Young and overwhelmed
Hi all,
I'm 30 years old, with the BRCA 2 gene mutation, and was diagnosed after my first high-risk screening MRI found a tumour - mixed lobular and ductal invasive carcinoma, stage 2, grade 2, hormone receptor positive, HER2 negative.
Because of my BRCA status, I had a double mastectomy in February 2026. An 11mm tumor was removed alongside a 50mm DCIS component that was associated with the invasive tumor and adjacent tissue was removed from my left breast, but my right breast was all clear. The sentinel lymph node biopsy showed a 1mm micrometastases in one node (of two).
Initially, the plan was just a double mastectomy followed by endocrine therapy, but the option of chemo has been put on the table post-surgery (and even the choice of two different regimes). My oncologist's justification was "we want to give you every option available because you're young" but it feels like I've just been given an impossible decision with no clear better option. I'm also having a lot of anxiety around chemo and the implications for fertility as I am yet to have children (I was able to freeze a small number of eggs pre-surgery but I would have to self-fund any further cycles).
I'm not entirely sure why I'm posting this but maybe I'm just hoping someone will have had a similar experience (especially if you were diagnosed young or before having kids!) or have some words of advice because I'm feeling overwhelmed by all of the choices I'm having to make.
