Diagnosed today with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma - Very nervous

(((redlessi))) Tamoxifen hasn't been too bad for me, certainly not as tough as chemo was so hang in there...there are some great forums here on Tamoxifen and how to deal with the side effects:) 

(((Mary1952))) so very sorry you have to join us...yes, it's hard to hear, I remember how devastated I felt when I got my biopsy results and, like you, I had my mammograms every year and thought I would "catch it early" but 1 month after another "normal" mammogram I referred myself to a surgeon to check out a lump and had a biopsy - it was IDC and DCIS. It may be hard to believe right now but once I got the pathology and had a treatment plan I felt better...I knew how to fight this beast and had a team I could trust to help me. There are so many women here who can answer your questions, we know what you're going thru and we're here for you...ask questions...let us know what you find out (((Hugs and Hope))) hang in there...Maureen

Mary- you are doing everything right. Going to the best BC hospital in your region , getting a team together and gathering information. When I was first diagnosed I also did a lot of reading . My favorite book was the Breast Cancer Survival Manual by John Link, MD.. Dr. Susan Love's book is good too.

You will find that breast cancer treatment options are very individualized and and getting all the information together before you make important decisions is critical. There isn't one way to do things these days. 

You got this!

Ask for copies of all written reports, including your pathology report.  Start a binder so you can have this paperwork on hand.  I have referred back to mine many times for an assortment of reasons.  Some also find that taking a small handheld tape recorder, or recording your appointment on your cell phone, to be a handy way to refer back to points made by your physician.  On the subject of genetic testing - never a bad idea once you have been diagnosed with breast cancer, particularly if you have children.  It is important to note that the percentage of BRCA positive is relatively small, those diagnosed with breast cancer often have a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, or both, and are relatively young at the age of diagnosis.  Linked below is some information from BCO:

http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/testing/genetic

As far as wondering if you would be considered early stage, everything up to stage 3A is considered early stage.  If you are found to be node negative and your mass is 5mm, then you would most likely be stage 1, certainly early stage, but this is not known until after surgery.  Imaging often is somewhat inaccurate when estimating size, so staging is not formally done until looking at what has been surgically removed. 

Mary - you are in top of it! Special K is right on too! 

Appointment buddy a must...solid stand up person

File with all your records...I took it to all appointments...get copies of everything and check with your insurance to make sure everything is pure approved so no issues.

Notebook with all your questions (3 copies) yours, Drs, and appt buddies to take notes BC our brain goes blank... Also all business cards and names of the front desk, RN, key staff...like in business be pleasant, use their names and thank them...honey goes a long may and you want them to be there when you need requests

The Breast Cancer Husband great read and helpful I read and highlighted what I could not express to husband, family, so they would understand what I needed and where m head was.

Review on this site understanding your dx and questions to ask ...make a copy.  Ask about all BRCA and oncotype testing...ask what your options are and visit all team members prior to finalizing your decision...

Breathe, and review all your team says and then you determine what plan you feel is right for you...don't second guess yourself, don't look back, just press forward and follow your heart and gut for what is right for you!  In your pocket...Monday will be here soon enough:). The waiting is the hardest...so use it to your advantage...and enjoy family and friends this weekend!

(((Hugs)))

Cindy

Mary,

Be prepared to get a lot of information. Until you get your final pathology and know definitely what you are dealing with  you can't decide on a treatment plan. Often the biopsy is much different from the final pathology ( as was in my case - went from stage 1 grade 1 to stage 2a grade 2/3) . Are you seeing a surgical oncologist or a Medical oncologist.? It makes a difference on which conversation you will be having.

Make sure you ask about the Oncotype test. Listen, take notes, and make sure they are explaining things clearly to you. There is lots of great information on this site as to what questions you should be asking. You want to make sure you understand on your options.

As Rmulu said... Breathe.. Nothing happens super fast.

My sister went with me to take notes.  My brain shorted out at my first visit with my BS. 

I am so glad you are going to MSK --  keep doing what you are doing.  I write a busy breast

cancer blog about every aspect of BC.  If you need some information, it is there.

Sending you a hug...Denise

Hi there. I am a Registered Nurse.  Here's a distant perspective for you. I had less than 1 cm. (found out true size at time of surgery) invasive ductal carcinoma of L breast in 2000. I wanted it done and over. I had lumpectomy with radiation and never looked back. Of course, I was scared and devastated,like you, but with time, you just walk through it and its gets better with every follow up negative mammogram. Well, here we are 14 years later and the radiaton has reduced the size of the L breast by half. Plastic surgeon called it the "gift that keeps on giving".

