Fourth lumpectomy or unilateral or bilateral mastectomy?
I'm not able to make up my mind. I went from having the "best cancer ever" to facing a unilateral or bilateral mastectomy. I'm upset, confused and unable to make up my mind.
I was diagnosed with very small DCIS in both breasts, stage 0, so the recommendation was to have a lumpectomy on both breasts. I did that and I got clear margins of the left breast (except 1 slide) but not so in the right one. So I underwent a second lumpectomy of my right breast with the hope of getting clear margins. No luck, so I had a third lumpectomy as the Dr. said this time he would be generous and he was convinced this time he will get clear margins. No luck again, it seems that I have "multiple scattered foci".
So now I'm facing a very hard decision: Should I go for a forth lumpectomy or should I have a mastectomy of my right breast? Also, should I consider a bilateral mastectomy? especially taking into account that the left breast already has a dent and 1 slide showed DCIS?
I'm very nervous as I cannot make up my mind.
I would appreciate your thoughts and experience!
Comments
-
if it were me, I'd go with a double with reconstruction. But I have a strong family history. If I wind up in you situation that's what I'm planning on doing.
-
Thank you for your thoughts!
-
Angela
I was in the same boat as you..........doctor said if you were to have cancer this is the best to have. What a joke!
Dx with DCIS stage 0, had lumpectomy and biopsy found a micro invasion. Clear margins. I thought I wold be fine because the BS said we would just watch and I went every 6 months for mammo and sono. Long story short Dec 2014 I was dx with stage 3a Breast cancer. I had a masectomy and am now undergoing chemo and targeted therapy. I wish I had a masectomy back then! I wish you the best, just really think about it before making your decision.
-
Dear Angela15, Welcome to the BCO community. We are glad that you checked in with our members as there can be so many tough decisions along the way. We hope that you will find some support, information and peace of mind from others here with shared experiences. Here is some information on our site about questions related to your decision Mastectomy versus Lumpectomy. Keep us posted. The Mods
-
Angela,I wish you all the best as you make your way through this. I was diagnosed with DCIS in my right breast, and IDC in the left this spring. Before surgery, I consulted with all of the specialists, including the radiation therapist. He earned my deep respect on my first visit by his obvious thoroughness and amazing thoughtfulness. I had had several conversations about the lumpectomy-mastectomy decision with my BS, and when asked what I wanted, I finally told the BS what I wanted she could not give me, which was no BC and no surgery. My second choice was the least invasive surgery for the maximal medical benefit. If that was lumpectomy, then that is what I wanted. I told the radiation therapist the same thing. On my next visit to the surgeon, I was told that the tumor board was making the recommendation of bilateral mastectomy, which I had a month ago. Apparently the radiation therapist had a pretty strong conviction that that was my best course. I wanted their best medical opinion .... period. In my case, that decision was no doubt colored by the fact that both my mother and maternal grandmother had had BC.
Separately, I chose not to have immediate reconstruction, as I wanted the chance to heal, to see how well or poorly I did with no reconstruction, and proceed with reconstruction later if I really feel I need to and want to. There may be some compromise cosmetically should I choose reconstruction later, but it made more sense to me to wait.
Have you gotten a second opinion? I also wonder whether an MRI could be useful for you. Has that been done?
-
I should have also included that my DCIS biopsy had comedo necrosis, and it was pointed out to me that this raised concern also. There are so many things to factor into the decision. -
Thank you so much for your message AnewBeginning!
May I ask how long it took your DCIS to transform into stage 3?
-
I'm working on getting a second opinion.
I had an MRI previous to surgery and now the Dr. says it wouldn't make sense as the tissue is scarred after 3 surgeries and it wouldn't be precise.
Thank you for your post
-
Thanks for the link. Very helpful
Categories
- All Categories
- 679 Advocacy and Fund-Raising
- 289 Advocacy
- 68 I've Donated to Breastcancer.org in honor of....
