If you are not Stage IV but have questions, you may post here

Thanks Mara, and I still wait.  Today has been a crying spree.  A LOT of crying. 

If you have uterine cancer after going through breast cancer, is that considered mets?  I know BC  usually goes to the bones, liver, and brain, but I don't know about uterus, or ovarian.  I just wonder if it is cancer, if it is caused by the hormones they put me on... Not that it matters, it is just another fight to get on with... 

guess I am on a jag, if it is cancer I need to clear out some of the overwhelming junk around this house.  I am getting rid of about 1/3 of the clothes in my closet... it is bad.. I still have some clothes from college.  I haven't fit in them... well... since college 35 years ago.  Those are actually in the attic.  But all pants that don't have pockets, are going.  Finally following my FIL's advise, if you haven't worn it in the past year, you probably won't, get rid of it.  Heck, I still have some of my Mom's clothes - and she has been gone for 31 years. She was much smaller than me, I will never fit in them.   I hate being a clothes hoarder.  But I am.  8 years ago, when we moved here, I had 61 lawn bags full of clothes to give to charity.  Laughing... at least I finally found the tote box I had put all my sweat pants in last spring.  I don't work, so my life consists of horses and house.  I have shorts or sweats... a few pair of jeans I never wear.  North Mississippi, it is either cold, or hot... not much in between. 

I am still so on edge.  My daughter (the one who lives here) called earlier, and I immediately feared it was the doctor calling with the results... wanting them, but not wanting them. My best friend texted and she is going to come down tomorrow for my birthday.  She said she would help me clean out, but I text back that cleaning house on my birthday is the last thing I want to do. If I haven't heard yet, maybe she will help me decorate the house for Christmas. 

Wish I had more Xanax.  Sometimes, I wish I could drink... I wasn't a drinker before chemo, but now after... even a small sip burns.  I smoked pot in my younger years, but I am actually mildly allergic to it. My sinus cavities swell and gives me a wicked headache. no vices for this girl.

As everyone knows... us more than most... CANCER SUCKS 

Thanks Barbe, Well, I called, and let's not all faint... they immediately called me back... biopsies are benign.   PTL  Thank you God.  I don't think he did a pap smear, but yes, he did do biopsy, or several,  but I thought maybe they might have seen something on the endoscopic ultrasound they did down there.  I am in such relief mentally.  Physically, still bleeding and hurting, but the soul is happy, and yes... Thank You for a good birthday tomorrow.  I have cried all day... so glad I can stop that now.  Now, to bundle up, go clean stalls, and let my horses up.  They will be getting big relief hugs.

What are symptoms of brain mets? I've been having some strange headaches and I normally don't have headaches except for sinus related.

Also, why do some doctors say that it doesn't do any good to find a a recurrence early? If you have mets somewhere, wouldn't it be better to find them before they spread to several places/organs/bones?

jpr, what you may have heard is that docs don't routinely scan for mets without symptoms, which isn't quite the same as not wanting to find mets early. The logic behind not scanning in the absence of symptoms is two-fold... first that repeated scanning carries its own risk, as well as being costly; and secondly that questionable scan results often lead to unnecessary biopsies. Routine scanning to check for mets might find something a bit sooner, but the constant anxiety would be far worse than finding something a bit later.

In general, a good rule of thumb is to allow 3 weeks to see if odd symptoms or pain goes away. Most of the time it will. And while headaches can always be something serious, things like visual disturbances and/or balance issues seem to come up as concerning for brain mets more often.

