Are side affects of chemo and radiation that bad?

What is still confusing to me is that the detailed MRIs that I’ve had with contrast and several ultrasounds also, this invasive ductal carcinoma as being between 6 mm and 8 mm yet I keep hearing people talking about when the doctors do the surgery on your breast they determine the size of the tumor. Would it all these different high definition testing imaging big as close as possible to the size of the tumor? I can’t even feel this lump. How can a tumor size change so drastically when all these different testing have it in the same size 6 mm to 8 mm?

Wow. Thank you for that uplifting story. I am at this gloom and doom stage where I feel like just planning my funeral

I had bc on my left side also. Chemo was 16 treatments and radiation was 25. Not everyone has side effects from one or the other. I did not get sick on chemo only fatigued. Radiation was a little harder on me. The radiation now is so different. They put me through a practice run before starting. If you can hold your breath, you’ll have no problems. They measure your area so precisely as to not hit areas not involved with the cancer. Radiation is now much farther advanced than years ago. I know this because my mothers was very different when she was diagnosed. I also found that reading all the info on the internet only makes the “ what if’s worse. A big part of fighting cancer is our own attitude. Try to stay positive because this truly does help in the fight. You will get through this no matter how hard or scared you may be. Once surgery, treatment is through you will take a deep breath and continue on with your life and feel the stresses go away and the new you begin living again. I look at it as a hiccup in life and then your you again. Doing the things you love to do and enjoying every moment. My best to you

Joanne, you're right to ask about potential effects of treatment to your heart. Forewarned is forearmed and you're asking the right questions.

It sounds like you already have a cardiologist if you have pre-existing heart issues. If not, you may wish to inquire about getting a cardiologist involved during cancer care. There is a special discipline called cardio-oncology.

Mayo Clinic offers expertise in addressing heart problems (called cardio-oncology), potential or current issues. The Cardio-Oncology Clinic (https://www.mayoclinic.org/departments-centers/cardio-oncology-clinic/overview/ovc-20442193) evaluates people prior to cancer treatment and patients who have experienced side effects due their treatment.

I would inquire about cardio-oncology specialist where you receive care - at Moffitt I believe.

@cherziggy, I want to acknowledge your joining this discussion too. I can see you are also worried about side effects of radiation. The helpful comments from @mossa @auntieoakley @crteelect @sandybainy1 are relevant to your situation too and hopeful help put you at ease.

Ziggy, it can help to go for a second opinion. I'm glad you're doing that. Can you share a bit more about feeling uneasy? Is there something in particular that you're concerned about or is it a general unease with the unknown or??

My foremost worry are the cancer cells found in my node. Getting off the Letrozole… I was happy about this for a minute, then the fear of circulating cancer cells from the node hit my thoughts. I feel unprotected. Started the second week of my radiation yesterday so two weeks left. I’m so far doing good with it. Two weeks after radiation I have been told by my Dr. to start the tamoxifen. I had a total hysterectomy 25 years ago so that’s a little comfort. I’m 69.

I had no side effects from either chemotherapy nor radiation.

I was triple positive and had 4 rounds of A/C, Taxol, Herceptin, Perjeta, lumpectomy, and 20 rounds of radiation.

Almost five years later and I’m doing well. ♥️

You’ll have a meeting with the radiation oncologist who will go over all of the risks involved.

They should then go over in detail your treatment plan. ♥️

Joanne, Your case sounds very close to mine in terms of IDC, HR/PR+ and size of tumor (minus the heart issues). After my lumpectomy the surgeon told me that what they removed was actually smaller than 7mm tumor from original sonogram. He suspected that biopsy removed most of it. The hardest part of my recovery was from the lymph node removal. I can’t speak to total mastectomy recovery. If lymph nodes are negative then you likely will not need chemo. I had 21 rounds of radiation. No issues except skin irritation and now I’m on Anastrozole for 5-7 years. My surgeon at Moffitt told me that he won’t remember me 6 months after surgery, which is a good thing because my case was so low risk compared to what he normally deals with. When you go there you will be very humbled by seeing some of the other patients walking around that are obviously dealing with far more life threatening cancers. I printed out Joshua 1:9 and taped to my bathroom mirror and I had a lot of people praying for me. Memorize that verse and keep repeating it to yourself during your journey. I will keep you in my prayers.

Can you give me someone of a breakdown of what will happen with my first time visit there this Monday? I’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting to see a surgeon to get this cancer cut out of me and with the February 2 ultrasound being totally incorrect calling it a cyst when it was really a solid mass and then two weeks later in February the wonderful supposed high definition 3-D mammogram totally missed that so-called cyst and said everything was fine. What will happen Monday I hope they run some test or something to get the ball rolling cause if I have to wait anymore I might as well plan my funeral. I mean I’m driving two hours on Monday to go to Moffitt for the first time visit and I sure hope they have some test or x-rays are imaging planned that we can get things moving along and not waste anymore time.