Secondary Breast Cancer

Hi,
Secondary bone cancer is when the breast cancer has spread through the blood or lymphatic system and settles in the bone. The bone is the most common site of secondary breast cancer, and can happen at any time.
Secondary bone cancer can be controlled for long periods, and many people feel well and are symptom free for long periods with treatment.
Your mother's oncologist may be able to give you a clearer idea of the disease your mother has.
If you have any further queries please feel free to contact our freefone helpline on 1800 30 90 40 to speak to a specialist nurse.

You may also find it useful to look at the information on Bisphosphonates and Secondary bone cancer on the Action Breast Cancer section of the Irish Cancer Society website: http://www.cancer.ie/action/

hi, i was diagnosed with breast cancer 3 years ago when i was 24. i had surgery. chemo and radiotherapy and started taking tamoxifen and zolodex injections as i was oestrogen receptor positive. at the time all my scans were clear of further involvement. i was feeling great and getting on with my life. then last year i started to get back pain. it was dismissed as nothing for months as my tumour markers were normal but eventually i had xrays which showed i had metastatic spread to my spine and a PET scan showed that my hip and another area of myspine are affected.i had surgery to the L4 bone in my spine in march 08 as the tumour was so big it fractured my back and i finished a course of radiotherapy in july of this year.
the strange thing is apart from pain i feel so well. i coped very well when i had breast cancer but now i feel so terrified about what my future holds. people say you can live for 10 years with metastatic disease but for me that is still so young. i am only 27 now. is there anyone out there living with this and how long have you had it? i really need to hear some good stories to try and keep me going. i feel so out of my depth here and i cant tell anyone how afraid i am because i need to put on a brave face so i cant break down. i dont feel like talking to a councellor because it will make it too real if i say my fears out loud. please any good news would help me so much and i wouldnt feel so isolated.

Dear waterford
I know how you feel, this may my mum was diagnosed breast cancer, we were told by the surgeon that is was early stage. After her surgery they did the routine post op ct scan and this showed some lung nodules. And only this week we got her lung biopsy results which showed secondaries in her lungs. Its like being hit with a big rock when you hear those words, so now we are waiting for her to start chemo. Hope your Mum is doing well.

hi lucy
i feel for you as my mother in law had breast cancer and it came back after 10 years. she underwent chemo and radiotherapy at the time which has given her these extra years but we're not content with this.

my wife and I have done a lot of research into trying to find an alternative as chemo generally buys you a number of years but we want her to live well into her 80's...we have come across a lot of rubbish but have eventually found the one guy we are convinced will help my wifes mother....

as i dont think im aloud to give out his website can you google dr robert young , a micro biologist in the US...

Basically its about leading an Alkaline lifestyle i.e. keeping the body in balance...lots of healthy fruit and veg and eliminating meat, dairy and other acid forming foods...this is the key to preventing your cancer returning and I have no doubt you can live well into your 70's 80's if you follow this...read all the testimonials...this is the real thing...

I ask you to buy any of his books that you will see available as this will explain it better than a short email...

we are still trying to convince my wife's mother to try this out and follow this programme but she is stubborn ....but we'll keep trying because she cant take any more chemo or radio...

have a look at the website and get back to me if you have any more questions...its a lot to take in... keep the spirits up....

Hi Lucy

Many people with secondary breast cancer do feel alone and isolated. Action Breast Cancer are planning a focus group in the New Year of women from around Ireland living with secondary breast cancer to help us develop new services for women living with breast cancer. If this would interest you please contact our helpline on 1800 30 90 40.

A healthy and balanced lifestyle should always be encouraged for everyone. Good health eating is important for us all.

Action Breast Cancer can not encourage treatments that have not been medically or scientifically researched and tested. We would have great concerns over anyone on the internet claiming to have a "miracle cure" for breast cancer. It is important to remember that there is free expression on the internet, and anyone can start and blog or website without any qualifications.

If you would like to talk further to one of our specialist breast cancer nurses, please call our helpline on 1800 30 90 40.

Best wishes

Hi Lucy
How are you keeping ?
My mum is doing well at the moment, she has been receiving a 'bone stenghtening' medication and this seems to be helping. She has also received Radiotherapy and this seems to have helped too. We are still very worried and although she feels well it is such a scary time. You are young and stong, all you can do is keeping fighting and stay positive. They say that your mental attitude is everything.

dear waterford,
glad to hear your mum is doing well, her treatment pattern seems similar to mine so fingers crossed. is the bone strenghtening drug that your mum is on called zometa? if so, she needs to be vigilant about her oral health because if she runs into dental problems the zometa can cause a lot of problems to the gums. her oncology nurse probably went through it all already with you but just to be aware of it. im doing ok at the moment, everything is stable from results of scans a couple of weeks ago so the drugs must be helping. im hoping to go back to work in a couple of weeks to try and regain some normality back into my life, i cant stay off indefinitly just waiting for more bad news so i think i just have to take control and deal with it when the time comes and get on with life. your mum will be fine as well, its true what you say, mental attitude is everything, thats what got me through after my first diagnosis 3 years ago and that is what i have to focus on now again. its always more scary for family and friends than it is for the person going through it. take care from lucy

Hi Lucy,

I think I met you about 2 & 1/2 years ago at one of the Younger Women with BC conferences in Galway? I was 27 when I was diagnosed with BC and was just finishing chemo at the time. I am 30 now. I am really sorry to see from your posts that you have bone mets... I remember you from the conference as at the time, I felt so isolated because I was so young getting BC and it was a strange comfort when I met you and realised that I was not the only person in their 20's with BC.

I can only vaguely imagine what you are going through now. I've had a few scares (I have a chronic cough from herceptin (?) and last November when I had a chest x-ray done, my implant was mistaken for a "shadow" on my lung... and I am currently being monitored as I have a lump in the lymph glands in my cheek, but the consultant doesn’t think it's anything sinister...), but generally I am still doing OK.

If you want to get in contact, let me know and I will give you my email address (if that's allowed through this forum)? I know I cannot fully appreciate what you are going through at the moment, but I have a greater understanding than most. If you don't want to make contact - no worries.

Best wishes,
Mags

hi mags, from reading your post i remember you also from the conference, like that it makes you feel less like a freak to know there are others out there who also get bc in their 20's. i don't know how to go about getting email address through the forum but yeah would like to keep in contact. glad to hear you are doing well, i know how scary it is every time to get an ache or some symptom that might indicate something kicking off again but i suppose thats the way life is going to be from now on and all you can do is keep going and take what comes. im now beginning to realise i cant do what my friends are doing. im just back from a weekend in wales and am totally shattered, my body aches and energy levels are zapped. i thought i was the same as everyone else and its very hard to face up to the fact that i have to take things a bit slower. it probably wont stop me doing it again though! anyway good to hear from you and talk to you soon.....