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sharon_robertso's avatar
sharon_robertso
Member
15 years ago

monday the 10th

ok well i went to my appointment today and really im not too much the wiser....i am going to peninsula private next thursday for surgery to remove the lump and also some lymph glands they will also take some surrounding tissue and send it all away to be tested and then if there is any pre cancerous tissue i will go back and have a mastectomy mind you because im not very big he might have to do that anyway so as you can see im still not sure .... he did say though that the type of cancer is hormone receptive and i havnt really researched exactly what that means yet but if anyone has any information on that type i would really appreciate it.....the positive part is that he knows its not an aggressive type so thats one good step ......... im feeling a bit confused as so many people have said that i should just have the mastectomy first up as quite a few people have had the cancer come back and had to have the mastectomy anyway .but on thursday while im in the  hospital i will see the oncologist and he should be able to put more light on the situation ..... so thank you everyone for your support and now you know as much as i do ..... im now 1 more step closer so lets get on with it

shaz

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  • Tanya's avatar
    Tanya
    Member
    15 years ago

    Hi Shaz

    Umm still sounds a bit confusing??  Did he mention what grade the cancer is?  (this means how aggressive it grows?  Grade 3 is the fastest growing).  Also Hormone receptive is a good thing, because at least they know that your cancer is 'fed" by  - estrigen or progesterone?? (depending on the exact pathology of the tumour) and there is medication to "turn off" the hormone that is feeding your cancer.  I do hope I am not confusing you more than you were already, but this is how best to explain it. 

    Dont let people tell you whether to have the mastecomy or not, this is a very personal decision based on the facts for your particular cancer.  Be guided by what information the surgeon gives you, the size of the tumour, the grade of the tumour and the statistics for reoccurance, so dont be confused.  There is no right or wrong answer until you have all the facts and speak with all the medical team.

    Take time to process all the information given to you and then make an inforrmed decision.  I chose to have a bilaterial mastecomy, but my tumour was very large, very aggressive and I was very young with young children, and this is not something I would suggest to anyone else to do.  But at the time, based on the information available to me, it was something that I wanted to do.

    Good luck, hopefully you will be able to sleep tonight.

    Tanya