Hi 

I am sorry to hear that you have been diagnosed with BC

I am Diagnosed with stage 1 grade 2 BC 

Had surgery on the 17nov 

They did the biography on lymph nodes 

Had MRI that came clear  so no further surgery is needed  and just started radio therapy 2 days ago for five days . I am 57

I know it's very worrying  but you haveto stay positive  its stage one  high chances are it would not have  spread !! 

Take one day at time and look after yourself  and tell your close family you will need family support 

Jeet123

Hello,

Thank you for the message. I was told with my breast doctor that grade 1 BC is treatable. But I'm worried because I have other health issues. Recently  October 2020 after my bone density I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis and start seeing physiotherapy. The following month  November I was diagnosed with BC so I informed my physiotherapist what was going on and was scheduled for operation on 16 December 2020. My physiotherapist discharged me and she said my breast doctor know what they can do with my bone problem.

I am still waiting to see my surgeon, supposed to be my appointment was yesterday but it was cancelled as they are still waiting for the biopsy result.

I am in constant pain everyday with my shoulder bones and lumbar spine and on pain reliever. The  pain add to my stress thinking about my illnesses! I hope no more cancellation of appointment next Thursday so I can talk to my breast doctor about it and see when am I going to have a radiotherapy.

Sending you all the best xx

Thank you Jeet123. 

Best regards xx

LL2011

Hi LL2011,

I am so sorry to hear about your first husband's cancer. Your diagnosis must have brough back some sad memories.

What a long wait you have had for your biopsy results. Have you already got a diagnosis for the grade and type of breast cancer that you have? I am sorry to her about your Osteoporosis. Are you having any treatment for this? Some cancer treatments can affect the bones, so they may prescribe some for you if not. How are you recovering from your Cholecystectomy? It took me quite a whlle to get over that surgery.

I hope that you get good news on Thursday. You might find it helpful to draw up a list of questions for your consultant before all appointments. This makes sure that you don't forget to mention something important.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hello guys and Hi Jolamine,

I’m back after a couple of days not messaging you all here as I am waiting to see my doctor today.

Yep! Got the biopsy result. My doctor told me that everything goes well = no more second or follow up breast operation and all cancer lump/cells been taken out. All I need to do is wait for the radiotherapy appointment and my breast doctor give me prescription straightaway Tamoxifen so I can take the medicine today and will be taking this medicine up to 5 years and will have mammogram once a year. 

I mentioned about my bone problem osteoarthritis how the radiotherapy will affect me. The doctor said the radiographer nowadays are very thorough and careful when performing radiotherapy not to damage any cells or bones close to the affected area. But I need to talk about it to the radiographer before my treatment. 

With regards to my cholecystectomy, had it done last year 6th January 2020 and I’m struggling and it took nearly 2 weeks before I manage to do things without any pain as I got hernia operation too. Two operation in one session = gall bladder removed and fixed hernia. Too bad for me year 2020 had two operations start in the new year January and finished it off December with breast cancer operation.  

I’m just thankful that all the sleepless nights and stressed  are over now knowing that I am on my 5 year journey of taking Tamoxifen. I will continue booking an appointment to my Physiotherapist and keep fringer cross the pain of my shoulder joint and lumbar spine will be eased and manageable and I can carry on my daily routine inside the house. 

Wish you all good luck for the treatment. I know it’s not easy to deal with this sort of illness but we need to be strong and always think positive. As I was born Christian, my strong faith to our Heavenly Father helped me a lot how to deal with my breast cancer as I am praying everyday and at night before going to bed. He is a Great Healer yesterday, today and forevermore! Amen

Thinking of you and sending my best wishes to you all. 

Love,

LL2011

Dear LL2011

It's good to hear that you had some good news and are feeling more positive!!

Take care and stay positive 

Lots of hugs x

Hi Jeet123,

Thank you for the message. Yes indeed! For now it’s a good news knowing that no more surgery but I still have treatment to go through. Hope everything goes fine without any complications after radiotherapy. 

Good luck and keep safe.

Big hugs.

LL2011 xx 

It will be all fine just keep faith in God 

Jeet123

Hi Lagerlime,

I am so glad to hear that there is no need for any further surgery and that you have already started taking Tamoxifen. I hope that it's not too long before you start radiotherapy and begin to fight this with all you've got to hand. 

Did you have keyhole surgery for your Cholecystectomy? I had a full open Cholecystectomy and my appendix removed at the same time and, it took quite some time to recover from the procedure.

Hang on to that positive outlook and, trust in the Lord.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine,

Stil waiting for the schedule of my radiotherapy. Tomorrow I will have a phone interview and see when they will start my treatment. 

I had 2 keyholes when I undergo Cholecystectomy a year ago. Hernia also been fixed at the same time. I had a hard times recuperating as it was a double operation and it was so painful! 

Yeah I need to deal with this BC one way or another. We cannot chose what illness we are going to experience in our life but whatever it is we have to accept it and always think positive. 

Best wishes and God bless! 

