breast cancer recurrance

[preschool]

My 34 year old daughter was diagnoised in 2005.Had a lumpectomy,chemo and radiation. She has been on Tamoxifin since.Last month they discovered it was back in the same breast in the same place it was. She had a lumpectomy and will have chemo . Her Cat scan was clear. The surgeon was very positive about everything. When we saw the oncologist yesterday he was not as positive. He acted as if it was only a matter of time till it spread . I have been on line reading everything. I find alot of stories about people that have recurrance and then mets.Is there any hope ? My family is devasted and we could use alittle hope.

Scared Mom

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

No, a recurrence and a metastatic cancer are two different things. A recurrence is the re-emergence of the same cancer at the same site, whereas a metastatic cancer is the spread of the cancer via blood, lymph or direct contact to other organs of a patients body. There are other differences as well on the basis of the danger and the treatment levels for the two.

Let us know if you have any more queries.

Good luck once again.

[preschool]

Thank you so much for your response. Is a recurrance the same as metastatic cancer.? My daughter has had a CAT scan and many tests and all is clear so far. She is a fighter and has a good attitude. We have a lot to be thankful for.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

It can be understood that you and your family are distressed about the recent events. But you should keep in mind that a recurrence of breast cancer or metastatic (advanced) disease is not hopeless. There are a lot of women around teh world who continue to live long, productive lives with breast cancer. There are various treatment options availabale and there are many new options now being researched for people like your daughter. The treatment experience this time could be somewhat different than the previous time. You must not lose hope and instead stay with your child as she decides to defend herself. There are various modalities based on the different profiles for patients and these can help them to achieve more than anticipated.

Your doctor would be able to guide on which modalities are available. Please let us know if you any other queries, we would be happy to help you.

Good luck.