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Breast Cancer, concerned about headaches
I was diagnosed in March 2006 with infiltrating ductal carinoma, 2-3 cm, stage II, with 2 of 3 nodes being positive. Had lumpectomy, chemo, mastectomy, and radiation.
I have been having "headaches" for several months now. They are localized in about nickle size areas, and feel more like pressure than pain. It started out in one spot, but now have several spots concerning me. It is not persistant, it comes and goes throughout the day. I am scheduled for my 6 month cat scan and bone scan in two weeks. I asked if they would be scanning the brain, but they said no, just the chest and abdomen. Wouldn't it be easy just to look and make sure there is nothing to be concerned about in the brain while they are looking at the liver, etc?
Do you think the pressure headaches are anything to be concerned about? I get imbalanced sometimes, and a little memory problems, but wonder if it might be psychological since I am concerned about the pressure. Is a cat scan usually used, or an mri to look at the brain?
Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my question.
I have been having "headaches" for several months now. They are localized in about nickle size areas, and feel more like pressure than pain. It started out in one spot, but now have several spots concerning me. It is not persistant, it comes and goes throughout the day. I am scheduled for my 6 month cat scan and bone scan in two weeks. I asked if they would be scanning the brain, but they said no, just the chest and abdomen. Wouldn't it be easy just to look and make sure there is nothing to be concerned about in the brain while they are looking at the liver, etc?
Do you think the pressure headaches are anything to be concerned about? I get imbalanced sometimes, and a little memory problems, but wonder if it might be psychological since I am concerned about the pressure. Is a cat scan usually used, or an mri to look at the brain?
Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my question.
You probably are just worrying of not much, but have you thought of asking a GP as a JIC?. I do hope that you find some relief.
Oh, memory problems...still have 'em. I started back to work 3 weeks ago after 3 years off. I was diagnosed in 05, had a baby along with the cancer (so I could claim prego-brain and chemo-brain at the same time). The folks at my work place just laugh because some things I remember vividly and others are no longer there. I now claim that I had so much to learn when I got cancer that something had to go! If you've ever watched or read Steven King's (oh shoot, memory dropped the name....it was about a group of kids and Mr Gray and the main character equated his brain to a library and when he ran out of room he burned a section, but had a special spot in his brain for the special stuff to never forget)...anyway...that's how I see my brain, too. Something's gotta go when something new has to get in!
It does get frustrating though when things you should remember just suddenly take their leave. Like names of people you've known forever. Embarrassing when you are introducing people.
Oh, memory problems...still have 'em. I started back to work 3 weeks ago after 3 years off. I was diagnosed in 05, had a baby along with the cancer (so I could claim prego-brain and chemo-brain at the same time). The folks at my work place just laugh because some things I remember vividly and others are no longer there. I now claim that I had so much to learn when I got cancer that something had to go! If you've ever watched or read Steven King's (oh shoot, memory dropped the name....it was about a group of kids and Mr Gray and the main character equated his brain to a library and when he ran out of room he burned a section, but had a special spot in his brain for the special stuff to never forget)...anyway...that's how I see my brain, too. Something's gotta go when something new has to get in!
It does get frustrating though when things you should remember just suddenly take their leave. Like names of people you've known forever. Embarrassing when you are introducing people.
Not really..it started out upper left, about an inch above the hairline. Stayed there for a few months, then more spots started hurting, like central left forehead, eyebrow bone, and to the left. Now there are some spots on the right side that have started hurting. It usually only hurts for a few minutes.
When I first told the oncologist about it, she said it was probably just the weather. It's been over a year since the first spot started hurting (about a month after finished chemo), so it's probably nothing.
I would probably be having a lot more symptoms by now if it had spread to the brain. I'm just a worrier!!
When I first told the oncologist about it, she said it was probably just the weather. It's been over a year since the first spot started hurting (about a month after finished chemo), so it's probably nothing.
I would probably be having a lot more symptoms by now if it had spread to the brain. I'm just a worrier!!
Gotta ask...were your headaches over one eye? I had spot headaches for a while after chemo, but they did eventually go away. Mine were over one eye, usually the left eye, centralized pain, about the size of a nickel. They never lasted very long, though. And they did get farther and farther apart and now over a year later, gone.
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