LL2011 xx

HI Lagerlime,

I hope that your phone consultation tomorrow will leave you knowing more and that you can move on to your radiotherapy soon.

If you can cope with your Cholecystectomy, this should be a breeze.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hello Jolamine,

I re-read your first message that you encountered a lot of health problem before and after being diagnosed of BC and now there you are enjoying your life with your family. Your message mean a lot to me and thank you once again for sharing your experience. It give me hope to keep going and think positive at all times.

Hopefully, this phone call from the breast team today will give me information when to start my treatment. One thing that worries me is when going to the hospital for treatment. Heard a lot of story about going to hospital for treatment and they catch the virus there.  We all know that cancer patients undergoing chemo or radiotherapy are the most vulnerable people. Even though how careful people are but still they catch the virus. 

I have underlying health issues and I cannot avoid to think about going out go to the hospital for treatment when most of the time I stay at home. I do my exercise/walking on treadmill. Well, worrying too much doesn't help. Keep finger cross we will all overcome the treatment and live life to the fullest afterwards. God bless

With kind regards, 

LL2011 xx

Hello Jolamine,

I re-read your first message that you encountered a lot of health problem before and after being diagnosed of BC and now there you are enjoying your life with your family. Your message mean a lot to me and thank you once again for sharing your experience. It give me hope to keep going and think positive at all times.

Hopefully, this phone call from the breast team today will give me information when to start my treatment. One thing that worries me is when going to the hospital for treatment. Heard a lot of story about going to hospital for treatment and they catch the virus there.  We all know that cancer patients undergoing chemo or radiotherapy are the most vulnerable people. Even though how careful people are but still they catch the virus. 

I have underlying health issues and I cannot avoid to think about going out go to the hospital for treatment when most of the time I stay at home. I do my exercise/walking on treadmill. Well, worrying too much doesn't help. Keep finger cross we will all overcome the treatment and live life to the fullest afterwards. God bless

With kind regards, 

LL2011 xx

Hi Lagerlime,

I hope that you heard from the breast team and now feel happier knowing your path forward. I'm not saying that treatment will be easy, but you'll get through it and, by this time next year, you can put all of this behind you.

I can understand your worries about the hospital. Most face masks that people are wearing don't protect the wearer, only others around them. Can you get your hands on a FFP3 face mask? These are the ones that doctors are wearing in hospitals. They are single use and a lot more expensive, but they should give you better protection.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Dear Jolamine,

Thanks for the message. Yep! Got phone call yesterday a good 30 minutes talking with the breast team. The lady said because my BC is very small the surgeons managed to take all out the .7mm cancer and nothing left, but I need radiotherapy to avoid it from coming back. The therapy  session only 5 days then on Tamoxifen.

I will get all the schedule by post - first will be CT scan, swab test then dates when to start my radiotherapy. Actualy  I just learned yesterday that patient can say NO to radiotherapy treatment if they are concern about the side effect and opt to just oral medication after surgery. But I said to the lady that I will go for the therapy then oral medication fearing that the cancer might come back after a couple of months or year. Now that I am on their hands I will go whatever treatment they will offer as they know what is best for me. As they can  access to my medical records they know that I have other health issues so they know exactly what to do. 

I will look for the FFP3 mask in Amazon if I can find and buy for double protection attending my hospital appointment soon. Thank you. 
 

Best regards, 

LL2011

Hi Lagerlime,

Your doctors can only advise treatments. Any treatment you have is up to you. I had a few deays to radiotherapy at first and, after seeing two eminent researchers in radiotherapy for advice 11 months after my initial surgery, I followed their advice and decided not to have it. I had Tamoxifen fot the first year after my lumpectomy. When I discovered my second cancer, I had a double mastectomy and, took Letrozole for 6 years.

I was thinking about face masks further for you. There is also a Cambridge face mask which is supposed to give you good protection. Unlike the FFP3's which are single use, this can be washed and re-worn for a couple of months. These come in at about twenty-five pounds, but work out the cheaper option in the long run.

I hope that your schedule comes through soon and that your radiotherapy goes without any hitches. They are used to dealing with people who have medical issues, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine, 

Thanks for the reply.

On Tuesday 26th January will be my CT scan then at that time I will know when to start radiotherapy. It will be 5 session so not too long to finish the therapy.

That's true. The breast team know  exactly how to treat individual as they check their medical history before giving  treatment. I decided to go for all the treatment they offered and that give me peace of mind. 
 

Regarding to face mask for double protection, we have a friend sew mask and we ordered a couple of those and when I go out for my appointments or food shopping I will wear disposable mask under the cotton mask and plastic face shield. Then wearing disposable gloves when to go the grocery shops. 

I search those FFP3 in Amazon but it's very expensive. 3-5 cost £65-£69.. I will search those mask you mentioned about from Cambridge and see if I can buy them. My only concern is when going to hospital for appointments and make sure I have a proper/double protection from catching this worsening virus. 
 

Take care. Big hugs!

