CancerCompass message board discussion started by AngelBaby on 7/4/2008 http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,25719,0.htm Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ Hi,I usually post about colon cancer. My husband was dx in may 06 stage 3 rectal cancer. My sister in law was just Dx with breast cancer. She had a biopsy. I'm not sure of the stage yet but I think she has lymph involvement. I did not know they take out lymph nodes on a Biopsy. Anyway she is taking tamoxifen (spelling?) by mouth. then they will re check her. Does anyone know the side affect she should expect? What Is the next step after that. Do they give this chemo without mets?Please adviseToni  AngelBaby Fri, 04 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT You have a lot of questions, know the feeling.  She is so fortunate to have someone like yourself who cares so much.  I'll try to address what I can.  Yes, they usually either do a sentinel node biopsy or a resecction (the older method) while doing a lumpectomy or mastectomy to see how many if any lymph nodes were involved.  Pending on the size of the breast tumor, location, (ductal or lobular) it's grade, whether it is estrogen/progesterin or HER-2 positive they set the course of treatment.  Also, if she is premenapausal this will come into play.  The fact that they started her on Tamoxifen tells me that it was either estrogen and/or progesterin postive which means it will most likely respond to the anti-estrogen drug, Tamoxifen.  The fact that they choose Tamoxifen rather than the other newer class of drugs such as Femara or Arimidex tells me she is probably premenapausal.  If this is the case she probably will be a candidate for some sort of chemo or radiation or both.  If they do a mastectomy sometimes you can avoid radiation but if you have a lumpectomy, radiation is the norm.  The side effects from Tamoxifen are the least problematic from what I have read and it is effective, of course, everyone responds differently to medication.  This is a rough time for your sister in law.  Trying to get a grasp on what is going on and trying to educate yourself so you are informed enough to make decisions if given options while still trying to cope with the diagnosis is very difficult.  Allow her some time to just get a grasp on all this.  It would help if she would like, that you go along with her on her doctor appointments or at least make sure someone accompanies her.  It is so difficult to try to comprehend everything and all the medical terminology and the other person could help take this info in for her if she has questions later.  Don't panic at this point.  Stage l and 2 BC patients like myself can do very well.  It has been over 4 years for me and belive it or not life does return to normalcy, sometimes it is a new normal.  I know when I was first diagnosed and going to doctors and hospitals I felt removed from the everyday world going on outside and felt it may never be normal again but it does get better.  The important thing now is that she get the best care and most aggressive treatment she needs up front. I wish her and you the best!  Leemg Thu, 10 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT