New Posts New Posts RSS Feed - Are there women who survive TNB
  FAQ FAQ  Forum Search   Events   Register Register  Login Login

Are there women who survive TNB

 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <1 23456>
Author
vickyann View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Sep 25 2008
Location: Texas USA
Status: Offline
Points: 127
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote vickyann Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 24 2009 at 8:10pm
We all need to hear the good stories..
Thank you! I will be at 2 years in December..yeah!!
I had a lung scare this year...This week a liver ct scan..both negative..no problem...I am doing great!!!!!
I want to live...........
I will live.......................
You can too........................
 
Vickyann
Dx Christmas/07
Stage2 Grade 3
no nodule braca neg
lung nodule no growth
TAC x 6 no rad
finished chemo June 08 reconstruction 12/09
Back to Top
Mimi25 View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: Jul 24 2009
Status: Offline
Points: 2
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mimi25 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 25 2009 at 6:04am
This will be my last post.  I just wanted to leave you with my fantastic experience of surviving TNB.  In answer to one post, I was treated first in Houston at the Stehlin (sp?) clinic.  My chemo was at St Joseph's Hospital in Tampa.  Unfortunately, my doctor is now deceased....and he was a one-man-show.  He had been at M.D. Anderson and written books on the subject.  I was lucky to have found him. 
Good luck to you all,
Mimi
Back to Top
ruth View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: Sep 27 2007
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 16
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote ruth Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 25 2009 at 6:28am
I sincerely hope so.  I was told I had Triple Negative in 2007 and I am still here feeling great.  Had masectomy, chemo etc., and so far are doing fine.  I am very active and eat a low fat diet.  Good luck to you.  Try and keep cheerful and carry on with a smile, it can only help.  Smile
Ruth
Back to Top
marthac View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: Jul 24 2009
Status: Offline
Points: 17
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote marthac Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 25 2009 at 10:09am
How I found this site: the leader of the cancer support group that I attended during my treatment days keeps me on her email distribution list. She forwards the e-news from http://www.cancercare.org/enews/ to her distribution list. The July issue announced "What's New: Helpline for Triple Negative Breast Cancer" with a link to this site.
 
Where I was treated: Leo Jenkins Cancer Center in Greenville, NC http://www.ecu.edu/cs-dhs/leojenkinscancercenter/breast_center.cfm
The things I really liked about this place:
1. multidisciplinary approach. They hold weekly conferences where the oncologist, surgeon, and radiologists, etc meet in the same room together and review cases so they all are on the same page.
2. the pure humanity of the practictioners there. There is optimism and care in the air.
 
Oh, one other thing. When they recommended chemo first, I was a little concerned because the tumor was so agressive and growing fast. I asked for their rationale for chemo first. They explained when surgury is done first, then they have no way to measure the effectiveness of chemo. They must rely on statistics about what has improved survival in others. But with the tumor still there, they can SEE if the selected drugs are having any impact on the tumor. If they conclude no, they can switch drugs - thus avoiding putting me through a full course of an ineffective drug.
 
Made sense to me. And it was wonderful to experience the disappearance of my tumor so dramatically. The only lingering impact from my chemo - a small place on the bottom of one foot with a bit of lingering numbness and a thickening of my toenails that is still working its way out.
 
Whenever I had a question they were very patient and helpful in assisting me in making choices based on best practices and knowledge. I came to trust their judgments, but I always continued to press for reasons more than "just because." They never hesitated to share answers. They were very good at pausing and giving me and my husband time to absorb their explanations. That was a priceless gift as we struggled to wrap our heads around all this new stuff.
 
Plus I think having my chemo first gave me more time to come to a sense of peace about sacrificing my breast. I had time to read about the pros/cons of mastectomy and radiation after successful chemo. I was ready to let go when the time came - because it was June of 2007 when I had my surgery, Nov 2006 DX.


