Aromasin (exemestane)

@trixie1313 That was wise to have the MRI. I had no idea that an MRI would show a tumor that mammography did not reveal.

@hopeful33250 Yes, it was small but was told it is aggressive. Had the MRI not been done, this could have been a whole different story ending for me.

@trixie1313 Wow, unbelievable! Good for you!

Oh yes - the MRI is a much more detailed test than the mammogram. It found another tumor on me too - that the mammogram did not show. The MRI is always done on both breasts - you lie face down on a special table & the girls hang down for the test.

Hi @trixie1313,

Yes! Here are some articles/information from Mayo Clinic:
– Hormone therapy for breast cancer https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/hormone-therapy-for-breast-cancer/about/pac-20384943
– Breast cancer chemoprevention: Medicines that reduce breast cancer risk https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/breast-cancer/in-depth/breast-cancer/art-20045353
– https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/exemestane-oral-route/description/drg-20063757

With regard to "infiltrating ductal cancer with neuroendocrine differentiation” you might find this information useful (I hope:)
– Rare Neuroendocrine Breast Cancer Not So Unusual https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/885394

Hi, is an MRI standard follow up care after surgery, radiation? Thanks

@dac58 You would have to check with your care center/provider. At the large facility I belong to, standard care for breast cancer staging is bone scan and body scan. MRI is not standard care. I was fortunate when I spoke with my surgeon about my concerns for being sure the unaffected breast didn't have anything growing, that she ordered it for me and that's when we found the secondary tumor in the affected breast, i.e. one was outer inner and the second was just on the opposite side of that tumor. Again, my other breast was clear. My breasts have always been quite dense and, what surprised me was when I thought I felt another node and had to have a mammogram following radiation, was (even though I had partial mastectomy), the breast tissue is still dense and difficult to visualize and had to have additional magnification views to see the new microcalcification clusters.

Hello @trixie1313, You have provided us all with some important information, thanks again!

For me, yes it is. When I was diagnosed with one tumor in one breast the radiologist immediately ordered a breast MRI on both to ensure there were no other issues. There was one suspicious area on the other side, so they did an MRI biopsy, which turned out to be benign. Now the standard of care for me going forward (lumpectomy and radiation completed last year) will be mammograms and breast MRI’s alternating every 6 months.

They ordered mine before I had surgery. That's how they picked up the 2nd tumor.