Bone And Breast Cancer

my sister has just told me that she has breast and bone cancer and is on stage 4. what can i do for her and what does that mean. i know that there is only 5 stage of this cancer. what do i do now. i have been crying every night sence she has told me . help

Hi, My name is Leah my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer to the liver...They are not doing any surgery on her now. She is going in for her second chemo on Thurs. I know how you feel, like in a cloud, not earing, sleeping, and SAD, my heart actually hurts. How old is your sister? Is she married? kids? and what did they tell her EXACTLY?? They told my mom she had about 5 years..(that killed me) We are VERY close..I have 2 kids That ADORE her...I would REALLY get to know exactly what is going on..I am still working on my mom's info...I am wanting to get another opinion..maybe at OHSU (we live in Oregon) or in Texas they have MD Anderson cancer clinic that I have heard is wonderful!!!!! Just be there for her and listen, I can't imagine being in there shoes, we have to PRAY, and just be there. email me directly if you ever want to talk...I have good days, and bad, (this is a good one lol) Take care, what is her name I will pray for her...Have a good day, chin up!!

Leah

Dear Piggy,

I have been battling stage iv metastatic breast cancer for 3 years and 3 mos. and I am 48 years old. My initial diagnosis was stage iv with breast cancer in bone. There are only stages i through iv.

There are a number of treatment options for your sister, depending upon particulars of your sister's cancer: Her2 status, response to chemo, etc. After a full regimen, 6 cycles of taxol, adryomacin, and cytoxin, followed by mastectomy and radiation to breast and largest bone lesions, I was declared cancer-free and enjoyed a 1-yr remission.

I have been back in chemo for over 1 yr now and in spite of our inability to control my cancer in the bones at this time, I am grateful that mine has only spread to the bone. 70% of all metastatic breast cancer spreads to bone. While quite painful, bone mets survivors can live many , many years and has the highest survival rate of all metastatic disease.

Say a prayer for your sister, your family, get yourself and your sister into a good support group. Help your sister do her research, if you live in So. FL we have a great navigator program at the So. FL Breast Cancer Resource Network.

You need a cancer "tour guide" and a sense of humor. Someone who's walked the walk, is aware of the pitfalls, and knows the best doc's. Example: my first breast surgeon didn't bother to put a breast clip in at biopsy, so lumpectomy was off the table as an option -- had to have mastectomy. Thought behind lumpectomy vs. mastectomy: the horse had already left the barn... I also opted against lymph node dissection, my surgeon agreed provided she could not feel any enlarged nodes at surgery, and my radiology oncologist was confident he could get all the nodes with radiation to supra and subclavicular regions.

Happy to say that this was my best decision since I have not had any problems with my original surgery sight and my nodes.

Problems to look out for: 1) make sure your wig doesn't resemble a popular figure you dislike. I only discovered this in the mirror at a movie theater. After going in with a full head of hair, I came out bald! 2)Have your sister use her chemo diagnosis date for pin nos. Trust me, she'll never forget those numbers; 3) my personal favorite is to park in Row C (for cancer) , I never forget where my car is anymore.

Write back if you want some more info, jokes, or just need to vent. Stage iv cancer is not a picnic, but it's also not necessarily time to go shopping for a black dress. --- Message edited by CancerCompass staff: for personal protection, email address removed. Please review CancerCompass Member Guidelines at http://www.cancercompass.com/common/guidelines.html ----

Good luck.

Hi there,

 

I can understand what you are saying.  I feel like the world has not stopped spinning and I have not stopped crying either.  My mom had breast cancer 28 years ago.  She is now 69 years old.  Over the last few months we have found out she has in-operable lung cancer in the right upper lobe where there is a large tumor and extensive bone cancer which is in the neck, upper and lower spine, lower lumbar (where she is having a great deal of pain one moment and totally denies she has any pain of course she is taking pain meds at the time) The bone cancer is also in her shoulder, femur, both sides of the rib cage, the sternum and skull.  It is also in the lymph nodes in the chest area.  And who knows where else.  We still have not seen the bone scan.  It appears she has had this cancer for some time or it is moving very very fast from the number of places and size.

 

My brother and I are not sure what to think.  We have talked with several doctors and the lung specialist advised us to look into hospice, and talk with an oncologist so we know what to expect.  The tumor and bone cancer is considered very advanced and large.  He felt she had little time and chemo would only extend her life a very short time, as in weeks for a month or so.  Our other doctor says with out chemo/treatment, she might make it till Christmas, with treatment maybe till this time next year at best.  However when he found out she is now having trouble standing, he felt she was going very fast and may not make it much longer. 

 

Then there is the Oncologist who only wants to talk treatment and has yet to go over the details of what we are dealing with.  She says, "she is not the one who ordered the test".  She wants to do a low dose of Chemo, Carboplatin, with Zometa for the bones, and depending on the pathology report (she has been waiting on for the last three weeks), Herceptin if she has the right antibodies.  The Oncologist has made it very clear she can not cure her and that this will eventually kill her.  However she feels the treatment "May" help to reduce the side effect of the cancer and the pain and maybe give her a bit more time.  Of course she makes it very clear there is no guarantee. She then goes on to tell my mom that she has patients who are still around after five years.  This of course is all my mom hears and can't under stand why she is so tired and her back hurts, but she is not in pain.  We are just not sure what to think.  My mom lives alone, and is very independent; however she is getting very confused and emotional and doesn’t understand what the doctors are telling her.  She just wants to be back to the way she use to be and thinks she will be.  We are worried she is being given false hope and really feels she is going to survive this even though she has point blank been told she will not.  We are just hoping to see if anyone has any information on what to expect with what she has and at the advanced stage.  I am not able to talk with her doctors with out her present because they are not comfortable doing that even though I have her signed legal permission to do so as well as make med decisions for her when she can no long make them for herself as well as her written permission for the doctors to release info to me..  She gets very upset and confused the more questions we ask the doctors in front of her. 

 

We just want the best for her and to make the most of the time she has.  The more we look for information on what she has the less we really find out.  I wish I had more info for you but I too am trying to figure out what to expect next.

 

Thanks for any info you might have.

 

Pegi