Edited by marthac - Jul 25 2009 at 10:21am
DX:Nov'06 Stage3 TNBC,5cm-TX:chemo,mast,rad,complete response
DX:Jan'11 BRCA1, Stage4 TNBC,CTC24
TX:Avastin/Taxol @56 days"near complete response', CTC=ZERO
Hair gone,but going strong,loving life
Back to Top
Donna Lynn View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: Jul 25 2009
Status: Offline
Points: 4
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Donna Lynn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 25 2009 at 6:47pm
Just want to encourage you to hang in there.  We all go into that fearful place from time to time, the key is realizing where we are and moving away from it.  I take time slots in 24 hours at a time.  I say " Today I am well, today I am alive".  There are so many stories of survivors!  We tend to hear the horror stories of the ones who did not beat this ugly disease.
I refuse to listen to those.... fill your mind with the positive.
Blessings!
 
Back to Top
Tabatha00 View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Jun 03 2009
Location: Alabama
Status: Offline
Points: 115
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tabatha00 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 26 2009 at 8:21am
DonnaLynn you are so right and that's what I do too!!!!!   I'm not them....they aren't me......so why compare?   Of course it is sad ALL the way around and not that we don't feel for them but we just can't compare because we are all different.   It's all in how you choose to look at it.   I'm a glass half-full girl and I REFUSE to be negative and listen to those negative stories.   Not that I don't down or have my own doubts from time to time but those are fleeting and I know I'll get through it.    ONE STEP AT A TIME....ONE DAY AT A TIME!
Back to Top
SapphireSkies View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie
Avatar

Joined: May 24 2009
Location: Madison, Wisconsin
Status: Offline
Points: 67
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SapphireSkies Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 20 2010 at 7:39pm
Bumping this thread for new member, Jean m b.  
Lots of good info here, Jean! :)
 


Edited by SapphireSkies - Feb 20 2010 at 8:24pm


Dx'd April 23, 2009 at the age of 30 - Stage 3 TNBC.
Back to Top
123Donna View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Aug 24 2009
Location: St. Louis, MO
Status: Offline
Points: 13509
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 123Donna Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 20 2010 at 11:34pm
It's great hearing all these survivor stories.  We need more of this to keep our spirits up!
DX IDC TNBC 6/09 age 49, Stage 1,Grade 3, 1.5cm,0/5Nodes,KI-67 48%,BRCA-,6/09bi-mx, recon, T/C X4(9/09)
11/10 Recur IM node, Gem,Carb,Iniparib 12/10,MRI NED 2/11,IMRT Radsx40,CT NED11/13,MRI NED3/15

Back to Top
vickyann View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Sep 25 2008
Location: Texas USA
Status: Offline
Points: 127
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote vickyann Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 21 2010 at 12:17pm
I pray for more after care success.  A plan or drug to prevent recurrance after you are finished with chemo. Does anyone know of a treatment while in remission?
Vickyann
Dx Christmas/07
Stage2 Grade 3
no nodule braca neg
lung nodule no growth
TAC x 6 no rad
finished chemo June 08 reconstruction 12/09
Back to Top
Lillie View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Jul 10 2009
Location: Eastern NC
Status: Offline
Points: 3616
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Lillie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 21 2010 at 4:02pm
I don't know about tomorrow, I just live from day to day..... This is the line from a song I love so much. Three years and 3 months since my last treatment; or three years and 8 months since diagnoses, make me able to incorporate this line of thinking into my daily life now.

I will readily admit that for several months after treatment ended (11/15/06) I could not say this. I did suffer from post tramatic syndrome for months and resented everyone who ask me, "Aren't you happy to be finished with all that chemo". My "Yes" and "No" answer made me feel like an idiot and having to explain why was, and still is, the pits. I did go back to work in January of 2007 and worked full time for two more years. Not having the time to dwell on myself all the time did help.

Keeping a positive attitude has been a plus for me. If someone sounds dispariging about something I cannot do, I immediately start rattling off all the things I still can do. It really helps me....

Not being able to do all of my yard work (as I once did) could be difficult for me, if I let it be; but I refuse to be brought down by the fact that my back was weakened by the chemo. I already had scoliosis and it is worse now, so I live with it and "thank God everyday for what I can do".

I do think about recurrence sometimes but I do not dwell on it. Again staying busy is my best friend, in addition to sharing on this wonderful TNBC site.