Hopefully, your headaches are from something entirely unrelated to mets, but do keep us posted! Hugs, Deanna

I apologize for whining in advance. And I truly apologize for those of you who have much much bigger issues as I sit here and whine about what is probably a proverbial hang nail. With all of that being said...I am still having extraordinary level of fatigue. I know I've been through a lot but in al honesty I haven't really. I didn't have chemo or rads and I'm no longer on tamoxifen. I had the BMX is June and I didn't haven't this level of fatigue. I just feel like I'm tanking for no reason. I'm 43 and was in pretty good health. All of my bloodwork is great. No signs of any issues. But just to give you an example, I went shopping with my daughter for a few hours on Saturday and yesterday I wasn't able to do anything at all. My husband said he was a little scared because I was walking like I was drunk and he could see the effort I had to put in to even move my body. I couldn't even form a complete sentence. I have the same symptoms as my mother who is 79 with multi system failure. This is crazy. The reason this is so concerning is that I was fine in September and now I'm tankin but all my labs are perfect. Any idea

sorry, wrong thread

Hi Mommato3 - I am a Stage IIIer but Very high risk - so I am constantly looking for information on this very subject. And, am (also) on Arimidex.

I read somewhere that AIs can potentially raise ALP levels...but I am definitely not an expert. I have achy knees - too. (Have had bad knees for the past 10 years - so nothing new) But - I do feel they are a little more achy since starting Arimidex about 6 or 7 weeks ago...

From what I understand...mets are VERY unlikely to go to the knees (much less start there!)

It's great news that your other labs are normal and your left breast came back benign!!! That must have been very stressful to endure.... I don't know if stress raises ALP - but would NOT be surprised!!!

I sometimes wonder - if lab values - normally fluctuate - but we would NEVER know this - if it weren't for the constant monitoring of our lab values...

Anyway...I am glad your MO ordered the scan... For what it's worth - mine was completely normal but my MO wants to do another one - one year from that one....anyhow!

Hello, I am new to this board. I was diagnosed with multifocal invasive ductal carcinoma grade 2, ER+ PR+ Her- in July 2016. I underwent a single mastectomy with DIEP flap reconstruction in August and are believed to be Stage 1. My mammaprint came back high recurrence rate so I started chemo in October 2016. I completed 4 rounds of dose dense A&C and just finished my 2nd of 12 weekly Taxol treatments. I ended up in the ER a few weeks ago for breathing issues and something showed up on my CT scan. After a bone scan and MRI of thoracic spine they found a 1.2cm lesion on my right T11 vertebrae. I am now waiting for a bone biopsy to be scheduled.

I don't know for sure if I have mets to the spine but I saw this forum. Has anyone ever heard of a spine lesion in a person with breast cancer being benign or are they all typically cancer? My doctor tells me the fact that I have no pain and that there is just one is a good sign it may not be cancer. I know it is wishful thinking but I am totally scared out of my mind. I am 38 years with 4 young kids. We told our kids we caught this early and I would be fine because that is what we were told. The waiting piece is always the hardest part of all of this. I don't know how to relax and not think about this until I know.

Thanks, for your help.

hi Chrissy,

My name's Christina. My mom who's 57 was just diagnosed with breast cancer liver Mets in September. She's doing really well with her chemo. Her first chemo they did a very weak one because her blood was so bad. It reduced the tumors by 40 percent. They were very shocked at the immediate response. Now they can no longer feel the tumors. I have hope and I pray.

My question to you is are there any supplements or foods that you believe have helped you remain Ned?

We have been giving her beet juice and I also juice carrot juice mixed with apples. I also have been giving her cabbage juice. Which she may or may not enjoy. Lol

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Christina

Hi Christina,

Talk with your Mom. Listen when she needs to talk, give her a hug...laugh together, repeat. It's a lonely, scary illness and my daughters' friendship has been the single most influential factor in me feeling life is worth living. It's a lot for you to handle so find some others who are in a similar situation and get some support for yourself, too!

And exercise and eating well. These have a daily impact on whether I feel well during treatment. The book recommended by Shetland has been my manual for living.

Warm wishes!!

Oh, a grandchild is very good medicine, indeed. For anyone reading who wondered about the dark room, it is to allow natural melatonin production and a normal circadian rhythm, which may be anti-cancer.

Chrissy, we did discuss this and he mentioned the pain would be in the mid chest area.