Waiting for core biopsy results, being hopeful is so hard

there should be plenty of options once you know more about what you’re dealing with. The initial biopsy results will likely only say whether it’s cancer or not and if it is cancer what type it is. Treatment can’t be determined until you find out whether it’s positive or negative for ER, PR, or HER2, which usually takes a few extra days. For instance, I got the confirmation that it was cancer on 16 July, but didn’t learn the rest of the information until I saw the surgeon on 21 July.

Breast cancer sucks no matter what stage or the treatment plan will be, but there are new treatment plans available every year and outcomes for most people who catch it early are quite good. Keep us updated as you learn more! This website was my lifeline when I was going through treatment last year

Sarah, the practice to which both my breast surgeon and oncologist belong has a team of oncology social workers (LCSWs), and I had four sessions with one of the therapists during the three months from diagnosis through surgery and recovery. I tend to internalize stress, and was so focused on trying to be strong for my family, friends, and colleagues ("Everything's fine! Nothing to worry about!"), that I initially didn't process the diagnosis at all - instead, I somehow lost about 20 pounds and started shedding hair even before surgery. I found the therapy sessions to be very helpful and useful every step of the way - I could let go of the stress, face my fears, and restore some sense of internal equilibrium. I'm glad I had counseling, and recommend it highly.

You've been through so much already, and the possibility of facing cancer again must be kind of overwhelming. No doubt you are incredibly strong, but think of counseling as a form of self-care, of reinforcing your existing strength, and of gaining additional coping skills and techniques.

Thanks for the update Sarah and sorry it is indeed cancer. You really seemed expecting that though - kind of preparing yourself as much as you can for such news. I hope your employer and coworkers will be more supportive, or at least not invalidating, than in the past... The appointment Friday should be helpful for gathering additional helpful and important information... Please let us know how that goes.

Sarah, the unknown stage is just that they need more information which the scans will tell them. A lot of people receive diagnostic staging and then final staging after surgery. Is there no breast MRI included in your plan?

Regarding the timing - I would leave it as is. This is similar to how my diagnostic process was - first discussion and what information they are gathering and potential next steps, and then second (and third) discussion as more information came in from CT and bone scans (and breast MRI and second round of biopsies because they didn't get enough with the first). Also, your CT taken Thursday may not be read before your meeting on Friday. The CT and bone scan will be used to correlate each other - sometimes things show up on one but not the other so if there is something concerning on the CT the doctor still may not share it if he is waiting for correlation from the bone scan read.

The CT scan is pretty quick and involves dye injection and a cannula. Bone scan is a longer process over two hours and involves injection of radioactive substance, you then need to wait for a few hours while it trundles around your system, and then you lay on a table like a giant photocopier and it goes head to toe. CT will show soft tissue and lymph involvement (in my case it also picked up the giant lytic hole in my pelvis that probably could have been seen from space) and the bone scan is more for metastatic hot spots in the bones.

Hi Sarah!

I'm sorry to hear that your biopsy resulted in a cancer diagnosis. I was a tenured professor when I was diagnosed seven years ago at age 46. My colleagues were very supportive, and allowed me to reduce some of my responsibilities while I was undergoing treatment. I did teach through chemo and radiation; it was doable. But, I essentially put my research agenda on ice for awhile. Take care! ((Hugs))

Sarah,

A small percentage of breast cancer patients who do Taxotere lose their hair permanently so, yes it can happen. There are a few women on this message board who fall into that category. Most, however, do recover their hair afterwards.

Do you mean a weekly injection of Herceptin (trastuzumab)? Not sure what you're referring to there.

Yes, many women ice their hands and feet during Taxotere and its cousin, Taxol, to try to avoid developing neuropathy.

Hi!

My cancer was too big for Taxol alone, but after I finished Adriamycin + Cytoxin, I did do weekly Taxol + Herceptin + Perjeta. I found it to be an easier regimen than Adriamycin + Cytoxan, though it did give me diarrhea (controlled with Imodium). I did lose my hair (you'll lose your hair with either Taxol or Taxotere), but the chances of permanent hair loss with Taxol are less than with Taxotere. Yes, you typically don't need the Neulasta shot with Taxol but it is an infused chemo not a weekly shot. Hope that helps!

Go for the second opinion! It will help increase your comfort in whatever direction you end up going....

I had the same type of breast cancer as you and from all I have learned it has a really good prognosis. These types of cancers tend to respond really well to chemo and of course herceptin is a miracle drug. Mine was treated with TCHP (taxotere, carboplatin, herceptin, and Perjeta) — which was very doable. During my surgery they didn’t find any residual cancer and said I had a complete response, which put my odds of recurrence in the 5% range.

I finished chemo last November, had surgery in December, and radiation in March. By April my life slowly started going back to normal and I finished my last infusion of herceptin/Perjeta in August. Now — a month later and my life is finally almost normal again. Yes I still get afraid when I feel anything weird in my boobs and I wonder about aches and twinges — but none of it is the fear I had initially.

This is all doable. The prognosis is good. It sucks so much that it can be hard to see your way through, but just focus on what’s in front of you and keep showing up to appointments.