Scared Sick

hi pure

is it the same side as the lat flap surgery?  the lat can weaken your shoulder/range of motion.  I don't think (and i am not an expert here) that mets pains would come and go...i think it is pretty consistent.  I really think this is your upper body adjusting to the surgeries, apparently our muscles need to compensate for that lat that was moved to the front.  I actually think you are doing really well considering -boxing/paddling/rowing with this surgery is amazing.  I would contact your MO anyway to ease your mind

The best thing for you to do is speak to your onc or doctor and have an xray or scan done to confirm. My mom is all 11+ year Stage 3 survivor who is currently waiting on biopsy results after some shoulder pain and swelling that has come and gone led them to 3 suspicious bone lesions. She put off getting it checked because she was under the impression that if it was mets the pain and swelling would be constant, but has since learned otherwise from her onc and from the Stage IV ladies on here.

It started with shoulder pain and some collarbone swelling after some heavy lifting. It went away a week later and then 3 months later returned, only far more painful and MASSIVE swelling. It's been 7 weeks of scans, biopsies and waiting and the pain and swelling has since pretty much disappeared again.

The only way to get peace of mind is to get it checked out. Seems the standard is that any pain that lasts more than 2 weeks or keeps coming back should be checked out.

I hope you feel better soon

Sweet girl....

if your pain has come and gone that is good....My once. told me met bone pain is constant and does not get better but worse....give it some time try to baby it a bit...no paddling for a few weeks...advil and see how you feel....don't panic we are right here with you......you are ok.....love you

and in my prayers for peace......



Steph

Pure, I am sure you will find that this is a matter of overuse. That area of your body is never the same, and I often get pains that eventually go away. I even babied it for a long time the first few years, and I am a runner and exerciser. I used to do a lot of push-ups, but I stopped those and just recently started doing them again. When you have these issues, I think it's our body's way of telling us to slow down. Take it easy for a few weeks on the upper body stuff, and then see how it feels. I've been where you are many times...I know that scary feeling!

 {8}  Try not to to worry too much ahead of time,before you see somebody about it. I am am amazed you are doing paddling and rowing and boxing! Can I borrow a half a cupful of your energy? I hope it is just you pushing you to be stronger in your body and nothing worse. I am stage lllb or lllc, just finished chemo, and will start rads soon. lymphodema issues, and with extreme fatigue when i am normally active girl (52 years old) and i'd really like to box all the mad feelings out on a bag.  you know you best, but wow i am impressed with your regime. 12*30*12

Hi Jen,



I had pain in my shoulder area as well a while back - pain that would come and go. It seemed accentuated by some workouts but given my history I felt prudent to get it checked. I went to my general practioner and got an ultrasound of the area. The diagnosis was shoulder burstitis. I reduced the weights at my workouts (try to stay below 10 lbs on each side, usually I do 8 lbs) and the problem seems to have resolved. I'd say get it checked but feel confident that it's something else other than mets.



Good luck!!!

Pure, I had so much trouble with my shoulders when I was on aromatase inhibitors. Eventually the inflammation caused tendons in both shoulders to tear, and I ended up having rotator cuff surgeries. When I finally stopped the AI's after six long years, the pain stopped. It was exactly as you describe.Are you on an AI by any chance?

Also, I too had a muscle from my back put in my breast. I think you are working that area too hard, regardless of what else might be going on there.

I had radiating elbow pain that would not go away. My chiropractor was actually a great help in dx and working to eliminate the pain. My onc. agreed with everything he said and did!!

Rachel

Tell me about it Pure, 2.5 yrs. out and still dealing with all the psychological stuff.

Pure, We are vulnerable by nature of our geography..on top of all the other reasons we share with everyone here.  I share your fear and from this perspective I think the story of your friend is telling of why your anxiety is high right now. It makes sense. maybe the previous injury to your shoulder is being aggravated by the AI. I have lots of aches and pains, and really don't know if it's from the AI or something else. it worries me all the time. anyway, I hope you can find some freedom from your angst, even if they are just moments. I cherish those moments...of peace and gratitude. Although I have to admit the are fleeting, they are powerful and memorable.   

So glad the massage helped!

Hi, I am new here.  I was dx in February 2010 with infiltrating ductal cell carcinoma of my left breast.  The tumor was walnut size.  I had + lymph nodes in 9 nodes.  When I finally pinned them down they told me I was stage III c.  I did chemo, then surgery (double mastectomy), and then radiation.  I still have not done reconstruction but plan to do so. I took tamoxifen faithfully until this past November when i simply couldn't do it any more. I became menopausal after my first chemo treatment.  The side effects were awful for me - tons of pain, joint damage and pain, no energy, weight gain, headaches almost daily, extreme hot flashes ALL of the time, vaginal atrophy that made intercourse very painful even with the use of lubrication, clay colored stools at times, edema in my hands and legs, changes in vision, and tons of cognitive effects.  The cognitive effects were blamed on 'chemo-brain' but all of the symptoms cleared completely after I had stopped the medication in November.  I am reluctant to try any further medications because of my experience with tamoxifen.  My onc doctor recommends arimedex but I am starting to feel so great that I don't want to change this quality of life issue.  I am 49 years old and I am grateful to have survived my first battle with this demon cancer, but I have never been told about what kind of life extension the tamoxifen will give me.  I don't want to die, but I am also not afraid to do so. Sure could use some feedback from you all. 

Pure, are there no live support groups in your area? Is there a psychologist at your hospital/clinic? Most cancer units have someone you can talk to when needed. You are not alone in feeling this way.

Laurie, 

I believe the extreme hot flashes and other SEs means the tamoxifen was working. You were probably a strong metabolizer of tamoxifen. Not everyone is. Check out this study on Tamoxifen hot flashes and recurrence:

Most of the women (78%) reported hot flashes, and 69% of those reporting hot flashes also reported night sweats. Only 4% of the women reported night sweats in the absence of hot flashes, and 18% reported neither hot flashes nor night sweats. The incidence of hot flashes was not significantly associated with patient age; mean age was 54 years in both groups, with a range from 27 to 73 years in the hot flash group and a range from 28 to 73 years in the no symptom group.

Unadjusted cancer recurrence/new primary rates among women who reported mild, moderate, and severe hot flashes were similar at 13.9, 12.2, and 11.9% respectively, compared with 21.6% for women not reporting hot flashes. Thus we collapsed the hot flashes data into a binary variable.

Unadjusted recurrence rates for a subsequent breast cancer event were 14.3% among those reporting both hot flashes and night sweats, 9.6% among those reporting only hot flashes, 22.2% among those reporting only night sweats, and 21.4% among those reporting neither vasomotor symptom. Thus, the recurrence effect appears to be specific to reporting of any hot flashes (versus none).