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Anyone with HER2+ breast cancer?

OZ
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I wonder if you can help me please as I am still confused. I was diagnosed with T 1 grade 3 ER +, HER2+ breast cancer in July. After having had surgery and all the margins now clear, negative lymph node biopsy, I am told that they have taken everything out, that there were two cancer cells in one lymph node and that there were some cells in the surrounding tissue of the tumor but all margin are clear.

My next step now is chemotherapy for 6 months and then radio therapy. I am confused as to why I need Chemo + Herceptin if there is no cancer left in my body. Also is chemo + Herceptin is supposed to kill any cancer cell that might be left somewhere else in my body, why do I thne need radio therapy to kill cancer cells. Am I to assume that my body will contunue to produce this kind of cells and hence the extensive treatment. They say it is to avoid the cancer coming back but I dont understand how chemo that is supposed to kill existing cancer cells will work in the future, that is to say in case it comes back?

Please could you help clarify?

Thanks a million for your help.

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    Hi there ...

    I had a grade 3 her 2 neg oestrogen positive cancer and a mastectomy last July, with clear lymph node .. they sent my lump to America and came back low risk .. so didn't need chemo, and I refused radiotherapy as my bones are really weak ..but I am taking tamoxifen for the foreseeable...

    It does seem confusing why your having so much treatment , and as wer not trained medically if I were you I'd phone your oncology team and ask them to make it clearer as you don't understand why .. there are lots of us breast lasses on here , all with different grades and all the treatments vary quite a lot .. 

    You can always ring the nurses on here Mon to Fri or McMillan have a free phone too ... they have lots more knolege then we do ... hope you get the answers to your questions ...

    Chrissie  x

  • Offline in reply to Chriss

    Hi Chrissie,

     

    Thank youfor the response and thank you for the support and the sign posting, I have asked the nurses here as well via post as I am on the go at the moment with school runs to two separate schools and I am still trying to do some work until all the treatment kicks in.

    I hope you are well. Thanks for sharing with me your story. I am glad that your lump was low risk and that you managed to avoid radiotherapy. I also have bad bones and I am worried about the effect of radiotherapy on them, I have ander working thyroids as well and that is why I am scared regarding chemo and all the toxins going into the heart. I dont have heart problem but there is a rick of it with under working thyroids so not quite sure what to do regarding treatment. Obviously I want the cancer to never come back like everyone else and if the only solution is chemo ...

    Anyhow, thanks a million again for the support. 

    Take care

    Olga X 

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     Hi,

    Im suprised they did a mastectomy for low grade cancer. How big was the lump and where was it sited?

    The RT on the wound area prevents it recurring apparently.  Your oncologist will explain about the proteins/receptors and the monoclonal antibodies.

    Im going through it with chemo first, so other way round.

    Thinking of you.

    xxx

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