Connect
← Return to Just diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer
Discussion
Just diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer
Breast Cancer | Last Active: Oct 1, 2023 | Replies (13)Comment receiving replies
I understand how having the right doctor can be so helpful...I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was 14 months old and have seen doctors all my life and have a 6th sense about them at this point. Although I have just met my oncologist I do trust her (of course I have been looking stuff up on my own as well)...I so appreciate all the responses that everyone has given me! From the mammogram and biopsied, I have a 9mm tumor in my right breast...on the outer side so I am hopeful! While I do tend to go to the more natural remedies, I do know that there are things that they just cannot treat...so I am kind of different about how I take care of myself 🙂
Replies to "I understand how having the right doctor can be so helpful...I was diagnosed with type 1..."
@sschafer70, how are you doing? Have you started treatments?
Connect
I was diagnosed with triple negative in June of this year. I had a mastectomy on the affected side and now I am done. When they first told me that, I thought I was being under-treated. However, my tumor was only 0.5 cm (=5 mm) and 4 lymph nodes were all clear. I'm about to turn 68. They told me that chemo would likely do more harm than good. The more time I've had to consider this, the more I think they are right. They told me about such things as heart damage and other things that the chemo can cause. I've concluded that the choice is between putting poison in my body now to try to kill any stray cancer cells that may cause a recurrence, or wait and see if I get a recurrence (which I very well may not) and then decide whether to put the poison in my body to try to kill it. They are going to see me every 3 months for 5 years to keep an eye out for any signs of its return.
There are risks both ways, of course, but I don't think I would take chemo if they offered it to me now. My tumor was small and showed no signs of spreading outside of the area in the breast where it began. My breast is now gone and the cancer went with it. I don't have any of the known hereditary risks. I did go for a second opinion which was an absurdity. (Though I'm still waiting for the a report on a second evaluation of the pathology slide which might be interesting.) The oncologist I spoke with spent most of the session explaining that they could get sued if they did chemo in a plan that didn't adhere to the NCCN guidelines (no chemo for tumors 5 mm and under). I read her note on the visit and she didn't even get my demographics correct.
So I'm resuming more or less normal life 3+ months after diagnosis. I know I am extraordinarily fortunate to be able to say this and maybe that good luck won't last. I am not making an argument against chemo in general. For some people, it is their only chance. Just wanted to share this to assure others that triple negative doesn't always mean horrible chemo is necessary.