My anterior margin is within 1mm; posterior within 2mm, other margins are clear. It is ER+/PR+ both at 80%, nuclear grade 2/3.

     I have a few questions:

    (1) The pathologist looked at 18 slides on a 9cm tumor - is this an adequate number of 'slices' to examine? Report says that "immunostains x2 confirm the absence of invasion." Wondering what the odds are that they simply missed a microinvasion.

    (2) My surgeon says he would not recommend radiation because even though the anterior margin is close, it is "uninvolved" and to him that is adequate. I know there is another active thread asking the same question - radiate for a 1mm margin - and it's also a question for me.

    (3) My surgeon went on to say that if my BRCA1/BRCA2 tests come back negative, which we expect they will, he would NOT recommend Tamoxifen or a prophylactic mastectomy. In his opinion, we will have adequately treated my DCIS and my risk of recurrence/new primary is low enough that he doesn't think it warrants additional risk reduction measures, even given my young age (36). I'm wondering how many other DCIS sisters have foregone all additional treatments? I think CrunchyPoodleMama has...has anyone else, and do you feel that's been the right decision for you?

     Thank you, ladies!!!

  • faithlmisjw
    faithlmisjw Member Posts: 11
    edited November 2010

    I was also diagnosed with DCIS with tumor size 5 cm.   Did a mastectomy with no radiation and chemo.  I also went ahead and did the BRCA tests.  The result was negative.  However, two of the oncologists I saw recommended me taking the Tamoxifen since they fear for the other breast to have invasive cancer in the future.  I knew several ladies who had DCIS and 5+ years later had cancer in other breast.  Fear for returning of invasive cancer, I took Tamoxifen. 

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