New diagnosis

During my treatment I met 2 other ladies that had her2+ and Estrogen+ cancer lie myself. One was 74 and the other 82. They both had slightly different regimes than myself (I was 51 at time). They tolerated their treatment well and physically doing very well 4 years on. 

Thanks for all that.  I am also in the Blue Mountains.   Lots to read and think about.  It seems I am not in the 75%, so lots of worries and decisions.

Dear @eewart, I am really feeling for you. A cancer diagnosis for older people raises all kinds of different issues. Being older changes your perspective on what you really value and what you want to do with the remaining years, however many they may be. For most, quality of life becomes of greatest importance. There are a number of older women on this forum although no special category or anything. I was 72 when diagnosed, now almost 75, and I had a mastectomy, radiation and am on Femara. I said no to chemo, partly on the advice of a very senior specialist, a Professor at a major Sydney hospital. He said chemo just doesn't work so well on older women, although of course it depends a lot on what the precise diagnosis is. So the pathology will be the first thing you need to focus on with your oncologist. Most older women (around 75% apparently) have HR and PR positive and HER -ve, often with relatively slower growing tumours. If you are not in that 75% then the recommendations may be for more aggressive treatment including chemo. There are big differences in the approach of different doctors and hospitals. There are a few thing to keep in mind. Most of the clinical trials on which choice of chemo is based do not include older women, or only very few of them. The best statistical predictors take your age into account, but even then very few include valid studies for women 80 and over. I don't know how you feel about scientific papers etc, it can all make  your eyes glaze over for sure, but I found this paper interesting in that it focuses on precisely these issues. 
https://ascopubs.org/doi/full/10.1200/JOP.2015.010207
It's a 2015 paper and I think there have been others since. 
Anyway, the short message is: you will need to make your own choices depending on your priorities and what matters most to you, in combination with the diagnosis and the pathology of your cancer.  As you start to go into these issues make sure to talk to your cancer nurse, or a McGrath nurse, or call the helpline here for discussion and possible suggestions. And feel free to get in touch any time if there are extra questions you may have. All best wishes and positive thoughts to you.
Annski.

Thank you all for your replies.    It makes me feel I am not alone.   The waiting time is very hard to take.      Lynetteewart

Welcome @Lynetteewart  Try not to overthink things until you know what's going on.  If you can, take someone you trust to your appointments as two sets of ears and at least one cool thinking head are a good idea.

@Flaneuse Oh dear, I read that your Oncologist proposed and then blanked out on the rest of the sentence. 😁

@Lynetteewart I dreaded chemo. I'd not shed any tears in the 2.5 months between diagnosis and start of chemo, but on the morning of my first chemo I sobbed for 15 mins. I was so apprehensive. And I had a few tears during the first administration, with my daughter holding my hand. And I'm usually a tough old chook. Diagnosed at 74, now 76. But I got through it. I rocked the "Simone de Beauvoir" look with my turbans. My oncologist proposed stopping chemo after 20 weeks of the planned 24, because I had severe peripheral neuropathy and she said it could become permanent if I continued. I agreed. The PN gradually faded and is now gone. I also had 25 days of radiation. As others have said, everyone's treatment is different and we have a say in it. We need to ask the questions we need answers and be comfortable with plans. I needed to self-advocate quite a lot to get what I wanted, at times. I chose to stop taking the hormone tablets. I recently had revision surgery and am now feeling comfortable. For the first time 21 months, I'm now feeling very well and positive.
All the best for what lies ahead.

Welcome to BCNA!!  I am So sorry to hear of your diagnosis & surgery @Lynetteewart - but you've found the best site for support from those who've gone before you.  Those that haven't been thru it are sometimes unable to fathom the depths of despair that we all face from the original diagnosis & treatment onwards. 

The worst thing about being diagnosed is that it mucks with your brain, bigtime.   So try not to overthink it.  Keep yourself as busy as you are able, post op, doing things that you love doing - and if anyone offers help with meals or general housework etc - say YES PLEASE!  

As @Summerhill38 says - deep breaths, and try not to pre-empt your Team's choices of treatment.  All will be revealed soon.  I hope you have good family support, too.

I was like you - fit & healthy before diagnosed (I am mid 60s) - and no-one in our family had ever had cancer before - of any kind!  So a double whammy.

I was lucky & skipped the chemo, just having surgery & radiation & now hormone tablets.  

Take care & our thoughts are with you as you wait to meet up with your team.  xx

The best piece of advice ladies will give you is to breathe slowly and take one step at a time.  Trust in your medical team but also ask ask ask and they will allay any fears.  Don't forget that it is your body and your life and ultimately any treatment will be your decision.
Thinking of you.   <3

Commiserations, it’s a shock for anyone. We all fear chemo but for me it ended up being nowhere near as bad as I feared. I was younger (67), healthy but not very fit.  Side effects from chemo are variable and don’t seem to follow any logical path. As @primek says, it may not be a preferred treatment for you. Hard as it is, try to take one step at a time, detailed planning at this stage - until you get all your results and recommended treatment - isn’t always productive. Best wishes.