Age at Diagnosis

[AlaskaAngel]

I'm curious to know whether the HER2 population is by and large younger than the wider group of all those with bc. I haven't posted a poll before here and I'm not sure if I will get it set up right... but... here goes...

[StephN]

I voted at the 40-50 age range, as I was 50. But was shortly after my birthday.

The range should be 51 to 60, etc.

[AlaskaAngel]

You're right, Steph! Sorry for the confusion... "we means well..."

A.A.

[Barbara H.]

I was diagnosed 2 weeks after I turned 50 and voted in the 50-60 range. I didn't know which one to select.
Barbara H.

[Susan Rankin]

Hi,

I was diagnosed 7 months after I had turned 50. I voted in the 50 - 60 group.
Turning "50" was not fun at all!

Susan

[Sandy H]

I was diagnosed 2 months after my 54th birthday. I voted in the 50 to 60 group. Looks like I am in the most popular group!!! Sandy

[LOPSIDED]

I WAS DIAGNOSED 2 MONTHS AFTER I TURNED 41. I HADN'T FELT WELL FOR A FEW MONTHS BUT KEPT PUTTING OFF GOING TO THE DOCTOR.

[tammymarie1971]

I was dx'd just after I turned 30...but the lump was there before 30..So I voted in the 20-30 range.
Tammy

[Yorkiegirl]

I was dx'd at 48, 5 months later I turned 49.



Vicki

[karenann]

I was 49 when I was diagnosed.

Karen

[lu ann]

I was dx. at age 35, 8 months after I gave birth to my 3rd and last child(girl). I had my first mamogram at age 30 because my mother died from breast cancer and I thought I needed to get a mamo. early. My insurance wasn't going to cover it, but I was dx. with fybrocystic breasts. My gyno. suggested I repeat the mamo. in one year. I became pregnant with my 2nd child(girl), nursed her for six months, and then had my mamo. Fybrocystic breast disease was the dx. Breast cancer is supposedly in the body 7-10 years before a lump can be felt. If this is the case for me then I had cancer that could not be dx. with mamograms. Blessings from Lu Ann.

[Chelee]

I was DX at 48...I will be 49 at the end this month. (June)

Chelee

[SherriT]

Was told by my doctor two days before my 37th birthday.

[Lolly]

Diagnosed 1 month before my 46th birthday.

[al from Canada]

Linda was 50

[Kimberly Lewis]

Mine was found 4 months before my 49th birthday. Though if the radiologist had been more careful it would have been discovered earlier. My 5.3cm tumor was "missed"...

[Amy]

I was diagnosed in Feb 2005 at age 39.

Amy

[Jackie]

Mine was dx at age 46, 3 months before my 47th birthday.

[DianaK]

I was 44 when I was diagnosed 7/04.My son was 20 months old.


Diana

[Jeanette]

diagnosed at the ripe old age of 65, Jeanette

[kimber]

I was 42. I am a 1 year survivor!!!

[panicked911]

I was 43 - at diagnosis - learned it was malignant on my daughters 10th b'day. Surgeon said it was probably there 3-5 years - nevr appeared on a mamogram - only by a fluke it was found.

Susanne

[Sue2001]

Dx at age 41.

Nice poll AA, I've often wondered if Her-2 women get cancer at a younger age.

[BEVIE]

I was 49 when DX. 2 weeks before my 50th birthday!

[kristen]

Dx at 41. seems pretty popular/ turned 42 3 months later.

[DeeUK]

I was diagnosed in July 2005, at age 29, after finding a lump in the June.

[cathy34]

I was diagnosed at 36. 8 months after I gave birth to my 3rd child.
Cathy34

[Vi Schorpp]

I was diagnosed at 50 years and 5 months, so I voted in the 50+ category.

[SamanthaPA]

I was DX at 39 - October 2005..... 6 weeks before my 40th birthday. My daughter was 25 months old.

[mamacze]

I was 45...we are a young group!

Love, Kim from CT

[Bev]

Interesting AA. Iwas 45, but 46 @ biopsy. Surgeon also said these things take 8 years to form. I had plenty of mammograms during those 8 years. I have to wonder if the her2 tumors are on the 1 year plan. BB

[TriciaK]

An interesting poll, Alaska Angel! I was first diagnosed at age 56, 20 years ago, then again at age 59, and then 2 years ago at age 74 with her2, er+,pr+. My last PT/CT scan showed NED. How many others, I wonder, were diagnosed previously with "regular" BC, and then later became her2? Hugs, Tricia

[cherylynnie]

I found the lump less than 1 month after my 39th birthday. I am now 40, but it took two months to get the final diagnosis last year.

[G. Ann]

I was 57 and now am a 2-year survivor.

