Totally confused after seeking second opinion
Hi my dear virtual friends, I have Hormones positives and Her2 negative. Grade 3 and Stage 3(Tumor size 35 mm). Surgeon A: Treatment plan Option 1: 6 months chemo ( neoadjjuvant), if tumor size s...
Forum Discussion
@GinGin - what a shame they didn't both have the same opinion! grrr It just mucks with your brain a bit more than it already has! xx It is a very personal decision that only you can make - but it really is about the 'what ifs' ...... ie What if I get a recurrence ..... did I make the right treatment decision?
Have you considered joining the Breast Reconstruction Group, or Flat Chat (about possibly choosing no reconstruction) - you'll be able to chat with others who may have had to make the same decision?
I was lucky & just had a lumpectomy, rads & tabs - but I was fully prepared for them to go ahead with mastectomy once they started the surgery, if they thought it warranted it, as sometimes the size of the tumour 'on the screen' can be smaller than the actual size of it, once in surgery.
Quite a few cancers have chemo prior to surgery, to manipulate it & hopefully make it smaller, which may mean less aggressive surgery is required ...
It sounds like Surgeon A is throwing everything at it, to give you (as he sees it) the best outcome possible and his 2nd option goes for the bigger surgery but without the chemo first ..... tho Surgeon B seems quite convinced the earlier chemo isn't required .... ay yi yi
I think my question to both of them would be: What would you recommend your wife/daughter if it was their biopsy results, for their best possible outcome?
Have either of them mentioned a Sentinel Node Test being done? (mine was done prior to surgery [and was clear] to see if the nodes closest to the breast have been infiltrated by the cancer at all) - as this will also give them even more information to work with re the level of surgery/chemo requirement ...
Hmmm, Some sites indicate that Stage 3 may have already infiltrated the nodes ..... which means it may also have escaped into the body already - which means, maybe throw the kitchen sink at it!?
As @Cath62 said - it is the aggressiveness and size of the tumour that normally dictates the amount of surgery & need for chemo before and/or after surgery (or not at all.)
Can you talk to your Breast Care Nurse about it? She may be able to put unbiased opinions/explanations to help you in your decision making xx
take care & all the best xx
Have you considered joining the Breast Reconstruction Group, or Flat Chat (about possibly choosing no reconstruction) - you'll be able to chat with others who may have had to make the same decision?
I was lucky & just had a lumpectomy, rads & tabs - but I was fully prepared for them to go ahead with mastectomy once they started the surgery, if they thought it warranted it, as sometimes the size of the tumour 'on the screen' can be smaller than the actual size of it, once in surgery.
Quite a few cancers have chemo prior to surgery, to manipulate it & hopefully make it smaller, which may mean less aggressive surgery is required ...
It sounds like Surgeon A is throwing everything at it, to give you (as he sees it) the best outcome possible and his 2nd option goes for the bigger surgery but without the chemo first ..... tho Surgeon B seems quite convinced the earlier chemo isn't required .... ay yi yi
I think my question to both of them would be: What would you recommend your wife/daughter if it was their biopsy results, for their best possible outcome?
Have either of them mentioned a Sentinel Node Test being done? (mine was done prior to surgery [and was clear] to see if the nodes closest to the breast have been infiltrated by the cancer at all) - as this will also give them even more information to work with re the level of surgery/chemo requirement ...
Hmmm, Some sites indicate that Stage 3 may have already infiltrated the nodes ..... which means it may also have escaped into the body already - which means, maybe throw the kitchen sink at it!?
As @Cath62 said - it is the aggressiveness and size of the tumour that normally dictates the amount of surgery & need for chemo before and/or after surgery (or not at all.)
Can you talk to your Breast Care Nurse about it? She may be able to put unbiased opinions/explanations to help you in your decision making xx
take care & all the best xx