Question on having Massectomy before chemo

Nope, not true. If your cancer was invasive, cancer cells could have broken off from the lump and traveled through either the lymph system or bloodstream. Once circulating throughout your body, they can make a new home in a number of places. One purpose of chemo is to destroy cancer cells as they circulate around, looking for a new home.

Lots of people are very misinformed about breast cancer. Mastectomy (mx) does not prevent the spread or the recurrence of breast cancer. After an mx cancer can even recur in the breast area because it is impossible to remove all the breast tissue. If your lumpectomy was successful and you got clean margins, you're ready for chemo, which is a systemic treatment that will hopefully kill any escaped cancer cells. Good luck to you.

Mastectomy is a risk-reducer, not a risk-eliminator, when it comes to local recurrence. For those with Stage I and II, lumpectomy + radiation provides the same overall long-term disease-free survival rates as mastectomy.

Chemotherapy is meant to mop up any stray cancer cells left in your system, but even then, it's not a guarantee. That is why you'll women on these boards (including myself) who have had a local recurrence even after chemo and, for some, after chemo and mastectomy.

I have had a mastectomy and lumpectomy. Followed by chemotherapy. Planned for 12 treatments at weekly intervals. After 3 of these I had tingling in feet, informed oncologist, next treatment adjusted, followed by more tingling and numbness, red patches. I looked up on this symptom and found that this is neuropathy, nerve damage, can be ongoing and can be permanent. Spoke to oncologist again, and decided to curtail all further treatment.. More than 6 weeks now, and more side affects ongoing. I have peeling skin and sore feet, pain in knees legs and hips, and difficulty sleeping. Feeling let down by oncologist, as I would have liked to be fully informed of what tingling in feet meant before treatment, not have to find out by searching the web. I feel poorly served by the medical team, as I gained the impression that I should just follow directions, and not question those. The information given is very bare, and should indicate exactly what the side effect is, and the likely outcomes.