Surgery for Breast Cancer: 974 Real Stories

974 stories match breast cancer and surgery. 653 of them mention chemotherapy.

Cancer Stories

A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Rare soft-tissue sarcoma of the breast

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female | Stage IV

Biomarkers: TLE1 strongly and diffusely positive; p63, CK7

Metastatic Site: lungs

After mastectomy, the cancer was metastatic to the lungs and care was palliative.

PubMed Central
OutcomeLiving With Cancer
Debbie, who was diagnosed with Stage I Breast AdenocarcinomaBreast Cancer

Stage I Breast Adenocarcinoma: Debbie's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Debbie Wade, Female | Stage I

As of February 2024, Debbie was cancer-free after double mastectomy, 4 weeks of radiation therapy and DIEP flap reconstruction for Stage I mucinous adenocarcinoma of the left breast, with mild left-arm lymphedema as the only reported side effect.

MD Anderson
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
Dena, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Stage IV BRCA Breast Cancer: Dena's Patient Story

Patient Info: Dena Ofengeim, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: Hormone receptor-positive; BRCA mutation

Metastatic Site: spine

Dena improved rapidly after treatment, regained her mobility, returned to an active life, and remained on therapy for metastatic breast cancer.

Dana-Farber
OutcomeResponding Well
A patient, who was diagnosed with Invasive Lobular CarcinomaBreast Cancer

Male Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer With a Pathogenic PALB2 Variant

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 40s

Biomarkers: ER-positive; PR-positive; HER2 not amplified; pathogenic PALB2 variant

He was disease-free at 1-year follow-up after mastectomy, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy.

PubMed Central
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
Sally, who was diagnosed with Invasive Lobular CarcinomaBreast Cancer

Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Sally's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Sally Johnston, 70+

Biomarkers: Estrogen receptor-positive

Sally was in remission by the end of 2014 and remained active about 10 years after treatment.

Dana-Farber
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
A patient, who was diagnosed with Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Aggressive breast cancer presenting with severe skin infection

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female

Biomarkers: ER 99% positive; PR 99% positive; HER2 1+ / negative; Ki-67 3%; grade 2; 3 interpectoral lymph nodes negative; later axillary-node biopsy benign

She recovered from sepsis and surgery, had no distant metastases and a benign axillary-node biopsy, and was receiving adjuvant radiation with anastrozole ongoing.

PubMed Central
OutcomeCare Ongoing
Gail, who was diagnosed with Stage III Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Stage III Breast Cancer: Gail's Patient Story

Patient Info: Gail, Female, 60s | Stage III

Biomarkers: Luminal A

As of 2024, Gail had Stage III luminal A breast cancer and was awaiting the start of planned treatment with lumpectomy, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy.

Our Cancer Stories
OutcomeCare Ongoing
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Invasive Ductal CarcinomaBreast Cancer

Metastatic HER2-Positive Breast Cancer With Treatment-Related Telangiectasias

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, 60s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: HER2-positive; initially ER-negative and PR-negative; metastatic disease weakly ER-positive and PR-negative; germline testing negative

Metastatic Site: left supraclavicular, mediastinal, axillary and…

Living with HER2-positive breast cancer for 9+ years since her 2014 diagnosis, including metastatic disease since 2017. She remained on reduced-dose tucatinib in 2023 while treatment-related telangiectasias improved after dose reduction and electrocautery.

PubMed Central
OutcomeLiving With Cancer
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage III Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Stage IIIA breast cancer history with benign lipid pneumonia mimicking lung malignancy

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 40s | Stage III

Prior Stage IIIA breast cancer treatment was completed; a later suspicious lung lesion proved to be benign lipid pneumonia rather than recurrence or lung cancer, and she was asymptomatic 1 year after lobectomy with continued surveillance for new right-lung changes.

PubMed Central
OutcomeSurvivorship / Completed Treatment
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Invasive Lobular CarcinomaBreast Cancer

Metastatic invasive lobular breast carcinoma to pancreas: biliary stent and paclitaxel

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 40s | Stage IV

Biomarkers: Primary breast tumor was triple-negative. Pancreatic metastasis was ER-positive/GATA-positive

Metastatic Site: pancreas; coelio-mesenteric lymph nodes

After 21 years of remission, she developed pancreatic and coelio-mesenteric nodal metastases from invasive lobular breast carcinoma; palliative paclitaxel was stopped after 2 courses because her condition deteriorated, and she was lost to follow-up.

PubMed Central
OutcomeSetback / Progression
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage I Breast CancerBreast Cancer

A Breast Cancer Survivor Later Diagnosed With a Separate Metastatic Cancer Affecting Both Retinas

Patient Info: Anonymized, Female, 60s | Stage I

Biomarkers: ER-positive, PR-positive, HER2-negative

Her last breast-cancer follow-up showed no evidence of disease after 5 years of endocrine therapy. She later developed a separate widely metastatic cancer favored to be gastrointestinal or pancreaticobiliary in origin and died after choosing hospice.

PubMed Central
OutcomeIn Memory
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Invasive Ductal CarcinomaBreast Cancer

BRCA2-Positive Breast Cancer in a Woman With Down Syndrome

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, Under 40 | Stage IV

Biomarkers: ER-positive, PR-negative, HER2-negative, germline BRCA2 pathogenic variant

Metastatic Site: lungs, bones

The cancer later progressed with lung and bone metastases and extensive cancer spread through lymphatic vessels in both lungs. She died 59 months after breast surgery.

PubMed Central
OutcomeIn Memory
Chantal, who was diagnosed with Stage II Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Stage II Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Chantal's Survivor Story

Patient Info: Chantal, Female, Under 40 | Stage II

Biomarkers: Triple-negative breast cancer; BRCA1 mutation

As of December 2023, Chantal reported that she did not currently have cancer, was followed by medical oncology every 3-4 months, and used Signatera testing because tumor markers were not reliable for her.

The Patient Story
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
A patient, who was diagnosed with Breast CancerBreast Cancer

HER2-Positive Mucoepidermoid Breast Cancer With 61 Months Without Recurrence

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, 50s

Biomarkers: HER2-positive; ER low expression; PR-negative

She was alive without signs of recurrence after 61 months of follow-up, providing just over 5 years of documented follow-up for this second primary breast cancer.

PubMed Central
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage I Breast CancerBreast Cancer

Five Years Without Breast Cancer Recurrence Despite a Markedly Elevated CA 15-3

Patient Info: Anonymized, female, 70+ | Stage I

Biomarkers: ER-positive, PR-positive, HER2-positive

Five years after her Stage I breast-cancer diagnosis, breast imaging and systemic evaluation showed no evidence of recurrence. The markedly elevated CA 15-3 was traced to a separate renal tumor and normalized after nephrectomy.

PubMed Central
OutcomeCancer-Free / NED
A patient, who was diagnosed with Stage IV Invasive Ductal CarcinomaBreast Cancer

Male Breast Cancer Controlled for Years Through Multiple Lines of Targeted and Endocrine Therapy

Patient Info: Anonymized, male, 70+ | Stage IV

Biomarkers: Initial tumor ER-positive, PR-positive, HER2-positive; later ER-positive, PR-negative, HER2-negative; PIK3CA mutation; germline BRCA1/2 negative

Metastatic Site: bones, pleura, liver

After a 5-year and 6-month disease-free interval, the cancer recurred in bone and later progressed to the pleura and liver. He died in January 2021, more than 13 years after his 2007 breast-cancer diagnosis.

PubMed Central
OutcomeIn Memory