Can anyone explain my diagnosis of Stage 1a grade 3 Comedo Necron hormone receptor negative (its the negative I don't get) Breast Cancer?

[jackandbox]

Breast Cancer. My hormone receptor negative and progesterone negative. After lumpectomy and radiation no other treatments will help because of the negative part. Why is that?

[VicReg Partner]

This would be because the standard treatment would be a hormone blocker such as tamoxifen but if your tumor was not hormone driven (HR+) these drugs will have no impact on recurrence risk.

[Laurelei10 in reply to VicReg]

Do you have breast markers? If negative. That's good but. But always need to have checked.

[VicReg Partner in reply to Laurelei10]

Yes, it's important to go for continued follow ups. Have you discussed your questions with your oncologist? Good/Bad, it just means that no further treatment is available or needed. You're oncologist would be the one to determine that based on your pathology report.

[jackandbox in reply to VicReg]

Is that good news or bad news?

[VicReg Partner in reply to jackandbox]

I just meant, it depends on how you see it. Either there is no further treatment needed or no further treatment available. Only your oncologist can advise you of that.

[jackandbox in reply to Laurelei10]

What are breast markers?

[VicReg Partner in reply to jackandbox]

breast markers, aka tumor markers, are tiny clips placed at tumor locations so they can be indentified on imaging tests.

[RobertaG1961 in reply to VicReg]

I think you may be confusing markers. Tumor markers in breast cancer...."There are about 20 different kinds of tumor markers but only three are specific to breast cancer. Those are identified as CA15-3, CA27.29, CA-125, and Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA). Most tumor markers are made by normal cells as well as by cancer cells, but they are produced at higher levels in cancerous conditions"

curetoday.com/community/bon...

[VicReg Partner in reply to RobertaG1961]

Hi Roberta, Thank you for the information.

[flajo]

Hi, J! As Vic said, the hormone-blocking treatments would do nothing in regard to the cancer you had, because it was not driven by hormones.

I have heard of people with cancer like this doing chemo, even at stage 1, because they did not have hormone-blocker options. That is definitely something to discuss with your doctor.

[Cu4281]

It is good news to have negative hormone receptor and if you had lumpectomy and radiation with no chemo your onca score must have been below 13. Mine was 13 and it was just low enough that I did not have to have chemo. I would say you are very lucky with the info that you listed. Will you be taking Tamoxifen for 5 years? That is what I am on. Good Luck - I have come across many women that have had this and are 20 years past and doing great so - you got this! Don’t worry🙂

[Cu4281 in reply to Cu4281]

If you had triple negative your score would be higher so I am guessing you are not that and hopefully your HER2 score is negative that is what you hope for.

[jackandbox in reply to Cu4281]

Actually my tumor was so small it couldn't be tested for that so I dont know what my score was. My doctor said I didn't need chemo so I trusted that. Was I a fool I wonder?

[RobertaG1961]

Please check out this link and learn how to understand the pathology report. I suggest you print it out and bring it to your next appointment with your oncologist. If there is a patient advocate available, ask them to review your pathology with you and the implications.

Where are you located? Perhaps there is an advocate in your area who can review the pathology report with you or even accompany you to the appointment.

breastcancer.org/symptoms/d...

[jackandbox in reply to RobertaG1961]

Thank you. The information in that article was very informative.

[Inthegrey]

Also, here is link to understanding your pathology report. Towards the end is a checklist to print and fill out. You can take it with you to your appointment too. I found it helpful and referred back to it often as I was understanding my diagnosis. It it all in one place and easier to understand than the actual pathology report, which is technical.

breastcancer.org/cms_files/...