2nd DCIS other breast

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radcad92
radcad92 Member Posts: 22
edited June 2014 in DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ)

Hi all about 6 years ago I was diagnosed with a stage 1 DCIS based on a 4MM infiltrating into the breast . I had a complete masectomy no rads no chemo . For the last 5 years my annual mammo was fine. Last Wednesday I had my annual mammo &  3 microcalcifications showed up upon magnification. They were in a fairly straight line wide apart . He The radiologist)  was very comforting and repated over and over ( he saw the terror in my eyes I am sure) that this could be nothing or if it was something it would be very early and most likely DCIS as no othe abnormalities other than the micro calcifications were found. He also indicated it would not be life threatening and I would be fine .  I am now scheduled for a stereotactic biopsy next Tuesday . . Do  radiologists soft pedal stuff or are they generally pretty accurate? He seemed very straight forward &  I want to believe him as he was very emphatic about it not being anything life threatening and I would be fine He also said he had been doing this a long time and would know if there was a bigger issue. This work was done at Swedish Medical center in Seattle where everything they use is state of art .  My biggest regret is that I did not proactively remove both on that first surgery because every year I have had a nervous breakdwn at mammo time every year. In any eveny my option regardless of the outcome will be to have another mastectomy . I am hoping I can avoid the biopsy , & just do the surgery and let them figure out what is or isnt up when they did the after surgery evaluation . I had a very easy time my last surgery . Have any of you heard of doing this?

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  • Ridley
    Ridley Member Posts: 634
    edited December 2013


    Radcad, if you don't have a biopsy, will the surgeon do a sentinel node biopsy with the mastectomh? That may be one reason to do a biopsy, if the answer is yes.


    I'm having a bilateral mastectomy and until we just recently found dcis in the "other" side, I thought I was going to be able to avoid an snb on that side. My surgeon says it is standard of care here to do an snb, now that we have confirmed dcis via biopsy.


    Good luck!

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  • beacon800
    beacon800 Member Posts: 922
    edited December 2013

    ridley nailed it.  I agree, have the biopsy, don't go right to mx surgery.  If you can avoid a sentinel node biopsy that is an advantage to you and quite possible in a purely prophylactic mx setting.  If the biopsy finds something invasive or even dcis, you may have to do the sentinel node, but if it's not needed, avoid it!

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  • radcad92
    radcad92 Member Posts: 22
    edited December 2013


    When I had my other surgery they did the SNB at either my lumpectomy or my masectomy ( cant remember ) not during the stereotactic biopsy . The sterotactic thing took a full 2 full hours of compression and needles ... , what is the downside of the SNB being done during the surgery?

     

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  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited December 2013


    The downside of having the SNB?


    Exposing yourself to a lifelong risk of lymphedema.


    If it turns out that you don't have invasive breast cancer, the SNB would be totally unnecessary. But once you have the SNB, you will always have the risk of lymphedema.


    Keep in mind that 50% of women develop harmless calcifications as they age. At the time of my diagnosis, I had calcs in both breasts. One breast turned out to be full of high grade DCIS and a microinvasion of IDC. The other breast had completely benign, harmless calcs. I had a single MX. Eight years later, I still have those harmless calcs (harmless calcs never develop into anything serious) and I still have my breast and I'm just fine. I've been on this board a long time and I've seen lots of women with a history of DCIS develop benign calcs later on, either in the same breast or in the opposite breast. Calcs aren't unusual and about 95% of them turn out to be nothing serious at all.


    There is no way to know whether your new calcs are DCIS or are benign, but the odds are much greater that they will turn out to be benign. But an SNB always presents a risk of lymphedema, and that risk stays with you for the rest of your life.

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  • radcad92
    radcad92 Member Posts: 22
    edited December 2013

    Thanks for the clarification Beesie ,  this micro calcification thing is a hard one ..... I have 3 that were found when magnified . They look like Orions belt , in a straight line far apart from each other. I believe this "pattern" is what prompted the radiologist to order the biopsy .  I guess part of my own problem is I had a melt down annualy prior to my mammograms . Psychologically it has been a nightmare so I have been kind of wanting to do the mastectomy anyway  . I wonder why they did both the biopsy and the SNB last time . If I am understanding you it probably was because they detected the infiltration during the biopsy and so had to determine once in surgery if it hit the SN.

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  • radcad92
    radcad92 Member Posts: 22
    edited March 2014


    Hi all , just a final note . I went straght to full mastectomy surgery Jan 13th 2014  . All was clear no DCIS or anything else , nodes fine. Surgery was easy . Recovery was fine other than the bronchitis I managed to get the week after my surgery . I thank you all so much for your input and support . Just wanted to advise you of the outcome. I must admit not being lopsided is just great !! Clothes fit , no bra needed . No more mammograms . I am ecstatic . I know mastectomies are not for everyone but for me this was THE perfect solution . I am a whole new person :)

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