My journey started Jan. 14, 2014. I was 50 years old but am now 51. My ob/gyn noticed a retraction in the skin on my left breast. My recent mammogram in December was negative. Over the years I have been called back multiple times for additional imaging and ultrasounds and have always been told I am a cystic mess and have dense breast tissue. I assumed the lump in my left breast was just another cyst since the mammogram was negative. My ob/gyn sent me to a surgeon just to be safe. I was diagnosed on Jan. 27, 2014 with invasive lobular carcinoma. It is also estrogen and progesterone positive. There is no family history of breast cancer in my family. The lump is approx. 3 cm. When the surgeon did the core biopsy she said she really couldn't see it on the ultrasound but was sure she would hit it since it was so large. I underwent multiple tests, MRI, PET Scan, ultrasound and additional biopsies to get the complete picture. Multiple lymph nodes tested positive in the MRI, but the PET scan didn't show anything else. The plan is chemo, a double mastectomy surgery, radiation and reconstruction. I decided on the double mastectomy since the kind of cancer I have wasn't detected with the regular screening tests. Chemo began on Mar. 5, 2014 and today I finished my 8th round so this step of the journey is done. We celebrated today with the nurses at the infusion center.
My chemo was 4 rounds of A/C followed by 4 rounds of Taxol. I tolerated the chemo fairly well, but managed to gain 15 pounds. It never affected my taste or appetite. My biggest complaint would be the bone and joint pain from the Taxol. I had to take Vicadin starting on day 3 after the taxol to manage the pain for about 5 days. My friends and family all keep telling me I look great having gone through all this.
I enjoy reading the stories on this site from the survivors and the medical professionals.
Carmel, IN
