My first post, post-right mastectomy

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scary
scary Member Posts: 213
edited June 2014 in Just Diagnosed

I should have posted when i was first diagnosed, feb. 17, 2014.  then it was a whirlwind of activity.  i was immediately scheduled for mastectomy as the path. report said invasive mammary carcinoma.  i chose mastectomy over lumpectomy plus 6 weeks of radiation.  i have to be honest and say i always hated my huge boobs, which have given me nothing but trouble for most of my adult life, including back pain, leaking milk and clear fluid from both breasts, and a benign brain tumor (prolactinoma) which an mri a few years ago shows "disappeared" and prolactin levels back to normal, but the leaky breasts did not stop.  i was never able to carry a child full term, so leaky breasts added to that reminder in a very painful way.

I have not had insurance at my last few low-paying jobs, so since i have been having yearly mammograms through a local organization, they submitted a medicaid application for me through the breast and cervical program.  I hope to get the other breast removed soon.  I'm kind of shocked that older mammograms showed that i had very dense breast tissue that may have blocked the tumor, and now it is finally showing up.  it is very small, but invasive, so I am awaiting the lymph node biopsy as well.

Monday, I see the oncologist to see if I need chemo or whether just an estrogen blocking pill will do the job.  i will also be seeing the surgeon to determine the staging, and whether i can finally get this one foot line of staples out, and if this annoying drain can finally be pulled out.  Praying for all the people on this board.  will update when i know more.  xoxo to all. 

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  • farmerlucy
    farmerlucy Member Posts: 3,985
    edited March 2014

    scary - Welcome but sorry you have to be here. I'm glad you we able to find good care. Wishing you negative nodes and a good report on Monday.

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    thanks so much.  glad i found this wonderful site!

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  • Monis
    Monis Member Posts: 472
    edited March 2014

    Welcome to BCO!  Sorry you had to seek us out here, but you'll find great info and comfort here.  I also had a UMX a few months ago, and have a history of a prolactinoma.  I asked my oncologist and breast surgeon if there might be any link between the pituitary tumor and the BC, but neither one of them thought there was.  Good luck in your BC journey!

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited March 2014

    Hi scary, and welcome to Breastcancer.org, although we're sorry that you have to be here for this reason.

    Besides visiting this wonderful community, you may also want to check out the section Breast Cancer 101 on the main Breastcancer.org site. It's designed for those who are newly diagnosed, and can help you sort through all of the information on our site and what to expect now.

    We hope this helps.

    Best wishes,

    The Mods 

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  • bluepearl
    bluepearl Member Posts: 961
    edited March 2014

    Very small is very good. Hoping for all favorable attributes! ((((HUGS)))

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    thank you all.  p.s.  i wish i made my user name shorter, like scary52 or something.  that would have been easier, lol.

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  • farmerlucy
    farmerlucy Member Posts: 3,985
    edited March 2014

    scary - you can edit it to anything you'd like. Mine was too long initially, so I shortened it. I kinda like "scary" though!

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    i tried to change it, hit edit, and nothing happened, and i waited a while.  oh well, i'll try again later.

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    still trying to change screen name, but i can't, oh well.  anyway, today, i got the staples removed, and they put steri-strips there, but i have to leave the drain in, since 100 ml. or more is still draining daily.  The lymph nodes were negative, thank God.  But, the tumor was 6 mm. when it was first found, and 13 mm. when it came out with the breast, which i think is strange.

    i am estrogen and progesterone positive, so hormone therapy is in my future.  when my onco numbers come out in a week or two, they will know if i need chemo.  but, since i am both estr. and prog. positive, is there one drug to block both, or are there two different drugs? 

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  • farmerlucy
    farmerlucy Member Posts: 3,985
    edited March 2014

    Scary - Yay for negative nodes! I think it is very common for screening to show one size and pathology to show another. 1.3 cm is still quite small. (I know it is still a kick in the teeth. Devil)

    That is a good question about blocking both. I can't say for sure but I know in my case the Tamoxifen is supposed to block any rogue cancer cells from feeding off any estrogen in my body.

    So far your stats look pretty good. Fingers crossed for a low oncotypedx score!

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    thank you.  i'll post my other stats too if they mean anything:  Her2 test: negative.  ki-67: 12.80% borderline.  p53: 0.74% favorable.  Invasive ductal carcinoma, histologic grade: 2 of 3.  tubular differentiation: 3 of 3.  Nuclear pleomorphism: 2 of 3.  Mitotic rate: 1 of 3.  tumor size 13 mm., tumor locality: unifocal.  Margins and nipple not involved.  In addition, there were four instances of dcis contained in removed breast tissue.

    pathologic stage: pT1c pNO (0/14 total lymph nodes).  Grade 2.

    can anyone here interpret the above?  my surgeon said i have a pretty good prognosis.

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  • farmerlucy
    farmerlucy Member Posts: 3,985
    edited March 2014

    Looks like you'll be Stage 1a. Grade 2 (6 out of 9) ER+, PR+, HER2-

    Only one invasive tumor was found, 4 instances of DCIS were found, which are all "lesser" than the one IDC, so won't effect outcome

    Ki-67 is relatively low, that measures how fast tumor is growing, so that is good.

    The Oncotypedx measures your risk of recurrence for the IDC based on looking at the genetics of the tumor instead of the grade or size. Doctors will use that to determine the need for chemo. They will most likely recommend hormone therapy regardless.

    Your stats look similar to mine. My prognosis is very good. You can plug this into the cancermath website, but your onco score will be a better measure of your actual stats than cancermath. 

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014


    thank you Farmer Lucy.

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  • scary
    scary Member Posts: 213
    edited March 2014

    by the way, i lost about 7 lbs., part of which is breast tissue (i was a cup size H if not more), plus fluid that collected in the drains, and maybe my appetite has gone down a bit.


     

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