Hello
I I'm 59 & live in the uk
I've just recently been diagnosed with secondary breast cancer & it's started in my bones, mainly my spine. I'd been suffering with my back from about Jan 23 but just assumed it was my arthritis playing up. I then had to move home in April & in May/June the pain got worse. I was sent for a x-ray which showed 4 fractures in my lower spin, so gp referred me for a bone scan & a dexa scan, I also a mammogram on remaining breast which was clear. I then had bone scan. But I had noticed that beginning of June I started getting out of breath very easily & everything become difficult to do, then one night i woke & suffered a bad nose bleed, resulting in me going to a & e. (I take blood thinners for a heart valve problem). Apparently my blood thinners had gone way too high which caused the bleeding. I was then admitted to hospital, where they discovered that I had low platelets, I was given 2 pints of blood & 3 platelets transfusions. I was told my bone scan showed no cancer yay i thought but I was sent for ct scan & that showed I had in fact got bone cancer & something was going on with my blood too, I also had a ultrasound on my stomach but so far my organs aren't affected. I then had a bone biopsy (very painfu) which was later confirmed it was from my previous breast cancer. So I've just started hormone therapy & calcium tablets & hope to start a targeted therapy soon. My blood is slowly getting better with the help of steroids, my platelets have improved but not what they should be. I ended up in hospital for 2 weeks but have been home a month now. I honestly don't know how I really feel. Sometimes I'm ok & don't think about it but other times I'm panicking. I'm staying as positive as I can & keep telling my body to behave & make it go away. I want to be here for as long as possible but I know cancer can have other ideas. My children live away from me (5hrs) & my partner died in 2021, so I live alone, I do live in a living independent scheme & have care call & do mix with the other residents but I don't like to burden them with my worries. I do have a macmillan nurse who is lovely & I have a wonderful haematology nurse as I have weekly blood test's. People say I'm strong & coping well but I feel I'm keeping a lot at bay & at some point I'm going to crash. I know there's probably a few on here going through the same thing & feelings, I've had 2 major heart surgeries, a hysterectomy, mastectomy, lost my partner & now this, why can life be so cruel to people.
Keep strong everyone
