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[Katejo]

I have recently read an article in the Daily Mail concerning Breast Cancer Screening (The women saying no to breast cancer screening).  4,800 women a year are being diagnosed with DCIS and consequently treated with mastectomy etc.  Iona Heath (former President of the Royal College of General Practitioners) states in the article that she and several colleagues would not go for breast screening.  I have recently had a letter through to go for a mammagram and don't know what to do.  The leaflet with it states 'about 3 in every 200 women screened every 3 years from the age of 50 - 70 are diagnosed with a cancer that would never have been found without screening and would never have become life threatening.  This adds up to about 4,000 women each year in the UK who are offered treatment they did not need.  Overall for evey one women who has her life saved from breast cancer, about 3 women are diagnosed with a cancer that would never have become life threatening.  This is a really scary prospect - any thoughts?

I had my first scan almost a year ago. I did get recalled for a 2nd one which was really scary at the time but, fortunately a false alarm. I don't regret going. I suspect that I would have worried about it if I hadn't gone at all.

[tiger74]

I always wonder too: if someone has had treatment for breast cancer but dies from another cancer later in Life, was it triggered by the breast disease? and how would anyone know? 

I am reminded of why I left this forum a while ago.  I dip in occasionally but have desisted from making comment until I read this factual inaccuracy.

To answer the question posed..... "anyone would know" by looking at the pathology reports in which analysis is done as to whether a subsequent cancer is metastatic or a new primary - simples!  I know this from recent personal experience.  Metastatic (secondary) breast cancer often involves a terminal diagnosis.

[CLKD]

>wave Tiger74< I don't understand your comment 'factual inaccuracy' 

My friend had breast disease at the same time as I did (1990s) - she went through much more intensive treatment and took Tamoxifen for 5-6 years.  Followed by cancer of the womb 5 years ago …… she is now very ill with bone cancer.  I didn't tolerate Taxomifen - the drug almost killed me  - so I stopped taking it.  At the time we were told that although there were examples of the drug causing womb cancer, our Surgeon had never had a patient develop it.   

How long are pathology reports kept and who has access to them?  As far as I know my records have not been put forward for any type of 'research' and usually reports are destroyed after 5 years.  I don't mind my records being useful but I haven't been asked  .

Also, it is possible for a cancer to develop and the primary site is never found. 

[countrybumpkin]

My friend is being treated for lung cancer and she was told if she goes into remission then any further cancer that appears they will always make sure they know if its the original cancer back regardless of its location or if its a new primary cancer as the treatment would be totally different.

When I worked at the Drs we had a patient who had metastatic cancer but they could not find the primary cancer, they knew its type and that it should have been in her lungs but nothing was showing on any scans and they said that very rarely the primary cancer disappears but not the metastatic and of course once metastatic there is no cure.  I can't give any clinical details this is just what was explained by the Dr I worked for so am happy to be corrected!

[coldethyl]

My friend is being treated for lung cancer and she was told if she goes into remission then any further cancer that appears they will always make sure they know if its the original cancer back regardless of its location or if its a new primary cancer as the treatment would be totally different.

When I worked at the Drs we had a patient who had metastatic cancer but they could not find the primary cancer, they knew its type and that it should have been in her lungs but nothing was showing on any scans and they said that very rarely the primary cancer disappears but not the metastatic and of course once metastatic there is no cure.  I can't give any clinical details this is just what was explained by the Dr I worked for so am happy to be corrected!

My MIL died of secondary lung cancer - they knew it was secondary and the kind of tumour it was, but her diagnosis was primary tumour unknown, so they didn't even know what it was from analysing her tumour cells. Their best assumption was she'd had ovarian cancer that had metastised then vanished. Sadly she died very quickly.
My aunt had breast cancer and was prescribed Tamoxifen as it was an oestrogen dependent tumour and went on to have endometrial cancer.

[Katejo]

A friend of mine had acute myeloid leukaemia over 10 years ago and made a full recovery. Then, about 2 years ago, she developed breast cancer. She had surgery and it hasn't returned as yet. She asked if there was a connection between the two and was told probably not.

[countrybumpkin]

My mun was on tamoxifen for 5 years and she developed a very bad deep vein thrombosis from her thigh to her abdomen due to this drug. She also had bleeding that thankfully was not womb cancer but due to what happened to her she was happy to stop taking it after 5 years but sadly her cancer returned as metastatic a year later. So the tamoxifen was doing it job but with side effects.

[CLKD]

I believe that there is an alternative to Tamoxifen ………

[countrybumpkin]

Yes there is an alternative that is much better and my mother was put once it once her cancer had returned and I now think that this is the first choice because of the less side effects - grrr can't remember its name now!

[CLKD]

  - neither can I!   My R (affected) breast has been painful at times in recent weeks so will be pleased to get my mammogram out of the way.  When the L one was painful over the weekend I was quite relieved  . 

[countrybumpkin]

Oh didn't know you are due a mammo soon, is it routine one or because of the breast pain?

I get sharp stabbing breast pain from my crippled spine and even though I know what it is I never fail to feel a bit nervous about it!

[CLKD]

I'm having lots of exams. via the good old NHS - next week it's the routine mammogram as it's 4 years since my last one, had I not been booked in I would have made the appt. due to the pain.  Wouldn't be worried if it were the other side  .

Will be ringing for my blood test results at the end of the week, something kidney related  .  Fetched my vari-focals this afternoon ……… whilst the NHS provides regular tests I'll keep going