Advice on how to prepare for TC chemo?
Hello everyone! First time of me starting a thread on here, hoping to get some advice from someone who’s had experience going through TC (Doxetaxel & Cyclophosphamide) chemo recently? I’ve just had a mastectomy with an implant reconstruction on my left breast after I had a recurrence after going through lumpectomy followed by radiation in 2024. It’s been very traumatic to say the least! Now I’m really freaking out about having to go through chemo as I’ve already been swapped to letrozole and Zoladex instead of tamoxifen which I was on before and I’m already having loads of hot flushes etc so adding other side effects on top of that feels very daunting! If anyone have any advice how to manage side effects that would be amazing! I’d love to at least attempt to not lose all my hair and eyelashes, eyebrows and maybe there’s some supplements I could take to make sure my skin doesn’t get too damaged during treatment? I’m going to bring in ice cubes/lollies to suck on as I’m having the treatment done but wondering also if there’s anything else I should be doing or bringing with me to the appointment? Thank you so much!50ViewsSign in to react to this post3CommentsOff for surgery
Morning All, Really grateful to have found this forum. I was diagnosed last week, 6 Oct, and like many of you, came as a total shock. I have invasive ductal carcinoma, 95mm, ER+ PR+ HER2-. I’m have a double mastectomy on 3 Nov. I’ve been reading a lot but was after some tips for hospital and anything you found helpful to help recovery. Thank you all xViewsSign in to react to this postComments
Recently diagnosed
It's been a week!! Breast screen contacted me Tuesday with my biopsy results. Currently on holidays visiting a sick friend in Canberra so my conversation with Breast screen was in a video link. Had not expected to hear Breast Cancer. Dr advised lumpectomy and I now have an appointment with a breast surgeon back in my home town, Adelaide. Seeing her 26th Oct. I am approaching my 69th birthday and feel my girls have served me well. I am seriously considering double mastectomy, no reconstruction, going flat. Has anyone else had these thoughts? I have a maternal history of breast cancer and have been having breast screening every 12 month. I have always referred to my screenings as Russian Roulette....ViewsSign in to react to this postComment
Dbl or single masectomy? public health
Hi, ive been diagnosed with dcis in left breast Aug 2026, but breast specialist says likely invasive too as its large, will need masectomy and probably need radiotherapy after too. Right has shown something of concern but cant get in for a biopsi via mri for 2 weeks but need to make decision asap as they want left off. Do i get left off and wait for right biopsi results, or get both off now? If i get right off without mri they say unlikely to get sentinol node biopsi done too yet i saw a private reconstruction specialist who has recomended both the sentinol nodes to be biopsied during bi lat masectomy and has helped inform my decison for a dble masectomy in terms of reconstruction outcomes, individual risk factors etc. I know if the results come back invasive cancer in right it will be hard to do biopsi of sentinol node and likely need all nodes stripped which can lead to lymphodema and those issues. Amyone else have any ideas? Public system challenges?ViewsSign in to react to this postComments
Endoscopic BC surgery available at Princess Alexandra Hospital Qld - minimally invasive
A new surgery procedure is now available in Qld - it has been used successfully previously in Asia - It is minimally invasive & usually results in a shorter recovery time. While new to Queensland, the technique is well-established and has been performed for years across Asian countries like Taiwan, Korea, and Singapore. Dr Khoo noted that its popularity there is partly due to the suitable anatomy of Asian women, who tend to have smaller breasts on average. Endoscopic Breast Cancer surgery is now available at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Qld - for suitable patients. ... “The procedure can be achieved with a 3-4 centimetre incision placed away from the breast and enables us to do a full implant or autologous reconstruction using the same incision,” Dr Khoo said. Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) in Brisbane has introduced an endoscopic nipple-sparing mastectomy, marking the first time this groundbreaking keyhole surgery technique has been available in Queensland. Brought to the state by oncoplastic breast surgeon Dr Jeremy Khoo, the minimally invasive procedure has already helped five local women and is expected to benefit 250 to 300 patients annually at PAH. Key Features and Benefits Faster Recovery: Patients can typically return to normal activities within two to four weeks, compared to four to eight weeks required for traditional open surgery. [1] Shorter Hospital Stay: Shorter hospitalisations mean patients frequently spend just one to two days in the hospital. Reduced Scarring: The procedure uses a high-definition camera through a small 3–4 cm incision away from the breast, preserving cosmetic outcomes and significantly minimizing physical and emotional scarring. Immediate Reconstruction: The approach combines the mastectomy with an immediate implant reconstruction. The technique will not replace conventional open breast surgery entirely. It is only suitable for selected patients, including women diagnosed with breast cancer or those at high genetic risk who opt for prophylactic risk-reducing mastectomies. https://www.metrosouth.health.qld.gov.au/about-us/news/pa-hospital/queensland-first-surgical-technique-at-pah-to-benefit-breast-cancer-patientsViewsSign in to react to this postCommentsSurgical options
