Calling all TNs

VL22... I'm going to confuse you even more. My RO just told me that staging has been revised. She said I was now Stage 1 because I had no node involvement. Who knows??

Hi, had an MRI after AC and one of my tumors shrank but the other didnt. Dr is disappointed I havent had PCR and added Carboplatin to my weekly Taxol. Did anyone who is out from treatment get a PCR? I don’t think they are super common but my MO has me in a funk now because I haven’t gotten one. I’m happy to have Carboplatin added to my regimen, but I think it does make it a bit harder.

Yeah, I'm unsure of what she felt it was in Stage 1, and I have a question send in to the office, but haven't heard back. I might have to call the patient navigator and see if she has an answer.

I simply want to lend my support in the frustration with shifting, morphing diagnoses. First I had ILC, then it was IDC, now it is primary IDC with patches of ILC mixed in. I know I won't get a full picture until I have the mastectomy and they can check the entire tumor, but still it's messing with my head.

My oncologist more or less told me it didn't really matter what type it was, that it was Invasive Cancer and not get hung up on the subgroup. I explained that it helped me to have a name for it. So in my head I had a specified adversary. Made it less nebulous and terrifying. I'm hoping she got that I need to put a label on it for my own peace of mind.

Hello,

NOT getting a pCR is NOT a death sentence! I am sure there are many who did not achieve a pCR are still living long and well- and, there are also people who don't even know if they got a pCR because they had adjuvent vs. neoadjuvent chemo!

I was down for a while about not achieving a pCR and my MO said to move forward as if I'm going to be cancer free in my life. I have not looked at the research thoroughly and frankly don't want to- doesn't pertain to ME!!

Janet

Alhusband - such great news! So happy you and your wife are doing well! Thanks for sharing.

Batesburg - it's so funny what we worry about and that we will always worry! My TN tumor was discovered during surgery, so I had no chance for chemo until after. I didn't even know neoadjuvent chemo existed until I read about it here! So in my head for weeks I fretted about it, wishing I could really know if the chemo is working. But then I realized I'd be freaking out if I didn't have pCR. Most days I do a good job of just living and not letting the "what ifs " and unknowns drag me down

Thank you for posting that, ALHusband. I needed to hear about your wife's success today. It really does help to hear.

mkn86 - Yesit kind of sucks not knowing what the tumor is doing. I feel it tingling or kind of ache sometimes and I hope this means it’s shrinking. You are right, we will only truly know at surgery. I will try not to waste time worrying, but it is hard

rdeesides, i feel that shooting pain too. and it also causes me discomfort. every time i cringe i just mumble to myself: cancer cells dying.

it's still rough. sometimes when those moments show up, even though they're short and fleeting, sometimes i still tear up. i'd hug you if i could

Hi Flynn! Sorry for the delay in responding! I had 4 x AC and next week is 6/12 weekly Taxol.

Hi Nicole! TN is a scary road, but glad your moving along fast. I only had a lumpectomy and my cancer team supported this choice 100%.

Good luck with your chemo consult and your positive attitude will help. This journey can get bumpy and the mood swings can be shocking, but this is a great place to find support.

Hi kmajor - sorry you're here. I also finished AC and do Taxol #5 tomorrow. I had my lumpectomy on the front end. It seems like so many of us in our 40's are being diagnosed and so many with TN. It is so scarey and every day it is the first thing I think of when I open my eyes. But we have to keep living. I just hope we can all get to a time when we don't think about BC every day

Nicole, I'm BRCA1. Questions? Let me know.

Welcome Nicole! I just had Taxol #9 yesterday, so 3 more to go. I haven’t had surgery yet but I started with an 8cm tumor so my team feels that mastectomy is my only option. I think many people on here have had lumpectomies with TNBC. Good luck moving along in your journey!

Also welcome, Kmajor. I’m just a couple weeks ahead of you, too. I seem to be having lots of ups & downs lately. I’m usually pretty even keeled so it’s caught us off guard but i think it’s just the way dealing with something like bc is. I hope things keep going pretty smoothly!

• Hi Agatha when I was diagnosed my first wish was to go for BMX as I thought that would reduce recurrence risk but my breast surgeon recommended lumpectomy (with a reduction and lift on the other side). She told me that the risk of recurrence is not necessarily reduced by having BMX and in fact there are some studies which indicated that recurrence risk is actually increased after BMX for some specific groups of people (I don't remember what the details were but think age might be one of the factors). She emphasised that the sample sizes are small in these studies and that there was no strong evidence one way or the other which would be relevant to my particular surgery. So I recommend talking to your surgeon oncologist and anyone else with expert knowledge when you are making your decision as the assumption that BMX reduces your risk may not necessarily be correct in all cases. NB My genetic testing was negative for all the known markers which may also have an impact. Also please note I don't have any expert knowledge, I'm just sharing what I was told about my own situation. Good luck with your treatment and decision on surgery. Also I recommend looking at before and after photos when you are thinking about this and deciding. XX