Love in Christ,

Lillie
Dx 6/06 age 65,IDC-TNBC
Stage IIb,Gr3,2cm,BRCA-
6/06 L/Mast/w/SNB,1of3 Nodes+
6/06 Axl. 9 nodes-
8/8 thru 11/15 Chemo (Clin-Trial) DD A/Cx4 -- DD taxol+gemzar x4
No Rads.
No RECON - 11/2018-12 yrs NED
Back to Top
sfalcon55 View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: Feb 15 2010
Location: Napa California
Status: Offline
Points: 30
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote sfalcon55 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 12:16am
Hi Lindarenee,
 
As long as your alive and breathing there is always hope. You have to be strong and just know that you can beat this because you can. Please check out the Spiritual Support there are some scriptures there that will help to build your confidence in knowing that you can beat this!
Blessings
Jessica's Mom

DX12/15/09TNBC,Tested Positive for the BRCA1 Treatment Docetaxel, bevacizumab, Xleoda.
AC
Back to Top
Galina2 View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Nov 01 2007
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 250
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Galina2 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 1:26am
Hello, there are two types of survivors: one do not want to know and goes on with her life, the other wants to know and worries. We here at the forum are the second type. It take 1y to get physically fit and another year to get phycologically toghether. They talk about chemo brain, but they forget about the mind.
Yes, AFTER it is very different. AFTER, we live in the PRESENT. And isn't it great? How many more hours, minutes and seconds of my life I have now? Much more than in my life BEFORE.
 
LOVE YOU ALL. LIVE, LOVE and FIHGT.
Believing is 50%!Dx 7/10/07, Lumpectomy 8/24/07, double mast/no recont. 10/01/07, IDC, 3 cm, Grade 3, 0/4 nodes, Stage IIA, ER-/PR- HER2- Age 48, chemo 11/23/07 lung spots 3/08
Back to Top
Lillie View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Jul 10 2009
Location: Eastern NC
Status: Offline
Points: 3616
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Lillie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 2:33pm
Hello all,

I am a survivor..... I choose to be involved in many ways that hopefully can offer help and encouragement to other cancer survivors. I post on this wonderful site, I am active in a local support group and I do volunteer work at the oncology center where I received my treatments.

It helps me to help others; to CELEBRATE with someone when they get a good PET or CT scan. It helps others in active treatment to see me going on with my life or hearing my story. I cannot JUST "go on with my life" as though I am not changed. I need to "pay forward" to help others. Every person I see is not going to live for years, or weeks, or sometimes days, but if I can offer a word of encouragement, a prayer or listen to their story, I know I have made an effort to help in some small way. None of us are guaranteed a tomorrow.

YES.... there are survivors of all varieties and time spans. Make the most of Today.

Love in Christ,

Lillie

Dx 6/06 age 65,IDC-TNBC
Stage IIb,Gr3,2cm,BRCA-
6/06 L/Mast/w/SNB,1of3 Nodes+
6/06 Axl. 9 nodes-
8/8 thru 11/15 Chemo (Clin-Trial) DD A/Cx4 -- DD taxol+gemzar x4
No Rads.
No RECON - 11/2018-12 yrs NED
Back to Top
marthac View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie


Joined: Jul 24 2009
Status: Offline
Points: 17
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote marthac Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 4:56pm
I agree. Paying it forward is a wonderful way to show my gratitude for all the encouragement I received.
 
I am part of the evening volunteer chaplain program at my local hospital. I now know what it is like to be waiting for results, to be dealing with side effects, and to be grateful for information and hope. I know what a difference it makes to have someone listen and care and pray in faith - not sugar coating or downplaying the reality of the moment - but also not giving in toassumptions that we know the future because some statistic is quoted.
 
I am privileged to be able to come alongside families during stressful days and speak God's name with honesty - recognizing that we don't always feel like talking to God and we don't always agree that today seems like a God-favored day.
 
I never would want another day battling cancer, but I know that God puts treasures along every path and when the way seems dark those treasures are so very important. So I visit and listen and pray - and my presence is a blessing and I am blessed in turn .
 