Hi all, I have been diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and I have my first meeting with the surgeon on Thursday. I know to expect surgery soon but dont know if this will be lumpectomy or mastectomy. I know that this will be one of the things to discuss on Thursday but I am curious if there is a 'choice' - in a sense part of me just wants to be told which option but I wondered if anyone here made a decision one way or the other and how they felt about that? How long do you get to make any decisions if a choice is available? Am also put this query in the recently diagnosed thread as I have not posted before and not sure which is better for this. Thanks for any thoughts.ViewsSign in to react to this postComments
Oncotype testing
Hello everyone, I had a double mastectomy with Sentinel Lymph Node biopsy with expanders on 24th August. ER+ PR+ HER2-. Pathology shows clear margins and cancer not detected in Lymph Nodes. Left Breast -DCIS of low and intermediate nuclear grade. Right Breast - Multiple foci of invasive carcinoma LCIS. Six foci of grade 2 invasive lobular carcinoma and a 5mm focus of grade 1 invasive carcinoma. Extensive classic LCIS. I mainly have one question, and I am hoping you can all help me. This diagnosis happened so quickly it was like a whirlwind. Between diagnosis and surgery, I was overwhelmed with information and decisions that needed to be made. At that stage I did not even know about Oncotype testing. My question is can I still request oncotype testing 3 weeks after my surgery? I feel silly that I did not know about this and therefore request it. Any advice is greatly appreciated.ViewsSign in to react to this postCommentsDiscussion about surgery with Surgeon
Hi all, I have been diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and I have my first meeting with the surgeon on Thursday. I know to expect surgery soon but dont know if this will be lumpectomy or mastectomy. I know that this will be one of the things to discuss on Thursday but I am curious if there is a 'choice' - in a sense part of me just wants to be told which option but I wondered if anyone here made a decision one way or the other and how they felt about that? Am also putting this query in the treatment thread as I have not posted before and not sure which is better for this. Thanks for any thoughts.ViewsSign in to react to this postComments
Another Re-Excision or Mastectomy?
Note: this is all behind me now and I feel great. I had four surgeries in the end, the last being a mastectomy. Recovery was pretty easy and I now have my external prosthesis, and noone would even know! Well, here I go again. I was diagnosed with DCIS in December. It has been a long path, but I eventually had a double lumpectomy on my right breast on 26 March 2026. A week later I was told that although they got clear margins, three of the margins on my largest lesion (4 cm) were less than 1mm. So, I had a re-excision on 15 April to get wider margins. I saw the surgeon this morning, who told me they found more disease and the new margins are still less than 1mm in two places. I have to have more surgery next Wednesday but have to decide (by Friday) whether to have another re-excision (and my breast will be starting to look a bit sad after that) or go straight to a mastectomy. She said it was quite feasible to try a re-excision again, to preserve the breast if I want to, but if they still find disease or don't get good clearances, then I have no choice but to have a mastectomy. If I have the re-excision, I have to have radiation treatment for 3 weeks, 5 days a week afterwards. If I have a mastectomy, then it's all done. No radiation and no lymph node involvement. Does anyone have any advice on what I should do / or want to share your story if you've had a similar experience? I know it's my decision, but your advice is appreciated, thank you.ViewsSign in to react to this postComments
Expander to implant surgery
Hi, I’m looking for feedback on how long everyone had to wait to have their second surgery to replace the tissue expander with an implant. I’m being told that I’m now on a waitlist for ‘elective surgery’ that could take 12 months. Is this normal? I feel like I’m living in limbo and can’t even begin to recover or move forward until the second surgery takes place. I’m in NSW. This is my second breast cancer after my lumpectomy and radiation in 2018. Both times DCISViewsSign in to react to this postComments
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