Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!

Sandy, thought I had read otherwise. But I could be mistaken. Treatment was not a stressor for me - thank heavens.

HUGS!

The #1 cause of breast (or any) cancer? "Shit happens." Rare exceptions are smoking or prolonged secondhand smoke exposure for lung cancer, massive radiation (e.g, Hiroshima or Chernobyl) for myeloid cancers, and asbestos for mesothelioma. But those don't explain why a relatively few never-smokers never exposed to secondhand smoke still get lung cancer and people who rarely had even dental x-rays can still get leukemia or myeloma. "Shit happens," however, does.

Amen Sandy! We can’t blame ourselves for getting cancer. We’re dealing with enough and in my opinion we don’t need to add this unnecessary burden. I’ve tried to cut down on my risk factors, exercise, eat healthy and keep my appointments. Trying to look forward and not back.

To go with our recent discussion this was in my email this morning :

THURSDAY, Dec. 7, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Women who currently use or recently used contemporary hormonal contraceptives have increased risk of breast cancer, although the absolute increase is small, according to a study published in the Dec. 7 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Lina S. Mørch, Ph.D., from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, and colleagues examined the correlations between hormonal contraception use and the risk of invasive breast cancer in 1.8 million women from Denmark aged 15 to 49 years.

The researchers identified 11,517 cases of breast cancer during 19.6 million person-years of follow-up. The relative risk of breast cancer was 1.20 (95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.14 to 1.26) among all current and recent users of hormonal contraception, compared with women who had never used hormonal contraception. Risk increased with duration of use from 1.09 (95 percent CI, 0.96 to 1.23) with less than one year to 1.38 (95 percent CI, 1.26 to 1.51) with greater than 10 years (P = 0.002). Women who had used hormonal contraceptives for five years or more had a higher risk of breast cancer after discontinuing hormonal contraception than women who had not used hormonal contraceptives.

"The overall absolute increase in breast cancers diagnosed among current and recent users of any hormonal contraceptive was 13 (95 percent CI, 10 to 16) per 100,000 person-years, or approximately one extra breast cancer for every 7,690 women using hormonal contraception for one year," the authors write.

Two authors disclosed financial ties to the Novo Nordisk Foundation, which funded the study.

SJI, sending hugs and prayers your way.

(((SJI)))

Thanks Blair 2, I will def ask about it when I see surgeon on the 19th. It does make me wonder what is lurking or it makes me wonder if I should've had a mastectomy. But I am glad to be getting radiation and like you said, that should take care of everything.

Dagny -you may have already gotten your second opinion, but the reason your bs might not want you to do the reduction at the same time is that they take out the tumor (in my case the left side) and then my plastic surgeon took tissue from right breast to "fill in" area in left breast. Since ps is moving tissue around if the margins are not clear then they won't be able to go back in and take out more tissue because it's all been rearranged. At that point they would have to do a mastectomy. I did the lumpectomy and reduction at same time anyway because my bs said she does "shave" margin - which I'm not really sure what that means but she said if margins were not clear after that then she would do a mastectomy next anyway. Hope that makes sense.

That’s interesting about the OM follow up visits. I remember the nurse at the chemo class I went to several weeks ago said we would be followed up closer by our oncologists than our primary doctors. Seems the only follow up you would need is the 6 mo. mammograms. That would tell them whether there would be any new findings, but I guess because a lot of us will be on the 5-year hormone therapy drug, that would be maybe checked by the oncologist at least 6-12 mos. Not sure, can someone answer this?

I’m on Day 10 after my first chemo and feel pretty normal again. Fatigue is the on going after effects and days 4-6 are worst days after chemo. Surviving at least

I see my MO every 6 mos. too, but she says that so long as I have a primary FP and a GYN, she prefers to defer to them for stuff like immunizations, injuries, colds, flu, GI stuff, blood pressure, glucose & blood lipids, anemia (for now), and my triennial Pap & pelvic. I saw my RO weekly during my treatments and then once at the end; but he says to call or message him any time with any pertinent questions. I see my BS biennially and her NP at 6-mo. intervals.

I suppose it depends too on one’s circumstance. I hope it’s only every 6 mos. at most. I hope they just send me a letter telling me the mammo is fine - I do not want to see my bs ever again. The MO I can understand I would see for the hormone therapy treatment.

ChiSandy - did your radiation pinkness or burn (hate to use that word) fade in time, or are you permanently tanned

IHGJAnn,

I see my RO and BS once a year. They told me they would follow me for five years and release me after that if no further problems. My oncologist I see every six months. She is also a hematologist and my bloodwork has not been normal since my cancer diagnosis. I have bloodwork done every three months that includes tumor marker tests.

Jo

ChiSandy - Thanks so much. I wrote down the ointment you used. I’m glad to hear the pinkness does fade. I also wonder if having chemo treatment shortens the length of radiation treatments or not. Most here didn’t need chemo and just wonder if that makes a difference. I guess I better expect seeing someone every 6 months - just not the bs!

I saw my cardiologist every 4 months after my bypass, then 6, and now only once a year. I guess it will be similar to that. However, I will always have this fear my breast cancer will return - even though it’s suppose to be a 8-10 % chance. I read too many accounts of return at this sight - a bit scary.

Moth, I did sleep semi-sitting up initially. What really helped me was keeping a soft, small pillow under the affected arm. As many will tell you, it was the SNB incision that bothered me the most. Fairly quickly I slept on the opposite side (still with my little pillow under the ther arm). Your body will tell you what’s best!

Good luck with your surgery. We’re all here to cheer you on!

MJ

I slept slightly propped up as both breasts were healing. Then after about three weeks I could angle slightly to my side. A bunch of pillows, as everyone says, is very helpful. Support your back for extra comfort. As you see your ps, he/she will tell you when you can sleep to your side, just depends. The goal is to make yourself as comfortable as possible.

The lymph node incision was a pain, as mine was right where the bra goes under arm. Cut some sanitary pads to cushion sensitive areas, or guaze pads can help too. It’s great you won’t need drains, so maybe this means it won’t be as painful or annoying