- Test
- 322 Walks, Runs and Fundraising Events for Breastcancer.org
- 5.6K Community Connections
- 282 Middle Age 40-60(ish) Years Old With Breast Cancer
- 53 Australians and New Zealanders Affected by Breast Cancer
- 208 Black Women or Men With Breast Cancer
- 684 Canadians Affected by Breast Cancer
- 1.5K Caring for Someone with Breast cancer
- 455 Caring for Someone with Stage IV or Mets
- 260 High Risk of Recurrence or Second Breast Cancer
- 22 International, Non-English Speakers With Breast Cancer
- 16 Latinas/Hispanics With Breast Cancer
- 189 LGBTQA+ With Breast Cancer
- 152 May Their Memory Live On
- 85 Member Matchup & Virtual Support Meetups
- 375 Members by Location
- 291 Older Than 60 Years Old With Breast Cancer
- 177 Singles With Breast Cancer
- 869 Young With Breast Cancer
- 50.4K Connecting With Others Who Have a Similar Diagnosis
- 204 Breast Cancer with Another Diagnosis or Comorbidity
- 4K DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ)
- 79 DCIS plus HER2-positive Microinvasion
- 529 Genetic Testing
- 2.2K HER2+ (Positive) Breast Cancer
- 1.5K IBC (Inflammatory Breast Cancer)
- 3.4K IDC (Invasive Ductal Carcinoma)
- 1.5K ILC (Invasive Lobular Carcinoma)
- 999 Just Diagnosed With a Recurrence or Metastasis
- 652 LCIS (Lobular Carcinoma In Situ)
- 193 Less Common Types of Breast Cancer
- 252 Male Breast Cancer
- 86 Mixed Type Breast Cancer
- 3.1K Not Diagnosed With a Recurrence or Metastases but Concerned
- 189 Palliative Therapy/Hospice Care
- 488 Second or Third Breast Cancer
- 1.2K Stage I Breast Cancer
- 313 Stage II Breast Cancer
- 3.8K Stage III Breast Cancer
- 2.5K Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
- 13.1K Day-to-Day Matters
- 132 All things COVID-19 or coronavirus
- 87 BCO Free-Cycle: Give or Trade Items Related to Breast Cancer
- 5.9K Clinical Trials, Research News, Podcasts, and Study Results
- 86 Coping with Holidays, Special Days and Anniversaries
- 828 Employment, Insurance, and Other Financial Issues
- 101 Family and Family Planning Matters
- Family Issues for Those Who Have Breast Cancer
- 26 Furry friends
- 1.8K Humor and Games
- 1.6K Mental Health: Because Cancer Doesn't Just Affect Your Breasts
- 706 Recipe Swap for Healthy Living
- 704 Recommend Your Resources
- 171 Sex & Relationship Matters
- 9 The Political Corner
- 874 Working on Your Fitness
- 4.5K Moving On & Finding Inspiration After Breast Cancer
- 394 Bonded by Breast Cancer
- 3.1K Life After Breast Cancer
- 806 Prayers and Spiritual Support
- 285 Who or What Inspires You?
- 28.7K Not Diagnosed But Concerned
- 1K Benign Breast Conditions
- 2.3K High Risk for Breast Cancer
- 18K Not Diagnosed But Worried
- 7.4K Waiting for Test Results
- 603 Site News and Announcements
- 560 Comments, Suggestions, Feature Requests
- 39 Mod Announcements, Breastcancer.org News, Blog Entries, Podcasts
- 4 Survey, Interview and Participant Requests: Need your Help!
- 61.9K Tests, Treatments & Side Effects
- 586 Alternative Medicine
- 255 Bone Health and Bone Loss
- 11.4K Breast Reconstruction
- 7.9K Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After
- 2.7K Complementary and Holistic Medicine and Treatment
- 775 Diagnosed and Waiting for Test Results
- 7.8K Hormonal Therapy - Before, During, and After
- 50 Immunotherapy - Before, During, and After
- 7.4K Just Diagnosed
- 1.4K Living Without Reconstruction After a Mastectomy
- 5.2K Lymphedema
- 3.6K Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment
- 591 Pain
- 3.9K Radiation Therapy - Before, During, and After
- 8.4K Surgery - Before, During, and After
- 109 Welcome to Breastcancer.org
- 98 Acknowledging and honoring our Community
- 11 Info & Resources for New Patients & Members From the Team