I’m curious about the genetic testing. What is the indication for that? My good friend (also my age- 69) who recently had the right side mastectomy had genetic testing, and several of y’all had it or are going to. I had my biopsy in February 2015 and the lumpectomy two weeks later. No one mentioned having genetic testing. Has the protocol changed that much in just under three years that now it’s recommended for everyone or at least recommended more? Or does it have to do with the multitudinous indicators characteristic of the cancer?
Someone should have explained what was going to happen with the MRI dye; it’s very common for people to experience a weird metallic taste from it, and to also have a warm flushing feeling in the lower part of the body (and sometimes in the head and neck as well). As one technician told me - ‘it’ll feel like you’ve wet your pants - don’t worry, you haven’t!’
I’ve had a number of MRIs and each experience with the dye is slightly different, but generally one should expect to feel a strange sensation somewhere for a few seconds. 
He recommended it based on my family history. My sister also had it, or something similar, and hers turned up negative.
En route to the MRI room, I saw one room that had a sign on the door that said “Lung Cancer Imaging Only”. They must have some specific thing they do in there, and believe me, that would be a lot worse. 
I’ve also heard of IORT, which stands for Intra-operative Radiation Therapy, where they administer it directly to the tumor bed prior to closing it up. Has anyone else done this, or had it suggested to them?
IME it’s pretty common now and was by 2015. There are now both enough reliable tests, and enough therapies that are known to affect different genotypes differently, that knowing the genetics drives a bunch of the treatment. And this becomes more true with every advance.
It may be that your crew was a little behind the times. Or that they did the testing and didn’t share the detailed results with you. If you’re on exemestane or similar that’s a clue they probably at least tested your HER2 status.
IMO it’s worth you asking about at your next visit.
This is me: “Dx 3/2015, IDC, Left, 1cm, Stage IA, Grade 2, 0/5 nodes, ER+/PR+, HER2-”
There’s no history of breast cancer in my family that I’m aware of. I’m an only child, but I have/had several aunts and many cousins. My mother is healthy as a horse at 92.
I’m 100% positive my treatment center is the complete opposite of “behind the times.”
I see that I’m getting confused about what "genetic testing: means. Here’s some info on HER2, which is one gene that plays into breast cancer. Obviously, I was tested for this and came up negative.
When y’all were talking about genetic testing, I was thinking of BRCA. “Specific inherited mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 increase the risk of female breast and ovarian cancers, and they have been associated with increased risks of several additional types of cancer.” I was not tested for this. When women come up positive on this one, sometimes they have pre-emptive hysterectomies. A friend of mine was told by her oncologist that this was a reasonable option for her; her mother had breast cancer. My friend chose not to do it–yet. I think Angelina Jolie was one of these.
Am I on the right track here?
Not really.
The ER+/PR+ HER2- *are *genetic testing results. They test the genetics of the cancer itself to see where/how it’s gone haywire.
I can’t say anything more that’s trustworthy. There may be other genetic tests that can be done now. Or they may all be relevant only to, say, HER2+, which is apparently not your situation. Perhaps you already have the full state of the art story. I’m not competent to say.
In any case, IMO it’s worth asking next time what they do know, whether there’s more they could learn with further new testing, and what’s the clinical significance of what they do know. IOW, how does that knowledge affect your prognosis and treatment plan?
My mother and sister both had small hormone + IDC tumors with no positive nodes, so they both had lumpectomy with radiation and hormone suppression. I had a positive node and hormone-positive IDC on one side and widespread grade 3 DCIS on the other, so I had bilateral mastectomy, chemo, radiation on the IDC side, and hormone suppression. I didn’t reconstruct and I go flat. Most people don’t notice.
That’s exactly what I said here (or meant to say):
IOW, I did have this genetic test.
IIRC, HER2 - is the “good” kind, because it means they can treat it without the specific drug needed for HER2 positive cancer. A friend at work had HER2 positive and her chemo lasted a year.
I had estrogen/progesterone positive and HER2 negative. This means my cancer was reliant on hormones and they could treat it by taking away the hormones. I had the BRCA test a few years later and it was negative.
Funny story, about a month into my chemo I missed my period. I told my husband I’d kill him if he got me pregnant again and made them give me a pregnancy test. Turns out it was just the chemo, but can you imagine getting pregnant in the middle of that? So yeah, last period was April 16, 2008.
Got my MRI results back today, and they found a slightly swollen lymph node that warrants an ultrasound exam, although the radiologist thinks it’s probably swollen because it’s doing its job - in short, cleaning up after the biopsy. I’m going to have that done on Monday.
What I feared most - that it would reveal cancer throughout both breasts - did not happen, and the cancer does not appear to have spread at all, and measures 9x7x2 millimeters. So, it seems to be the best news I can have, all things considered.
I told the people at my meetup this evening, and when I mentioned my surgeon, two women practically jumped out of their chairs to tell me, “He’s the best!” They didn’t say what he did for them, but as we were leaving, one of them said, “You couldn’t be in better hands.”
Good to hear!
Excellent news.
There’s no time to cry — happy, happy!
That is awesome news! Woo hoo!
I’m IDC 1A, 1.3 cm, right, triple negative. Tumor was graded 2 and 3 so they’re giving me chemo first to shrink it and stop it from sending rogue cells out. No lymphatic involvement detected. MRI didn’t detect anything other than the little asshole that they found in the original mammogram.
Ladies: Pay extra for the 3D mammogram, if it’s offered. I have dense breasts and I’m so glad that I agreed to pay the $75. It may have saved my life.
Hooray for nearwildheaven & PunditLisa. Best of luck.
And yet another update: The genetic screening test turned up negative on all fronts. 
It’s the test to see if I had the BRCA genes and several others; my sister had it done a while back for other reasons, and hers was also negative all the way across.
nwh, my friend, I’ve already destroyed one friendship by being too much Men are from Mars, and I’m happy for the positive report. Please keep up posted. You have many more admirers than have posted here. Lurkers still count. 
Hugs and well wishes to you both. I’m glad the news is positive.
I also took a Cologuard test in the meantime. I had to do it over because my first specimen was too big :o ; it comes with an 8-ounce bottle of preservative, and if the stool is bigger than that, they can’t use it. And they want a complete turd, too, not just part of one. :eek: Anyway, I did it over and got the results for that from my doctor today.
However you want to phrase it: all clear, negative, normal, etc.