So now, I decide that 14 years later, reconstruction would be good. I decided on fat grafting alone for reconstruction. I go for a pre-op MRI and find that I have some ductal hyperplasia without atypia in my R breast. Well, that is benign but requires 6 month f/u MRI's. Soooo, this begs the question, how often does hyperplasia without atypia become hyperplasia with atypia...DCIS...then invasive ductal carcinoma, especially when there is a history of breast cancer in the patient? Unknown but certainly possible..

My point in all this blabbering is.....now I am considering prophylactic bilateral mastectomy ( a choice that is widely recommended these days) with reconstruction. Soooo, stop and think how important subsequent reconstruction may become to you. I never thought that radiation after lumpectomy would become so disfiguring. I never planned on any kind of reconstruction. Lumpectomy with radiation has as good a potential cure rate as mastectomy does. But if you care about cosmetics, at least have a thorough discussion with your breast surgeon regarding mastectomy as opposed to lumpectomy. The thinking on surgery recommendation is very evolutional in all surgeries. What is the "hot lick" in 2000 for small tumors (lumpectomy with radiation) may not be in 2014.

Best of luck to you and all of us.  Love........ Someday, all this will probably be behind you since you are diagnosed so early and you'll just want to be the whole pretty girl you always have been.

Hi Mary (and everyone else!)

I was diagnosed with Stage 2A grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma on 3/31/14. I had a port placed this past Tuesday and I'm starting chemo this Thursday, April 24th as my docs feel neoadjuvant therapy prior to surgery is the best way to treat my particular cancer. I am waiting for my genetics test results before deciding on a lumpectomy, mastectomy or double mastectomy. I know, it's very scary to hear "You have breast cancer"   but luckily, places like this forum exist where we can find other patients and survivors for support, I know I"m grateful! My friends and family have been wonderful but sometimes you just want to talk to someone else who has been there and done that and knows what you are going through and can offer advice and guidance from firsthand experience. I'm pretty nervous about my first chemo, hearing about all the LOVELY possible side effects, I'm hoping I won't be hit too hard. My oncologist loaded me up with prescriptions for all possible side effects so I would have them just in case. Hang in there, Mary!! We can do this!!!

Mary, it is great that you came to these boards with so many wonderful helpful women!  Stay strong for your journey.  Walk, eat right, get a massage.  All these things help.

My cancer was also only 5 mm.  Because of the size and the low grade no chemo was recommended.  I'm not saying that it will be this way for you but sometimes it happens.  I had a diagnostic mammo in the beginning of last March.  Then between the ultrasound, biopsies, MRI, and genetic testing the actual surgery didn't happen until the end of last April.  It was at least six weeks.  Just wanted to tell you that waiting is not unusual. 

Hang in there, dear.  We are survivors.

Yippee Mary!  Great news...info and a plan taking shape.  Yes, a dinner with hubby!

Please listen to your BC team and Your heart on what is right for You! And don't second guess yourself.

Please join us in the Lumpectomy Lounge and ask any questions you may have.

Ask your BS for a copy of the path report from biopsy...you will have a complete path once surgery is done and oncotype and any other testing you have discussed with your team...yes...a wait for each piece...but soon a complete profile and plan.  Enjoy your week...

I pressed for bmx, but my BC team and oncol social worker discussed options and I moved forward with lx&snd...my c was near the chest wall and radiation was necessary so I didn't want to deal with reconstruction and rad issues...I'm very happy.

We will be in your pocket Tuesday!

(((Hugs)))

Cindy

Mary -- if you have your pathology report from the biopsy, sometimes grade is described as follows -- well differentiated (grade 1), moderately differentiated (grade 2) and poorly differentiated (grade 3.)

Re: lumpectomy vs. mastectomy -- only you can decide, and there are some great threads on the forum with all kinds of things to consider (e.g. recovery, reconstruction, radiation, future screening, etc. etc.).  I did a lumpectomy first and it was an easy surgery for me to recovery from.  I ended up with a mastectomy because of a complicated pathology, but don't regret doing a lumpectomy first.

When you go for surgery, they might need to insert a wire to ensure they take out the right tissue.  When you had your biopsy, they probably put a tiny titanium clip to mark where they took the biopsy sample from.  They may insert a wire to mark that spot and check with a mammogram to ensure that the wire is in the right place.  I had this done and first they froze the area.  It was no more uncomfortable for me than the biopsy.

I have heard women here report back that no additional cancer was found from their surgery -- so the biopsy removed it all -- that would be great!

Good luck next week,

Ridley