78 year old woman with breast cancer

Sorry to hear about this lady's diagnosis.

It is really not possible to determine what the course of treatment might be until the rest of the tests have been completed.

If cancer has been found in the breast and in the lymph nodes then there are a number of possibilities
- Surgery to remove breast or part thereof
- Surgery to remove lymph nodes. Sometimes the nodes can be positive for cancer and very often there is NO cancer elsewhere (hence having those other tests).
- If the other tests come back negative, the treatment in addition to surgery is possibly chemotherapy and possibly radiation therapy.
- Chemo will only be administered if there is potential benefit to the patient. Age at diagnosis is a important as it does determine the type of treatment given.

This is a useful link for breast cancer staging however please remember that staging is a tool used in treatment, it DOES NOT determine life expectancy http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/di ... taging.jsp

Let us know the results of the rest of the tests and we can try to help you prepare.

If you are in Dublin, ARC cancer support centre on Eccles Street is great.

LindyLu

Hi Gavin877,

I am sorry to hear this lady you obviously care about has been diagnosed with BC. I'm afraid its fairly impossible to say what would be her treatment without knowing the size, grade, stage, hormone status, etc, etc of her cancer. There are many factors that her team need to take into account. And even knowing those factors, there could be different options as to what might be done. And what HER preferences for treatment are. Her medical team can only recommend what they think will give the best outcome but ultimately the decision is the patient's own.

If the BC has not spread further, depending on the size and type of tumour, they could do lumpectomy, wide local excision, or mastectomy and probably a full axilliary clearance (removal of underarm lymph nodes). Or they might recommend chemo or hormone therapy to shrink the tumour first. Or look at other options.

If the BC has spread further, it would depend on where it has spread to. Thanks to advances in various treatments and medications, people are living longer and longer these days with certain types of secondary breast cancer. They may still want to do surgery on the primary tumour first and proceed with some treatment after. Or sometimes, depending on the situation, they may recommend chemo and/or radiotherapy to manage symptoms and give pain relief.

What I have learned about cancer is that there are no rules - sometimes patients with a bad prognosis beat the odds, sometimes a person with a promising prognosis loses their battle all too soon. I've met people with advanced disease who were told they had only months to live and are still here 4+ years later and others who sadly did not get the time they were expecing.

Sorry I can't be of more help. The best thing to do for now is support her, LISTEN to her, maybe hold her hand, just let her know you are there in whatever capacity she needs you to be. She may find it comforting at some stage to talk to other patients or a counsellor so I would find out if there is a cancer support centre near you that you could bring her to IF she is interested. They are not just about talking, they also offer Reflexology treatments, wig service, prosthesis fitting in a warm welcoming atmosphere. And they are not just for patients, but also their family and friends as well. A cancer diagnosis doesn't just affect the patient, it can be very hard on everyone around them too.

Good luck for her visit on Friday. Is someone going with her to see her consultant? Here are some links that may give you further information on Breast Cancer. I recommend taking a notebook and pen containing some questions you want to ask and so you can jot down things you are told - its amazing what you forget or miss in the daze of diagnosis.

http://www.cancer.ie/action/treat.php
http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinfor ... ancer.aspx
http://www.cancer.org/Cancer/BreastCanc ... uide/index

Please let us know how she gets on.

Flo.

Sincere Thanks to you guys for your honest replys

My mother is going with the patient (its my nanny)

Basically the doctor said "she should have come in ages ago" as it's obvious externally that there is an issue.

Hopefully it hasnt spread past the nodes and she will be ok.

I am sure to be back on here when i hear the results.

Are the further tests something you will get results of there and then?

Re the further tests.

It will most likely be
(a) CT scan or similar. Some hospitals have access to a PET scan which is a more sophisticated CT scan. I just had a CT scan. This will tell if any organs are involved
(b) bone scan. This will involve your nanny getting a radioactive contrast agent about 3 hours before the scan. The contrast does not hurt other than thr needle however your nanny will have to keep clear of any small children or pregnant ladies for 24 hours. Bone scan determines if it has spread to the bones.

Results for both tests usually take about a week as specialized consultants have to read and report on them.

Lindylu

thanks for the advice lindy

she has had the 2 tests mentioned above

just waiting on the results now

fingers crossed

Ok , she went to the hospital last thursday and was told the cancer hadnt spread to her bones or other organs.

She is back in tomorrow to meet an aneasitist?

and then has the masectomy on june 2nd

Hi Gavin
That is good news. The waiting is the worst part of this journey. there are loads of appointments to keep and some weeks yoru head can be dizzzy with them. Thankfully when I had different appointments I could get them changed to the same day as we had a distance to drive to the hospital.
Good luck to your nanny, you and all your family
sunflower

Hello Gavin

I'm sure that ye must be so relieved to have a date for surgery but no doubt it must seem like it's so far away, but you won't feel it.

I can't offer you much by way of taking away your worries but if it helps at all, your gran shouldn't have much pain after surgery - they are very liberal with painkillers and the less pain you have, the better recovery she should make. After that, they'll leave on the dressings for about 2 weeks (the less interference with changing bandages, the better, as it reduces the risk of infections). Please God it will all go well for her.

My heart goes out to her, my own mother isnt too far away in age from your nan and while she's a tough auld bird, I would hate the thoughts of her having that worry and hassle.