Enjoying your 30s...and breast cancer!

CurlyN-

We want to welcome to our community here at BCO, although we're so very sorry for the circumstances that have brought you here! The first days and weeks can be overwhelming and scary, but we hope you find the support and information you need here to get through them! We're all here for you!

The Mods

I was diagnosed this year at age 31 (pregnant). Hormonsensitive. Lots of lymph nodes involved. Just started Taxol... what are yours experience with taxol so far?

I found my lump in November, but got wrong diagnosis at first... Then mastectomy march this year.... followed by C-section pregnancy week 33. Six week later I started chemo.

Latoya may I ask how large your tumor is? Are u triple neg or pos?

Thanks for starting this thread! I'm 38 and have a 7 y/o. I start chemo next week and then the plan is lumpectomy with rads.

Not looking forward to any of it but after the horrendous anxiety of the is it or isn't it waiting game I'm feeling positive and confident in my treatment plan.

All the docs with whom I've spoken say it's a bump in the road and curable. I'm holding that tightly as I walk the path.

Best to each of you.

Hi Aleksandra-

We want to welcome you to our community here at BCO, although we're sorry for the circumstances that have brought you here. We know getting a breast cancer diagnosis is scary and stressful, but we're all here to help you through it! You might want to check out our IDC forum for more info about your diagnosis and connect with others in your shoes: https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/96. And we also have a forum for our younger members with breast cancer, with lots of info about fertility and some of the unique issues you face: https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/27.

We hope this is helpful! Take it one day at a time!

The Mods

I was just diagnosed about 3 hours ago... yeah I'm freaking out!!! I'm 34 years old, married for 9 years, and have 3 children - two boys that are 7 and 5 yrs old and our daughter who is 8 months. I don't have many details yet, except I have DCIS. Because of the size (8.cm) it will most likely require I have a mastectomy. My head is definitely spinning and I'm trying to figure out where to start. I stay at home with the kiddos and the past week has been hard to handle... just the stress of not knowing. I'm not sure how the next 6+ months are going to play out and I'm terrified.... terrified for myself, but mostly for my husband and kids. Would love to hear any advice or suggestions on how others got through the tough months. I'm so happy that I found this forum and look forward to meeting everyone.

Mel

Thank you MODERATORS for your support and warm words!

Anna in Norway: Thank you as well for your encouragement! At the time of writing the post, I was crushed and terrified. 7 days into diagnosis, I am much better. I do not see this any more as a death sentence and I am ready to fight this sucker with all power I have in me! I did get some clarification (biopsy results), which are still unclear, but I am hoping to talk to my breast surgeon on 17th.

ER 0, 0%

PR 1, 1%

Her2/neu 4.6, 100%

ki-67 2, 46%

p53 2, 91%

Anniejabam: Hang in there! I understand its scary, but it is so early right now. Try to take it day by day. sending love!

Hi everyone, I'm glad and sad to see others here. Not sure what to feel right now. I was diagnosed in June after they found metastasis in my broken hip, the femur was completely hollowed out due to lesion. I'm stage IV, mets to bones and lymph,hr+/her+, and still in the prestage treatment planning. My oncologist called me today with the news of my biopsy, left breast. They put a clip in after in case they need to perform surgery, is what I was told. He Wanted to tell me early so I had some time to digest the news that the cancer is aggressive and he wants to start me on chemotherapy next week. I still know so little about the details and it's got me feeling like I've been left in the dark about everything but I'm impatient I guess. This has all happened so fast. Originally, after testing the cells from my hip they said I was HER2-. Breast tumor says otherwise. Still no talk of surgery, but my blood tests say I'm healthy enough to continue -I just finished my first round of site specific radiation to hip and shoulder. No plan yet for breast or lymph removal.

I broke my hip by simply stepping out of my work truck, I'm heavy set but was very active until that, worked 5-6 days a week in a shop and road crew barricade work 8-10 hours a day. I had to have an implant dynamic hip screw with pins and plate, have been recovering from this for last 6 weeks. New aches and pains everyday are starting to eat me up while I'm helpless to be able to leave my house without assistance. Trapped like a rat in a cage

I have a 13 yr old daughter, we just broke the news to her when she got back from her fathers for the summer. I have no idea how to help her with this either but I had her dad and step mom, my dad, me and my spouse there when I explained it to her. I didn't go into much detail but wanted to be honest with her.