I'm reading a very interesting book - not about cancer at all, but helpful in so many ways. It is titled: A Resilient Life by Gordon MacDonald. MacDonald is a pastor and best selling author. In his youth he was a runner and he says much that he learned from his coach has informed how he approaches life. He also draws from the Bible, especially Scriptures that seem to refer to this idea of a race: Hebrews 12:1-3 and Philippians 3 and 1 Corinthians 9.
 
I think that everyone that battles cancer or other life-threatening illness as a patient or family member has experiences that test the soul and give us the opportunity to become resilient people. You don't have to win every skirmish to be a winner. The experience and what we learn gives us a depth that others may not even recognize or appreciate. Facing mortality is our task and every day that we stand is a day of resilience - even if that "standing" occurs while resting on the sofa, or while crying!
 
Below is his contents page. Don't take it as an impossible hero's laundry list. I look at this and realize that cancer helped me recognize what is important and I can now say - I faced cancer with dignity - I faced cancer and every day (even the difficult ones) I can be a resilient person.
 
After I recovered from my chemo, surgery and radiation at the age of 59 (2 years ago) I was appointed to my first church as a pastor. There have been many challenges (although none have been health related) and I believe the strength I gained from my cancer experiences gave me a depth I never had before.
 
part I: Resilient people are committed to finishing strong
  ch 1: quitting is not an option
  ch 2: walking is unthinkable
  ch 3: building resilience is a daily pursuit
  ch 4: the face of aimlessness
  ch 5: the face of a champion
 
part II: Resilient people run inspired by a big-picture view of life
  ch 6: resilient people have a sense of life-direction
  ch 7: resilient people foresee the great questions of life's passage
  ch 8: resilient people cultivate Christian character
  ch 9: resilient people listen for a call from God
  ch 10: resilient people are confident in their giftedness
  ch 11: resilient people live generous lives
 
part III: Resilient people run free of the weight of the past
  ch 12: resilient people understand the importance of repairing the past
  ch 13: resilient people respect the power of memory
  ch 14: resilient people practice repentance
  ch 15: resilient people are quick to forgive
  ch 16: resilient people overflow with gratitude
  ch 17: resilient people squeeze the past for all its wisdom
 
part IV: Resilient people train to go the distance
  ch 18: resilient people prepare themselves for the "emergencies" of life
  ch 19: resilient people know exactly what has to be accomplished
  ch 20: resilient people keep themselves physically fit
  ch 21: resilient people grow their minds
  ch 22: resilient people harness their emotions
  ch 23: resilient people trim their egos
  ch 24: resilient people open their hearts to the presence of God
 
part V: Resilient people run in the company of a "happy few"
  ch 25: the value of lingering
  ch 26: the peril of the solitary life
  ch 27: how friendship works
  ch 28: there are certain people
 
I thank God for the gift of having folks like you who can understand my life experience. I draw strength and encouragement from others and, whenever I can, I try to offer that frank & honest hope to others.
 
Martha
DX:Nov2006 Stage3 TNBC,5cm,2 nodes
densedose chemo first,mast.,8wk rad
Hair back,energy too,going strong,loving life
 
DX:Nov'06 Stage3 TNBC,5cm-TX:chemo,mast,rad,complete response
DX:Jan'11 BRCA1, Stage4 TNBC,CTC24
TX:Avastin/Taxol @56 days"near complete response', CTC=ZERO
Hair gone,but going strong,loving life
Back to Top
Karen W. View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie
Avatar

Joined: Dec 29 2009
Location: Evansville, IN
Status: Offline
Points: 48
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen W. Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 5:14pm
Dear Linda Renee,
Wow, what an out pouring of support and love from the women of this site.  Hopefully this has brought you some comfort.
I believe if you think negatively for long enough, it can come true. So please change your thought process right now.  God has made us so we want to be with our families (we don't want to die), but we don't want to let fear lead us either. You can use the fear for good. When you are so fearful, and feeling totally hopeless, that is when God wants us to especially reach out to him and ask for help. Then have the faith to allow him to help you. Or heal you. And keep asking, knowing he can do just that.
 
I believe my cancer has been healed from doing just that. I was at my lowest point, crying on the floor, unable to get up or function.  And I asked God to lift up the fear from me. To take it away, and he did. A couple of months later my family prayed around me, with all of their heart, and we asked for total healing from cancer. Every microscopic cell to be removed from my body. I believe God healed me that day. On January 3rd, 2010.
 
