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40-49
Nancy
breast cancer
stage one

One day as I lifted my left arm to shave under it, I noticed tenderness about the nipple area. I felt around and without doubt, a lump was sitting just off to the left of my nipple. Being a Sunday night, I called my ob/gyn first thing Monday morning and got an appointment January 29,2001 at 3:00 (7 days away). My doctor examined me and contacted a surgeon and set up an appointment for an ultrasound. Well, to make a very long story short, last Monday, March 12th, I had a lumpectomy done. He took 2 lymph nodes out of my left arm and the tumor was the size of a golf ball. He had to take a very large section out to see about my margins, down to my pectoral muscle. I went and saw him yesterday and yes there was small cancer cells in the tumor and I have dcis (ductal carcinoma in situ) in my margins. The nodes came clear, but now that about a third of my breast is gone, I'm worried as to what to do. He will be sending me to an oncologist as well as my radiation doctor to educate me about my odds if I keep the rest of my breast. Of course, my doctor said since he is a surgeon and thinks like one, he wants to finish taking the rest of my breast. But on the other hand, he wants me to see these two other doctors first, and he will contact them himself on their opinion. I go back in 3 weeks to give my decision. Right now I’m not that educated on dcis, I don’t what to think or do. I'm the youngest of 5 girls, none of us has ever had any cancer problems before. I guess I'll just wait till next week and see what my two now doctors have to say about it and go from there. Without the support of these other 4 women, (my terrific sisters)my husband and three kids (ages 27,24,21)and of course mother, I’d be lost. They have been there for me from the first office visit on January 29th, to my surgery last Monday, March 12th, to whenever this is over. scared? very much so. loved and supported? VERY MUCH SO!!

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