Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know how she discovered this? (What were the circumstances of when she found out?)

Looks like she hasn't given out any details at this point. Hopefully it's just something early stage that can be dealt with easily enough.

Easily enough? I don't think so. #cancersucks

I wouldn't use any form of easy to describe the often year long treatment.

I'm thrilled for the cancer patient pp who feels her diagnosis, treatment, prognosis are "easy enough" and yes, I understand that stage 0 or 1 is easier than stage 3 or 4. But I just bristle at the sound of "easy" and "cancer" in the same sentence.

Bristle all you want, but the fact is that stage 0 and most stage 1s are vastly easier than even a stage 2 and are not year long courses of treatment, unless there are unanticipated complications. In fact, most stage 0s are not even considered cancers. Yes, any surgery requires some recovery, but a lumpectomy with radiation is maybe 3 months. And those three months pale in comparison to chemo-mastectomy-radiation-reconstruction. Now that is a year plus ordeal.

One friend going the mastectomy-chemo-radiation route. Not doing reconstruction.
Another doing chemo-radiation-possible mastectomy.

Regardless I hope JLD's treatment is successful.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2017/10/03/breast-cancer-death-rate-drops-almost-40-percent-saving-32200-lives-study-says/?utm_term=.daeb8b11a994

this article made me remember this thread

I think we can all agree cancer sucks. Nobody is getting out of life without knowing somebody that has it, or gets it themselves.

The odds aren't in anyone's favor. Age eventually will start showing a lot more people you know with cancer.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know how she discovered this? (What were the circumstances of when she found out?)

Looks like she hasn't given out any details at this point. Hopefully it's just something early stage that can be dealt with easily enough.

Easily enough? I don't think so. #cancersucks

I wouldn't use any form of easy to describe the often year long treatment.

I'm thrilled for the cancer patient pp who feels her diagnosis, treatment, prognosis are "easy enough" and yes, I understand that stage 0 or 1 is easier than stage 3 or 4. But I just bristle at the sound of "easy" and "cancer" in the same sentence.

Bristle all you want, but the fact is that stage 0 and most stage 1s are vastly easier than even a stage 2 and are not year long courses of treatment, unless there are unanticipated complications. In fact, most stage 0s are not even considered cancers. Yes, any surgery requires some recovery, but a lumpectomy with radiation is maybe 3 months. And those three months pale in comparison to chemo-mastectomy-radiation-reconstruction. Now that is a year plus ordeal.

We don't disagree. I said stage 0 or 1 is easier than stage 2 or 3. I've had my own cancer year; I really don't want to defend my personal reaction to "easily enough" as it relates to cancer. I'm truly happy for you if you feel otherwise. Cancer sucks.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know how she discovered this? (What were the circumstances of when she found out?)

Looks like she hasn't given out any details at this point. Hopefully it's just something early stage that can be dealt with easily enough.

Easily enough? I don't think so. #cancersucks

I wouldn't use any form of easy to describe the often year long treatment.

I'm thrilled for the cancer patient pp who feels her diagnosis, treatment, prognosis are "easy enough" and yes, I understand that stage 0 or 1 is easier than stage 3 or 4. But I just bristle at the sound of "easy" and "cancer" in the same sentence.

Bristle all you want, but the fact is that stage 0 and most stage 1s are vastly easier than even a stage 2 and are not year long courses of treatment, unless there are unanticipated complications. In fact, most stage 0s are not even considered cancers. Yes, any surgery requires some recovery, but a lumpectomy with radiation is maybe 3 months. And those three months pale in comparison to chemo-mastectomy-radiation-reconstruction. Now that is a year plus ordeal.

Not trying to derail the thread, but she spells her name Shannen

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know how she discovered this? (What were the circumstances of when she found out?)

Looks like she hasn't given out any details at this point. Hopefully it's just something early stage that can be dealt with easily enough.

Easily enough? I don't think so. #cancersucks

I wouldn't use any form of easy to describe the often year long treatment.

I'm thrilled for the cancer patient pp who feels her diagnosis, treatment, prognosis are "easy enough" and yes, I understand that stage 0 or 1 is easier than stage 3 or 4. But I just bristle at the sound of "easy" and "cancer" in the same sentence.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've known so many people who have dealt with breast cancer. A diagnosis always sucks, but it has become much more survivable.

For a while...until it comes back with a vengeance.

Not always, and not too soon. My aunt had a mastectomy about 23 years ago. It may come back, god forbid, but 23 years ain't bad.

Your Aunt was lucky. In my family my Aunt and Cousin died of it on third reappearance. Mother had it return three times too.

My mom had it come back as stage IV within 4 years.

And those cases suck. Terrible luck. But that doesn't mean it is always a death sentence. It doesn't always come back.

My mil had a couple bouts, then had a mastectomy. Not expected to return now. No guarantee of course, but her prognosis is good.

My FIL unfortunately recently died of stage 4 cancer that seems to have been a fluke. It always sucks to lose someone to cancer. I am very sorry for your losses. I am not trying to minimize that at all.

"Not expected to return?" What does that mean?

My mother's cancer diagnosis wasn't bad at all. Mastectomy, radiation, and tamoxifen. Didn't need chemo because it "wasn't that bad and chemo wouldn't provide additional benefits." Clean bill of health until she was diagnosed stage IV when she had back pain. She had cancer all over her body. Came back quickly, and with a vengeance.

No family history.

I've had broad spectrum testing, and it showed nothing. Doesn't really matter since my mother didn't have a genetic predisposition to breast cancer either yet it will be what ultimately kills her.

NP. Do you know this for sure? Did she have genetic testing done?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know how she discovered this? (What were the circumstances of when she found out?)

Looks like she hasn't given out any details at this point. Hopefully it's just something early stage that can be dealt with easily enough.

Easily enough? I don't think so. #cancersucks

I wouldn't use any form of easy to describe the often year long treatment.

All I'm saying is that an early stage diagnosis that is handled with lumpectomy/radiation/tamoxifin and has an excellent prognosis like I am dealing with is a very different road than someone facing a later stage diagnosis, multiple rounds of chemo and an uncertain prognosis. I hope the details of Julia's diagnosis are more similar to mine than they are to someone like Shannon Doherty who recently finished nearly three years of treatment. Compared to what Shannon and others like her have been through, I consider my treatment as something that is "dealt with easily enough".