Time you took to process

hi ,, my cancer was in my right breast nipple ,stage 3 , i did a double mastectomy and kept it moving . No chemo , no radiation ..its 13 yrs and never felt sick 🙂

I was diagnosed at stage 2 which was later determined to be stage 3. I made my decision 10 days after diagnosis, 2 tests, 1 doctor, one surgeon. I didn't have surgery for another 7 months because of drug treatment with an oncologist to shrink tumor first. Even with the extra time and additional tests, my decision did not change.

Any treatment?

My diagnosis was on 11/21. I met with the surgeon on 11/23. While I was at the surgeon, I had signed the paperwork for a lumpectomy with radiation. Genetic testing on 11/26 (negative for markers but have 2 sisters that are 30+ year survivor and 4+ year survivor). Then came the research on the effect of radiation and red flags started waving as I learned of the effects of radiation on lungs, as I have a family history of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. I didn't want to hurt my currently healthy lungs. I was now seriously considering a mastectomy. So I requested a meeting with my surgeon, pulmonologist and the radiation oncologist. I was able to have a telehealth call with the surgeon and pulmonologist and express my concerns. While they didn't have the experience of the rates of pulmonary fibrosis that I had read about, they did hear my concerns and arranged for me to meet with my radiation oncologist. That meeting was so helpful. It gave me a such peace. I was then able to confirm the lumpectomy, which I had on 12/20. My tumor was 4mm with 8 mm margins with negative nodes. It is Estrogen and progestogen positive HER2- and negative nodes. So radiation begins on 1/30, 5 days a week for 3 weeks. The time it takes is very dependent on the growth of the tumor and treatments needed. This isn't a sprint but a marathon. Take the time you can to get the information the two of you need to help her make the decision.