Calling all TNs

Hockey Chick what helps me mentally: doing those things I can do, to help my own health, enjoying today as much as possible every day, and connecting with my loved ones.

I take a ton of supplements eat a mostly vegan whole food unprocessed organic nutrient-dense diet, <20% fat. Fish, and infrequently meat or dairy. I exercise intensely. I take melatonin and metformin and many McClelland protocol OTCs. I'll do anything that gives me another ~2%+ survival benefit, as long as it won't hurt me!

I feel great doing this program (bonus!) and it makes me feel satisfied I am doing my utmost which I owe to myself, and which I feel I also owe to my sisters less lucky-- not to squander my luck to be here but try to enhance it by good practices. I also have a few complimentary therapies I do. I am hugely grateful to have the means to do things not covered by insurance, like high dose C, which I feel have helped me a lot.

I am also lucky to not be an over-worrier. I believe my body to be healthy and cancer free and I try my best to help it stay that way. While knowing I might recur, so also not putting off fun and living, in case.

Try to do the things that make you feel well-tended, healthy, happy, and well -- which my be other things than mine-- and the hours spent in this mode fill up more of your day, and displace the worry.

I don't recall hearing of any other men with TNBC. Although no one wants to join this "club," it's nice that you unexpectedly found a kindred spirit, Mia.

Lyn

Hooray angelfaith! Congratulations! I wish you many more years of good health.

Wonderful, Angelfaith!

Lyn

It has been quite a while since I have posted. Haven’t even visited for a while. I will be 7 years in December. I was 66 at diagnosis & will soon be 73. Life is good. I exercise some but not as much as I was doing. Arthur & his ritus is part of my problem. But do what I can. This is doable. Keep a positive outlook as much as you can.

Best wishes to All,

Marsha

You too lookingfowsrd66. Thank you!

Your photo is fabulous!!

I just talked to the surgeon, and he said I had 3 lymph nodes tested which all came back negative for cancer. He also said I had a pCR, so chemo did its job properly! I'm so happy!!! I can breath a little bit more each time I reach a milestone, but being triple negative I know I will need to change some things about my lifestyle and habits. I am committed to getting back into shape and doing whatever I can to reduce risk of recurrence.

wonderful, notdefined!!!

awesome Notdefined! Such wonderful news

snaffle53. We are right here with you. My wife has done the 4 AC and 5 of the 12 Taxols. Surgery 3 to 4 weeks after. Then maybe radiation depending on pathology!! She has the BRCA2 gene mutation so she will do DMX and once all healed will have ovaries and Fallopian tubes removed. She is and was totally healthy so big change of events for us. So many many helpful folks on these pages!!! God bless and you will conquer this!!!

Notdefined, congratulations how wonderful! After the past several months of treatment, so happy for you. Hoping and praying the rest of us have such an awesome outcome!

Snaffle53, I'm sorry to read of your recent diagnosis, but am glad that you have a treatment plan in place. You mentioned no tumor in your breast. If you're comfortable sharing, how did you get diagnosed (lump in the chest wall, mass noted in lymph nodes during physical exam or mammogram, etc.)?

in general, most studies suggest that your survival odds are the same with a lumpectomy and radiation or mastectomy, but with your family history, I can understand why you're leaning toward the latter. With doing chemo first, you have time to do your research and perhaps interview a couple of surgeons to guide you in weighing the risks and benefits. If you haven't already done so, you may want to join the forum for those starting chemo.

Lyn

VLH, I’m extremely lucky to have found the cancerous lymph node because I have no symptoms.

Long story. My sister had a heart attack last January. She got a stent but needed double bypass surgery as well. The cardiac hospital in Oklahoma where she had surgery was absolutely top notch. They offered a CT heart scan to check your cardiac risk for only $50. So I had the scan.

The scan showed my heart was great but in the lung tissue included in the film they could see tiny nodules in my lungs. They recommended I see a Pulmonologist. So, when I came home to NH, I set up an appointment. Meanwhile, my PCP also got the scan results and said Pulmonary consult unnecessary as nodules this small are usually nothing. I went ahead to see a Pulmonologist anyway.

He ordered a baseline CT of my lungs even though he too thought nodules of this size to be nothing. It was in that CT of my lungs that an enlarged lymph node was seen. Biopsy was recommended.

The rest is history. Without that heart scan I still would not know I have breast cancer. My late August annual mammogram would have been normal. So I suspect I would have eventually been diagnosed when the cancer metastized to some major organ.

So I am very lucky indeed

thanks to Angelfaith, Scotbird, cc4npg, Lookingward (& anyone else i accidentally missed) for checking in & congrats on your NED!

HockeyChick - I'm sorry you're feeling the fear gripping you tight. I ditto seeing a counsellor just to get it off your chest. I think part of the problem is that we carry this unspeakable fear, nobody in our families or friends wants to hear it, or we don't want to tell them (because they'll either dismiss it or will affirm it - either one is not helpful). Trained counsellors know how to hear this fear and let us explore it in a safe space. It might make you feel better to get it out there and talk it through and get some ideas about how to control your thoughts when you need to move the fear to the side for a bit while you do other things.

My other technique has been keeping very busy. This is the time to throw yourself into a passion project, volunteer for something, a political campaign, a social issue, a craft, whatever. I entered a full time bachelor of nursing program (3 years continuous) while I was still in rads last September. Just a few weeks ago, a year after finishing chemo, I finished 1st year of nursing school (with straight As! Take that, chemo brain! lol)

I'm not by nature an optimist & my family has long running jokes about my ability to identify to potential ways things will go wrong in any situation, but I actually don't spend much time thinking about the future (& I spend hardly any time thinking about the past). I'm doing this thing now and that's what matters. Just find something to engage you right now and focus on it and let the future and past take care of themselves.

hang in there - it gets better

Hello, my name is LoveMyVizsla, and I have scanxiety. LOL. Tomorrow is my annual MRI and last 6 month mammogram and check up. After that I’m back to yearly. I’m not seeing my MO, but one of her staff instead. Wish me luck.