not knowing

my grandmother was recently told she has breast cancer in her 2nd breast after having one already removed 9 years ago,she has been told this breastwill not be removed or will she recieve chemo as it wont work.she will recieve radiotherapy as she now has lung cancer and bone cancer.im confused as to whether she will recover from this or not.any advice appreciated

[katarina777]

I think they are not taking off your grandmother's other, now cancerous, breast because  there is little point in it. This they decide aq lot when cancer, i.e. bc, has progressed to stage 4. Taking off the breast will not cure the much more serious problem and which is now cancer in the lung, and much more serious. not only does the breast no much matter any longer, but operating may actually spread the cancer more.

And the only thing that will help, but not cure, your grandma's lung will be chemotherapy, and which will automatically also treat the now cancerous breast.

See, when a person has bc for the first time, or even second time, and the cancer has not yet spread, the mastectomy is a major part of the cure that is hoped for, and which in combination with chemo and/or radiation and other treatments really gives the patient a chance for permanent cure.

At this point surgery will neither accomplish a cure nor improvement.

I understand that you have said chemo does not work, or didn't, but maybe the medical team is hoping that a different chemo may make some difference.

Radiation will also help, or hopefully help, and especially also with bone pain she most likely will experience.

All the best to you both,

KATRIN

[katarina777]

PS: Will your grandma recover? With the cancer having spread to bones and lungs, she can no longer be cured. It will depend a lot on the magnitude of the spread at this time, her overall health, and the effectiveness of the chemo and radiation, how well she will do.

The goal now is to improve your grandma's quality of life, i.e. pain control, and also hopefully aid in prolonging life, and that is differnt for any individual.

A friend of mine was told she would live 6 months after diagnosis and she did for three years, and most of these were quality years.

[jay385]

thank you.thats a big help