Radiation vs HormonTherapy after a Mastecomy

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trinityakasunshine
trinityakasunshine Member Posts: 4
edited June 2018 in DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma In Situ)

Hi All,

I'm hoping I can get some advise from you about my situation.  You see I was diagnose with DCIS back in Feb.  After 2nd Biopsy (MRI Biopsy for the 2nd round), my surgeon found another concerning section.  It was still diagnose as DCIS but she felt it was better to go with a Mastectomy than a Lumpectomy.  I thought long and hard about it and decided to go with a mastectomy with an immediate reconstruction.  I was hoping that that i didn't need radiation or hormone therapy but because there was a small margin that was too close to my skin and my surgeon was not able to get it out, i now need to decide whether to do radiation or Hormone therapy.  When I talked to my radiation oncology she was hesitant about doing radiation due to the fact that i have an expander in for the reconstruction.  So she suggest i go with the hormone therapy.  However when i spoke with my medical oncology, she was wanting for me to do radiation because her fear of the side effects.  My family health history was what cause her to be concerned.  My mom was diabetic and my dad had high blood pressure.  

If any of you have any feed back about Radiation or Hormone Theraphy and what i should expect if i was to do one or the other, I would greatly appreciate it. 

I'm schedule to see my Radiation Oncology on Thursday

Thank you in advance for all your help!!  

God bless and have a great day!!

-Trinh

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited May 2018

    Hi trinityakasunshine,

    We think that you may find this page helpful to deciding what to do. Did you get the Oncotype DX DCIS test? Is the DCIS hormone receptor positive?

    All this is described here, and may provide you with some helpful points to discuss with your treatment team.

    DCIS Treatment

    Hang in there, and please keep us posted!

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  • trinityakasunshine
    trinityakasunshine Member Posts: 4
    edited May 2018

    Hi-

    Yes my estrogen receptor was positive. From what my doc showed if I remember it correctly, it was like 90% positive.

    I am seeing the radiology oncology on Thursday. So I can get more detail on how this all works.

    Thank you.

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  • Runrcrb
    Runrcrb Member Posts: 577
    edited May 2018

    I'm confused by the radiation oncologist's concern for your tissue expander. I had a tissue expander during radiation - thankfully my plastic surgeon wanted the radiation completed well before we did reconstruction due to the tissue damage that radiation would cause. My breast looks great - and considerably better than it did after radiation.

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  • trinityakasunshine
    trinityakasunshine Member Posts: 4
    edited May 2018

    can you tell me how long you had to wait after your radiation to get your reconstruction complete? My plastic surgeon said that if I was to decide on doing radiation that he had to wait at least 6 months before he would do the final stage of reconstructions which is putting in the implant. I'm seeing my radiology doctor this Thursday so I'll getting a better idea.

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  • Runrcrb
    Runrcrb Member Posts: 577
    edited May 2018

    My plastic surgeon (and all the online articles I read) wanted 6 months between end of radiation and my reconstruction. My surgery was 8.5 months after the conclusion of my radiation. No regrets.

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  • Sara536
    Sara536 Member Posts: 7,032
    edited May 2018

    .

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited May 2018

    Hi again Trinity,

    We're just checking in to see how you're doing since you first posted -- have you discussed this any further with your doctor? Have you reached out for a second opinion, as suggested? We'd love to hear an update!

    Remember, we're all here for you, so check back in often, ask lots of questions, and get the support you need!

    --The Mods

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  • trinityakasunshine
    trinityakasunshine Member Posts: 4
    edited June 2018

    I will be starting my Hormone Treatment at the end of this week. That's the plan that my doc and i decided to go for.

    we will get this a try for a couple of months and if i have too many issue with it, she will stop it and the will just monitor me.

    Thank you :)

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