Hi - I have some quesrtions.  10+ years ago my wife had a radical mastectomy, chemo, radiation, 5 years of Tamoxifen, 3 years of Femara.  She has had annual exams, blood work, etc and all have come back NED.  Last week she had a CT scan (normal) and a bone scan that had two questionable areas on one rib.  I woukld think that with all the treatments she has had the rick of reoccurance would be low.  Any comments - this is making me crazy - and scared.

Thank you,

Big Bill

Hi Bill. I know it's both crazy and scary. I wish there were written, iron-clad guarantees with this disease. You go through all the treatment and someone could promise that it would never come back. Unfortunately, we all are at risk of recurrence. However, keep this in mind: With all the scans and other tests that we survivors have, eventually they start detecting all sorts of things that are benign. For example, I had an abdominal CT scan several years ago to check for a suspected hernia. I had no hernia, but incidentally, they found a large mass in my liver. After many scans and, finally, a liver biopsy, they determined that it's a benign condition that has not affected my health or my longevity. So, the spot on your wife's rib could also be any number of benign things, and my hope is that it is. I will be sending positive thoughts your wife's way. All my best, Rena

Rena age 63 California Central Coast
26-year survivor
BRCA2-positive
Dx 1986 IDC ER/PR negative 22 positive lymph nodes
CMFVP chemo weekly for one year, 7 weeks radiation
October 2007: New chassis and spark plugs!

Rena - thank you for the comments.  She is more optimistic than I am - hopefully she's correct.  Could be many, many things - got to be positive.

Thank you again.

Hi Bill - I agree with Rena and had a suspicious bone scan myself at one point, when this was followed up with a pet/ct and mri it had disappeared after a few weeks!  
Bone scans tend to show everything from minor old injuries/arthritis and not just cancer so hope this reassure's you a little and good luck to your wife!

Anna, hi and welcome from me too and congrats on getting through so far and I'm looking forward to chatting with you more here:)

Tricia Keegan...From Ireland Dx July '05 IDC 3/9 nodes pos..triple positive..a/c x 4..Taxol/herceptin x 12
Herceptin 1yr ..rads x35 oophorectomy Aug '06
Currently taking Arimidex /Zometa 1 x yearly
Carepage- survivortricia

Hi Tricia - with each response / comment I feel better.  Thanks to all of you.  Like I said - CT scan was normal, Bone scan was "suspicious" - PET scan last week - results on Wednesday. 
Talk about a looooooooooong weekend.

Thank you again.
Bill

H Anna,
Welcome!  Jump in any place. 

Sending good wishes to your wife,  BB, and hoping for b9 results.
How is it that the days that involve waiting are at least 30 hours long?   

 Since Bill posted, I'm curious how long the "aftercare" (bloodwork, scans, ect..) post bc dx is?  Is your wife still getting regular ct scans?

dx ILC/dcis excisional biopsy 5/30/08
r segmental mast (partial) snb 6/4
node neg stage1 gr ll
er+/pr- Her2 - Oncotype Dx 11
R mast 9/22/08 w DIEP
tamox,now AI 
BRCA 1 & 2 NEG
davinci hyst/bso,  

Bill,

The waiting is soo hard for all of us, hang in there and hope this is nothing sinister!!! I got  pet/ct results the same day day and live in Ireland so we're usually far behind you for results, maybe if your wife calls she'll gteb the results sooner??

((((hugs))))

Keep us posted!!!

Tricia Keegan...From Ireland Dx July '05 IDC 3/9 nodes pos..triple positive..a/c x 4..Taxol/herceptin x 12
Herceptin 1yr ..rads x35 oophorectomy Aug '06
Currently taking Arimidex /Zometa 1 x yearly
Carepage- survivortricia

Tricia - her onc picked a heck of a week to go on vacation.  I just have to look at her and see that she's never looked better to feel confident.  That may not mean anything but you never know.  No pain in the region of the "spot", weight is steady, appetite is good as are her spirits.  Many, many positives............

Chatting has helped greatly - thanks.

Bill

I'm glad she's feeling so good Bill and do understand about the long wait and how frustrating it is, please let us know what the results are!

Sharon a friend in the U.K has just been discharged from her onc's care after ten years but not sure how long it is in the U.S

Tricia Keegan...From Ireland Dx July '05 IDC 3/9 nodes pos..triple positive..a/c x 4..Taxol/herceptin x 12
Herceptin 1yr ..rads x35 oophorectomy Aug '06
Currently taking Arimidex /Zometa 1 x yearly
Carepage- survivortricia

Hello, my name is Lori and I was diagnosed with IBC, Her2+ in September 2010 and I was 34 years old at the time of my diagnoses.  I received Chemo at the end of Sept. 2010 and finished in January 2011.  I had a right side modified radical mastectomy in February, actually on Valentine's Day, with 21 lymph nodes removed with 2 positive .  Radiation started in March and ended in May.  I have 2 herceptin treatments left and can't wait for September 14th!  Because of radiation I have not had reconstruction.  I meet with my surgeon in September to determine my next steps for reconstruction.  Due to my age, I will have my left side removed because I cannot think of the possibilities of going through this again.  I am a mother of two girls age 8 and 5.  I have absolutely no family history of breast cancer.  I was very fortunate to have a primary care doctor not mess around with my concerns and after 10 days of meds for mastitis at the end of August, he felt an ultrasound and mammogram were in order, this was September 3rd.  I had a core biopsy September 10th and on the 12th it was confirmed breast cancer.  My scans have all looked good and my bloodwork does too, however it does not relieve my concerns of what the future holds for me.  Thank you for letting me share!