LL2011

Hi Lagerlime,

Not long now, until you start, which is good.  If you go for all the treatment offered then you can have no regrets later on. This has to be good for your peace of mind. 

The FFP3 masks are very expensive and are just single use. The Cambridge ones have military grade filtration technology and are the ones which I use myself – see https://cambridgemask.com/. They are still expensive at around £25.00 each - but what price can we put on life?

I am keeping my fingers crossed that all goes well for you.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine,

It is always a pleasure chatting and sharing with people on the same health problem. 
 

Me and my husband both decided to go all the treatment the breast team offered to treat me. That will give us both peace of mind. 
 

I've been in that Cambridge mask website but it was out of stock. I will keep an eye and hope I can purchase from this company for my protection when going to hospital for treatment. 
 

I'm just started to my long journey and thank you for your best wishes. That is very much appreciated!

Hugs.. 

LL2011

Hi Lagerlime,

I had great difficulty in getting these masks myself. I ordered some from one of my professional suppliers inMarch and disn't get them until September. However, if you keep a look out on other sites, you will see the occasional one for sale there.

Once you start your journey, you will begin to feel better about all of this. You will gradually dispel many of the unknowns and feel that you are moving forward in your fight. I am always here any time you want to chat.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Greetings!

[@Jolamine]‍ 

@katielouise2310

@Jeet123

@Litchielou

[@Tas21]‍ 

Hello everyone! Hope everyone here are keeping safe and well.

Not been updating in the past weeks wth my recent diagnosed as I’m waiting for all the treatment to be sorted out.

After 5 weeks of waiting I finally got a copy of biopsy result sent to me by post after I had lumpectomy in mid December 2020. 

Diagnosis;  .7mm grade 1 Invasive Ductal carcinoma, no LVI, (don’t know what does it mean) lymph node negative 0/4, clear margins, ER 8/8 HER2 negative.

Treatment;  Right wide local excision and sentinel node biopsy 16-12-20

Treatment Plan;  For adjuvant radiotherapy to right breast and to continue adjuvant Tamoxifen 20mg tablets for 5 years. 

This afternoon will be my first treatment of radiotherapy, next 11-02, 12-02, 15-02 and last will be 16-02. Only 5 sessions of radiotherapy. Hopefully everything goes fine with the treatment without any complication and pass through all the nightmares and look forward to a complete healing. Amen. 

Thank you all for your kind messages here. It really appreciate your effort of messaging me and it really helped lighten my burden after being diagnosed with BC. Sharing your experience really give me hope to continue this long journey to full recovery.

Wishing you all the very best! 

Sending you all my love!! Take care and always keep safe. 

Hugs,

LL2011

Hi Lagerlime,

II have been thinking about you and wondering if you had heard anything, so thank you for the update. If you had to have cancer, this all sounds fairly positive.

I am not a doctor, but I understand that LV1 stands for lymphovascular invasion and, this indicates the presence of tumour cells within lymphatics or blood vessels in the breast surrounding the invasive carcinoma. This can indicate an increased risk of lymph node involvment and distant metastases, so it's good news that there is none present. How are you managing with Tamoxifen?

I hope that your first radiotherapy today goes well and, that the course does the job for you. Please keep in touch and leep us informed of how you're gtting on along your journey.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Jolamine,

Thanks for the prompt reply. 

Thank  you for explaining me about the meaning of LV1. All happenings and medical terms I’ve encounter are new to me. I understand you know a lot of things (medical terms) base on your experience and very pleasant to know you finished your journey to “cross the pond” and congratulations you won the battle! 

I think I was just lucky that the lump has been detected very early and just one operation I got the clear margins. I’ve been to different cancer website and go to chat thread and read their discussions, some of them got 2 operation to clear margin. Had radiotherapy up to 20 sessions. That was Year 2019 that all undergoing rads must finish 15-20 sessions. 

Well, about my first and second rads yesterday, all went well. I start applying E45 on to my right breast 2-3x a day as it started getting sore and red. Later will be my third rads and finish Monday and Tuesday. 

I read some comments that after the radiotherapy is done you really feel knackered. One suggested to drink a lot af water to flush out the radiation inside our body and that make us feel better as radiation stay in our systems for weeks. Not sure if this is proven as we know individuals have different ways to recover. I have no problem with drinking a lot of water as I drink at least 3 liters of water, tea and coffee. (2 mugs of tea and 1 mug of coffee a day) 

With regards to taking Tamoxifen, I’m taking the tablets nearly a month now, but so far so good! I was searching the effectiveness  and side effect of  Tamoxifen and I read a lot of feedback. Most of the comments are negative... They experience hot flushes, insomnia, gain weight etc. I cannot tell more how it affect me because it’s not long ago since I start taking this medicine. 

How about you? Can you please share your experience in taking cancer medication? I bet most of us have comment either positive or negative, it does not matter as our body react differently to any treatment and medication. 

Thank you my dear Jolamine for keeping in touch with me. It mean a lot to me. I will keep posting here until I finish my treatment next week. 

Lots of love and virtual hugs,

LL2011