[derbygrrl]

I was diagnosed with extensive DCIS (over 7cm) in April 2014. The pathology showed grade 3, comedo, highly differentiated and other aggressive characteristics. After a bilateral mastectomy they found a small IDC And I tested HER2 positive with 0/3 nodes positive. I received 12 weeks of Taxol and am in the process of getting Herceptin every 3 weeks for a year. Now that the surgeries are behind me and I am back to work, I am finding that the what-ifs are starting to scare me. One of the things worrying me is that the original microcalcifications were found 2 years before I followed up with another mammogram where it had spread into another quadrant and grown to over 7cm. My mother was diagnosed with a small IDC 6 years ago with 0 nodes positive. She had a lumpectomy and chemo and rads then they accidentally discovered liver mets and she died a year later. I did have the BRCA testing because of my family history and young age (37 at dx) and they did not find anything in the genetic testing. It scares me that she was node negative with mets. I asked my onc how I would know if I had a recurrence and he said just let him know of any symptoms I have - that if it metastasized it wouldn't really matter when they found it. He has never tested tumor markers or performed any scans. I am wondering if this is something I should ask for or just wait and see like he recommends. He claims tumor marker testing is unreliable. What are your thoughts or experiences in this area?