a quick question ..... how long did you wait from diagnosis until surgery? Has anyone had the experience of waiting up to 9 months for their tumour to shrink on hormone therapy before surgery?
A lot (nearly all!) women with ER+ breast cancer were put on some sort of hormone blocker going into lockdown, but I think that the idea was to stop the cancer growing and probably reduce it in size. Usually Letrozole is used as it's more effective than tamoxifen, but it would depend on lots of things. Some women have now had surgery, as recovery rooms (used for covid patients) are being returned back to normal and staff are starting to do so too. Have they said that it will be 9 months, or is that a figure you are imagining might happen? I think that they are working through their lists by those they see as in most urgent need of surgery first, at least they are at my hospital. It's a strange mix of pre and post covid protocols.
I'm having my appointments with my oncologist and surgeon (annual check-up and reconstruction discussion due in April) by phone in August, my April mammogram in August, my zoledronic acid infusion in August, but with a covid test 2 days before. I'm on half a letrozole tablet a day as they have given me serious eye issues, but my follow up appointment at Moorfields Eye Hospital is cancelled too!
“Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Stephen Hawking,
I had chemo first, but for that they were happy to wait 6 weeks. surgery post-chemo was supposed to be week 6 but cancelled, then again cancelled so surgeon put me on exemestane (already on zolodex) - he did say then that it can be used to shrink tumours, and is often done so for elderly women who can't tolerate the chemo to reduce the tumour size so less invasive surgery.
