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Old 03-02-2011, 09:52 AM   #42
Lien
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Join Date: May 2006
Location: Haarlem, the Netherlands
Posts: 835
Re: To treat or not to treat VERY early stage HER2 IDC

A 2 mm tumor is really very small, but still, it's scary. I agree, you need a second opinion from an oncologist.

I had a 6 mm tumor, clear nodes, and decided on radiation followed by Zoladex to shut my ovaries down and Arimidex. That's 7 years ago. Still doing fine.

My breast surgeon says continuing on Arimidex & Zoladex wouldn't offer me much more benefit. The oncologist I talked to said I could consider having my ovaries removed and continuing on Arimidex for a few years. That would offer me a few percent risk reduction. As my risk - statistically speaking - is already quite low, I decided not to do that. We don't know what estrogen deprivation does to the body in the long run.

The bottom line is, that nobody knows who will recur and who will not. We make decisions that feel best to us at the time we make them. If we could look into the future, it would be easier.

So keep looking for a doc you trust and decide on which treatment is best for you.
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Diagnosed age 44, January 2004, 0.7 cm IDC & DCIS. Stage 1, grade 3, ER/PR pos. HER2 pos. clear margins, no nodes. SNB. 35 rads. On Zoladex and Armidex since Dec. 2004. Stopped Zoladex/Arimidex sept 2009 Still taking mistletoe shots (CAM therapy) Doing fine.
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