Endometrial cancer and possible breast cancer

emjaz · New User Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 6

Hi all, I was a poster at this site while my dad was dying from secondary melanoma, , and unfortunately I'm back again about my mum this time.
She is 55 years old.
Aprox 7 years ago my mum was dx'ed with endometrial cancer. All I know is that it was stage 2. She had a complete hysto, but no other treatment, and has been going to all of her follow up apts.
A few months ago my sis was dxed with cervical cancer(early stages - booked in for hyst later this year) , and my mum went back over her results from her endo cancer.

It notes that she also had radio treatment- which she didn't. It was never even discussed by her docs.She was taking preminin for aprox 5 1/2 years following the hysto.(she stopped taking it when her gyno told her it could heighten her risk of breast cancer).

Just last week she was sick with the flu, and when she held her hand to her chest when coughing, she felt a huge lump on her breast.
She noticed a bruise that almost covered her entire breast,which has since gone down (she is on blood thinners so bruises easily).

The doctor had her wait a week to see if the lump went down, hoping that it was just trauma associated with the bruise. It [b]hasnt[/b] gone down, and her doc is concerned that it has grown so quickly.
She has regular mamograms, which have never picked up anything suspicious, but like I said, this lump has grown really fast.
She is booked in for an ultrasound today, and I know well enough now about the waiting game with a diagnosis.The waiting is the worst.

We are hoping its benign, but its hard to think positively when I lost my dad to cancer, lost an aunt to breast cancer within the same year, and have another aunt on her deathbed from cervical cancer that metastised to her brain.
I dont even really know why I'm posting here. I guess I just need to vent and get out my fears. I know I need to wait for the results before jumping to conclusions, but I'm so accustomed to the results bearing bad news, and kinda feel like I need to be prepared for that again. In my experience a cancer dx always ends in death, although I know that many people beat it....
From the research i've done it seems unlikely that endo cancer would metastise to a breast, but I am concerned that the HRT could be responsible for a breast cancer.
Has anybody else been unlucky enough to get both cancers? Please tell me I'm worrying for nothing. I've just gotten over the loss of my dad, and can't bear the thought of losing my beautiful, kind, loving mother who has already been through so much.
Thanks for hearing out my ravings.
ETA: I know that 80% of breast lumps end up being benign, but with such a strong family history of lethal cancers I worry that she will be in that 20% that arent benign.

emjaz · New User Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 6

Just realised that I spelt the name of the HRT incorrectly. Its 'Premarin'.
After googling it, I learnt that it should not be taken by women who have had a uterine cancer or any other "estrogen-dependent" cancer.

Then there's this:

[i]Because Premarin can increase the risk of heart attack, stroke, blood clots, and certain estrogen-dependent cancers, contact your doctor right away if you notice any of the following:
Abdominal pain, tenderness, or swelling
Abnormal bleeding from the vagina
Breast lumps
Coughing up blood
Pain in your chest or calves
Severe headache, dizziness, or faintness
Sudden shortness of breath
Vision changes [/i]

So its bad enough that they rxed it knowing she had an estrogen dependent cancer, but on top of that she has been taking blood thinners for years because of recurrent blood clots after a knee replacement. (blood thinners are contraindicated).
Its a triple whammy...what were the docs thinking having her on this hrt at all, let alone for so long? Am seething right now.

emjaz · New User Joined: 07 Mar 2007 Posts: 6

Ultrasound Results are in.
Mums normal doc wasnt there when they came through, so she spoke to another GP at the clinic who said " all you need to know is that it is DEFINATELY not a cyst, and you need to see your regular GP ASAP (Tuesday) to arrange a referral for a biopsy (in a town 2 hrs away).
I knew it wasnt going to just be a cyst, but geez I was trying to be positive. I know there is still a chance that the tumor is benign, but my instinct is telling me otherwise.
Today, here in OZ its daffodil day.A day to raise awareness and money for cancer research. I bought everything on offer and spent time talking to my children about the significance of daffodil day.
They already look at the stars in the sky to find the star where their poppy is after his death....I dont want for them to lose their nan too. they are so close....she is the 3rd most important person in their world.
Also, my mum lives 5 hrs away from us. I moved to their town while my dad was being treated for , and dying of cancer. I cant bear the distance. I want to hold her hand, hug her and help her through this.
I want to wake up from this nightmare and realise it was just an awful nightmare....

I was absolutely furious today after reading the wyeth pt info , where one of the very first things noted is warnings that premarin should not be taken after having had breast or endometrial/ uterine cancer.
If the pharamcutical company knows and advertises it, how did the gyno-onco not explain or predict this happening?
Since I suffer from an anxiety disorder I thankfully have some meds
on hand to chill me out a bit.
Again....sorry for thye rant. I am just so pissed at cancer right now. I dont know if I want to take out my agggression on a punching bag, or fall into a heap and cry my eyes out. Mum is being so brave about it all, but she is scared too, and finding it difficult to be positive.
Just knowing that there is still so much time between now and a final diagnosis only makes it worse.

rmaureen · Moderator Joined: 06 Oct 2005 Posts: 237

Thank you emjaz for your posts, and I feel sorry for what all your family and you have gone through the past years. I have not heard of Premarin before, and those out there diagnosed with uterine cancer would do well to discuss alternative medication with their doctors. As part of my yearly uterine cancer regiment, I am scheduled for a chest xray; as my oncologist informed me there is a link between uterine cancer and a greater chance of developing lung cancer. If one did not have enough crap to deal with! Therefore its become a standard part of my care to have yearly chest xray in addition to standard mamagrams. I do not take any hormone replacement therapy. I also avoid soy based products--they tend to increase estrogen--although some debate this.

In my world--very few doctors take time to look thoroughly into my medical history. I have frequently been prescribed medicines which are conflicting, or problematic. I think I may be going through something like this now--as I got some weird symptoms coming at me. At times I feel like a slab of meat, going down a conveyer belt in a far away place called the "Medical Kingdom". People stamp and process me, and as I arrive at the end of the converyer belt, someone yells "NEXT".

Its hard to be positive in a time like this--I understand, particularly when you seen firsthand so many of your love ones victimized by cancer. Recently, my mom had a lump in her left breast--- her sister died of breast cancer, her dad and two of her brothers died of lung cancer--, then I was diagnosed with uterine cancer. Like your family, mines has fought it too many times (yet once is too many). But thankfully with my mom, it was benign, yet the odds seemed against her with our history. But it turned out ok!

Waiting is terrible. My sister is waiting for her biopsy which screened for colon cancer--therefore I am anxiously awaiting. The doctor did seem optimistic however, so that has given me hope. I want to say hope for the best, but with what your family has gone through, I understand your anger and feeling stressed about the outcome. Do know I will praying for your mother and believing for a good outcome for her. Come back and post and let us know the results.

Rhonda
_________________
Diagnosed Sept. 2005
Stage III-C Endometrial Adenocarcinoma
Grade 2

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