My mum has just been diagnosed with cancer

My mum has just been diagnosed with invasive ductal breast cancer, grade 1 but I am struggling to understand what that really means?

She has an operation this september to remove the lump and some lymph nodes, followed by a long radiotherapy treatment plan and upto 5 years of monitoring and drugs.

Are you able to shed any light on what this cancer actually is? The implications? Survival rates? Spreading chances?

  • My dad has recently been diagnosed with cancer and I know it's terribly scary, especially when you're not sure what you're up against.

    I suggest you research into it yourself, look on websites like cancer.net cancer.org and this one, there you will find lots of information.

    It's time like this you need to be strong for your mum and try not to panic too much about things. The more you know about it the less you will panic about what you don't know and the stronger you can be.

    Good luck.

  • Hi Anthony, sorry to hear that your Mum has recently been diagnosed with this breast cancer, what a horrible shock for you all. This type of cancer affects the ducts within the breast and the great news for your mum is that at grade 1 the tumour is likely to be very small and easily treated. The operation will remove the tumour and at the same time the nearest lymph nodes (at the edge of the armpit) will be removed for testing. This is to ensure that the cancer has not spread, but again it seems unlikely in her case. Radiotherapy is then done to "zap" any small stray cancer cells that may have been left after the surgery. Lastly the hormone therapy drugs are given to help prevent the cancer from returning in the future. This website, Breast Cancer Care and Macmillan all have good information about this type of breast cancer and your mum should have been assigned a breast cancer nurse who can answer any questions she may have. The nurses on this site are also great and can be contacted by phone on 0808 800 4040 or you could post a question to them if you would prefer. I am happy to help too if I can. Take care and all the very best to your mum.  Sue x

  • Thank you Sue for taking the time to respond to me... I guess what I am worried about is losing my mum from this... How likely is this to aggressively return, is there anything to ensure that does not happen? Any insight would be fantastic as to be honest this is the first case we have had in our family and im really quite terrified
  • Hi Anthony, I totally understand you being terrrified and get that your mind is going round and round 24/7 with endless 'what if 'scenarios. This is a perfectly normal reaction for you to have, I was the same at this point and was desperate to find answers to anything and everything! Waiting for treatment to begin is truly horrible but once she has had the op and the little b****r is removed it will be a great relief for you all, I promise. Although I cannot comment specifically on your mum's case, her treatment plan is the tried and tested way to not only remove the tumour but also to prevent any recurrance. Having caught it so early she has the best possible chance of getting rid of it once and for all, job done. Try to take things one step at a time if you can, you are at the most stressful point of this for now but it will get easier, honestly and those fears will diminish. Take care  Sue x