Thank you for listening, thank you for being here. I know I'm not alone but that doesn't make me feel any less alone.

Mom of 1,

D

Hi Gb, I am 36. Thank you for the support, to and from for everyone here included.

I have been looking at articles about returning to work. I'm far from ready, I still can't get around without a wheelchair and walker. I'm too unstable on crutches so going to back to work full time isn't an option yet. I have just had so many appointments to keep and procedures and tests. My employer is keeping me on the books even though I'm not getting any hours, but they are also keeping me on their insurance (amazing) and they haven't filed officially for leave of absence for me for that reason. I want to go back, that is my long term goal anyway, I want to get back to my life that's for sure. Having a broken hip has really taken me down a few pegs aside from everything else.

I will pop in the stage IV forum, thank you for the help. There is so much I know I can learn from everyone here.

Thank you!

Hi Canadamom, welcome to the boards! I am 39 with a young daughter (was 38 when diagnosed). Sorry you are here to join us...have you been diagnosed with breast cancer or are you waiting for the word from pathology on that?

gb2115 i guess i won't be officially diagnosed until my biopsy results are back, but the radiologist and my doctor said that in their experience it is definitely cancer and it appears to have spread to my lymph nodes. so i think it must just be a matter of waiting to hear what stage etc? this certainly explains some symptoms I've been having

Canadamom, so they need to make it official but it sure seems they typically have a good idea what they are looking at. But hopefully they are completely wrong, right?! Pathology is the next step. The type of cancer will play a major role in your treatment plan. Staging typically isn't final until after surgery. A lot of pieces need to come together and it's usually pretty slow so hang in there.

Incidentally when breastfeeding (I pumped exclusively for 1 year) I only got half the milk out of the side that eventually grew cancer, compared to the other side. Makes me wonder if it was already growing in there, blocking ducts or just defective cells or something. I've heard of other women like this too. It's interesting.

hello brave ladies , i diagnosed last year i was 31 yrs , no family history , my genetic test is negative, i have a unique situation which is my tumor is medullary feature in teo hospital was triple negtive , and in other two hospital was Er weakly positive 10-20% , so i started tamoxifen four month ago and I developed big ovarian cyst and thickness in endometrial I freaked out and stopped it , not yet married and i would love to have babies , any one have same situation, if I stopped the tamoxifen it could be okay ? I just can't feel okay to take a medicine ghat may cause to me more complicated issues , they send the block to cleavland hospital to make sure regarding the Er its very confusing regarding my tuomr genotype

Much love and luck to Eibra, Canadamom and everyone here!

I just finished my first day of chemo. 7 hours. I had a reaction to the herceptin within the first 30 min. I was relaxing, almost dozing off, and the pain started, like flu body aches all over, came on fast, back ache, legs, arms then neck, I was shivering/shaking/trembling involuntarily. They stopped for 30 min, gave me Demerol to stop the shaking, I ended up getting about 4 blankets piled on, more benedryl and just waited it out. I could breath and I told my nurse about it right away, they were very attentive, stayed with me the entire time.

I got my port yesterday at 3:00 pm. I wish I could have had a week to heal before starting chemo, my sternum hurts terribly, all underneath my breasts, very tender, like I was crushed or sat on. The port site looks good but hurts down the vein and it hurts to take a deep breath in, 10 hrs now gone by since I got home.

Treatment went as such: Port plugged into, saline solution first, then Tylenol by mouth, benedryl w saline, steroid (I already forgot which one), then herceptin, pause, Demerol, saline, benedryl, finish herceptin, next up perjita (went fine, no issues), then finished with taxotere, saline to flush line and done.

I don't have to go in again until 8/25/17.

I just wanted to share my first time chemo experience, I wish every love and a journey filled with hope!

-Danae (Dani, Danny...