G.Ann

[geraldine]

My diagnosis was given to me on the 26th July 2001. I was told.. "You have a grade 3 very aggressive cancer. If you dont get yourself into the right frame of mind, this is going to get you..!! Look at what you have and what you will lose" (my daughter, who was with me, was 8 month pregnant with her second child. I also had a grandson who was 7 years old. After the initial shock, I weighed up MY situation.
I cant tell anyone what to do if they ever find themselves in this situation, what I can say , through experience is, get your head around this, weigh up whats happening, decide if you want to live (which is what I did) and go for it..! I have been on Herceptin, continuously for 2.5 years, they are now talking about taking me off this wonder drug.(HELP) but I suppose i've got to come off it some time.. I have beaten Cancer twice and if it rears its UGLY head, then I will beat it AGAIN....... God Bless Everyone Of You ..My thoughts and Prayers are with you ALL.........Geri xx

[Andi]

I was diagnosed 2 months after my 52nd birthday. I found my lump on my 32nd wedding anniversary, I am now a 1 year survivor.

[michele u]

I was 39. It looks like that's the most "popular" age

[janetcaruso]

I was 49, found the lump myself; initial diagnosis - Stage IV/metastatic to liver & bones in May/05 - am also now a 1 year survivor!

[helenh]

I was 48 yrs 3 mths. Dr advised me I had breast cancer on 31st December 2004, Happy New Year!!http://www.her2support.org/vbulletin/images/icons/icon9.gif


Love and best wishes to all

Helen

[astrid]

Keep in mind that while this poll shows that most women are between the ages of 40-50, that 76% of all newly diagnosed patients with BC are post menopausal. This poll is skewed to internet users who are HER2+.

[AlaskaAngel]

Hi Astrid.

Thanks for the reminder for those who may not have seen my original posted question focusing this poll on HER2's on a HER2 forum.

My thought is that perhaps the reason this is a younger population than that of general bc is because of the faster rate of cell replication. That would also mean that (as one other person here speculated) HER2 cancers probably don't take years to grow. That would mean that the traditional imaging intervals would be too late or too long for us -- and for those who have delayed imaging or less frequent imaging initially, a later and more dangerous diagnosis.

I was wondering about the relationship to hormonal levels and why there are older people who do end up HER2 long after normal menopause age. I know that the older we are, the more our cells get genetically confused and make a mess of things. But I am still not sure if that is enough of a reason for anyone who is older to end up being HER2....

I happen to have a strong family history of bc on both sides plus ovarian CA but tested entirely negative on BRCA 1 and 2, and in addition, although none of my family who were affected were ever tested for HER2, they were ALL over 50 at diagnosis. I'm sure there is significance to that, although I can't quite figure it all out.

AlaskaAngel

P.S. It is also interesting to note that the number of BRCA positives who are also HER2 positive is far lower than the general bc population, particularly BRCA 1. So most of us apparently are not BRCA positive...

[BubblesMom]

I was diagnosed 3 days before my 41st birthday.

[emmasmom]

I was 36. Way too young!

[Monica]

We also need to keep in mind that internet users tend to be younger in general. That is, women who were diagnosed with HER2 at an older age typically do not use the internet. In fact, I was reading that only 20% of women over the age of 65 use the internet while over 50% of younger women go on the internet.

Best,
Monica

[astrid]

AlaskaAngel, I also have a strong history of BC. MY sister was 37 and my grandmother was 43 when diagnose. Both died of BC. My sister was only 40 and my grandmother was 53. My sister was stage 1 with no lymph node involvement at initial diagnosis. She died before they were testing for HER2 status. I know she was ER+.



I also was tested for BRCA1&2 and was negative. My sister’s original status scares me. The doctors are quick to give a good prognosis if you are node negative; however a triple + diagnosis is only 15% of all breast cancer cases. I often wonder if the tamoxifen made my sister metastasize or maybe the lack of herceptin. I start tamoxfen this week as there is not another standard treatment for pre menopausal women. My doctor assures me that all the testing done where tamoxifen activates cancer cells are on animals and not human testing. As part of my work benefits, we have a research group that will research published medical journals for information and they could not find anything on tamoxifen activation.

[snoopy]

Diagnosed 11/04 age 41

[lu ann]

What do the stars mean, and are there any men dignosed with her2 breast cancer?

[Marily]

I was diagnosed two months before my 50th birthday but I marked 50 cause that is when things started happening. My oncologist considered me young for breast cancer? lol that was 6 years ago.
Marily

[cosmicdust]

bringing this forward

[Dace]

I was diagnosed at 33 and 34...

[sharonf]

My mom was diagnosed at 77 (six years after moving from Taiwan to San Francisco Bay Area)...

[Rendi69CA]

I was 26 with the lump. Diagnosis at the age 27.

[tousled1]

I was diagnosed at 58

[Karen t]

I was 55 when diagnosed in 2002. During weekly infusion a couple weeks ago, I met a woman who is her2+ (don't see very many of us) who said she felt a lump two months after a clear mammogram. Turns out she had TWO tumors that had not shown up.