Hi everyone,
My firends suggested I cam eo MacMillan for some support around my wifes ongoing cancer treatment, it's been really hard on us all (and by all, I mean my wife, myself and our three boys).
My wife was diagnosed in 2017 with breast cancer where she had a 5cm tumor against the chest wall.
In 2018 she went through a mastecomy (and lymph node removal where 26/29 nodes were cancerous), radio therapy and chemo.
She had failed reconstructive surgery in early 2019 (tummy tuck and then the fat used to build the breast), but the blood didn't flow properly for the surgery to succeed. She had further surgery in late 2019 to take some muscle from her back to build the new breast (can you tell I'm not a medical practitioner? :S)
We were then clear until late 2021 when my wife had pain in the left side of her neck. After investigation and a biopsy it was confirmed to be cancerous, but inoperable due to it not being in one "lump". She had more radiotherapy and was put on chemo tablets.
In June 2022 she had pain in her left arm and more cancer cells were found in her lymph nodes. She was moved to intravenous chemo indefinitely.
Last week after a CAT scan and mammogram they found cancer in the reconstructed right breast (which I don't understand as it's not breast tissue now). We are meeting the surgeon next week to see if it's operable.
Honestly, it's exhausting........
Al
Hi Al BigAl1976 and welcome to the Online Community but so sorry to hear about your diagnosis and ongoing journey.
A cancer diagnosis like this in the family can be such a challenging and stressful time but reaching out to the community will give you the opportunity to ask questions and getting support from others who are on the ‘exact’ same journey.
The Community is divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) so can I recommend you consider joining our supportive Breast cancer support group. This is a safe place to talk to others who may have a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support from family members who are navigating the same journey.
If you'd like to connect in with a group click on the Bold Group Link(s) I have created above and join the group. You can then introduce yourself by putting up your own post or replying to existing posts.
When it comes to the practical and emotional challenges of supporting family you may also benefit from joining our general Carers only and possibly (depending on results) Supporting someone with incurable cancer support groups where you will connect with others navigating the same support challenges.
Our Support Line teams are available 7 days a week, 8am-8pm on freephone 0808 808 00 00, email or live webchat and we also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow a few working days for a reply.
Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing.
Do get back to me if you need further help.