I believe it with my whole heart, and that keeps the fear away.
God loves You!
Karen
DX July 07; lumpectomy,Chemo 4 sesions,36Rad; DX Oct 09;36 Rad;Metastatic Clavical lymph nodes in neck; chemo pending****CHEMO NO LONGER PENDING. DR SLEDGE SAYS NO CHEMO SHOULD BE USED (4 my case)
Back to Top
shoyle View Drop Down
Newbie
Newbie
Avatar

Joined: Jul 18 2009
Location: South Carolina
Status: Offline
Points: 3
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote shoyle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 22 2010 at 8:50pm

Are you kidding yes there are survivors out here. I am one of them. I waqs diagnosed in 2005 with TNBC stage 2 her2nu2. I experienced chemotherapy, surgery and radiation. I had two of my lymph nodes removed as well. My story is not unlike most stories, I found the lump in my breast 2 months after my mammography. This was also six weeks after burying my mother who passed from a brain aneurysm. At the time my son was five years old.I also participated in a trial study to decrease my chances of osteoporsis from the chemotherapy, and those treatments were just as harsh as the chemo.  I often joked during that time to call me Jobette, because my story was beginning to sound like Job from the bible. However, during this time I begin to see what God sees in me, and I became motivated to look and treat life differently.Needless to say I believe my faith is what pulled my through.

TNBC is not easy but with prayer and perseverance you can survive, do not give up, continue to press forward, eat healthly, get rest, follow your oncologist's orders, and restore your faith in God.
Back to Top
Karen W. View Drop Down
Groupie
Groupie
Avatar

Joined: Dec 29 2009
Location: Evansville, IN
Status: Offline
Points: 48
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen W. Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 23 2010 at 11:15am
Thanks Shoyle for sharing your story and being an inspiration to all of us.Smile 
DX July 07; lumpectomy,Chemo 4 sesions,36Rad; DX Oct 09;36 Rad;Metastatic Clavical lymph nodes in neck; chemo pending****CHEMO NO LONGER PENDING. DR SLEDGE SAYS NO CHEMO SHOULD BE USED (4 my case)
Back to Top
Carol (Tenn) View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Aug 06 2009
Location: Paris,Tennessee
Status: Offline
Points: 2707
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Carol (Tenn) Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Feb 23 2010 at 12:02pm
Hello All,
 
I am so inspired by all your words concerning how you seek God in all you do. I would like for you to share your faith on the Spiritual Support thread. We've had almost 3500 hits on that thread since it's inception. I know your testimonies would reach those who need it most.
Love and Prayers,
Carol
St 2 Gr 3, A/C/T, DD
Radiation x35
Rec chest wall 07/09
Radiation x28
NED 10/24/11
NED 10/5/12
NED 03/15/13
Back to Top
123Donna View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Aug 24 2009
Location: St. Louis, MO
Status: Offline
Points: 13509
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 123Donna Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Mar 11 2010 at 8:03pm
bump
DX IDC TNBC 6/09 age 49, Stage 1,Grade 3, 1.5cm,0/5Nodes,KI-67 48%,BRCA-,6/09bi-mx, recon, T/C X4(9/09)
11/10 Recur IM node, Gem,Carb,Iniparib 12/10,MRI NED 2/11,IMRT Radsx40,CT NED11/13,MRI NED3/15

Back to Top
Carol (Tenn) View Drop Down
Senior Member
Senior Member
Avatar

Joined: Aug 06 2009
Location: Paris,Tennessee
Status: Offline
Points: 2707
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Carol (Tenn) Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Mar 12 2010 at 6:56am
Okay, a silly question....what is "bump"
St 2 Gr 3, A/C/T, DD
Radiation x35
Rec chest wall 07/09
Radiation x28
NED 10/24/11
NED 10/5/12
NED 03/15/13
Back to Top
 Post Reply Post Reply Page  <1 23456>
  Share Topic   

Forum Jump Forum Permissions View Drop Down

Forum Software by Web Wiz Forums® version 12.01
Copyright ©2001-2018 Web Wiz Ltd.