Breast Cancer: Tracey's Patient Story
This breast cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Treatment
- surgery
- Outcome
- Care Ongoing
Treatment course, step by step
- Tracey underwent a mastectomy.
- After discussing her options, she also chose lymphadenectomy.
- She planned half-yearly mammograms for ongoing monitoring.
What happened, in summary
Tracey learned she had breast cancer after her first mammogram. She had not noticed cancer symptoms before screening. The diagnosis made both Tracey and her husband extremely nervous, especially because breast and pancreatic cancer were present in her family history.
The first doctor Tracey consulted was unable to perform surgery because of an upcoming vacation, so Tracey sought another opinion and treatment option. Her doctor recommended a mastectomy. After further discussion, Tracey also chose lymphadenectomy. She did not report side effects from the surgery.
Tracey planned to continue monitoring with mammograms every 6 months. During recovery, one of her biggest concerns was losing upper-body strength on the side of the mastectomy. Following medical advice, she began swimming to rebuild strength. Although time had passed since the diagnosis and surgery, she still described feeling nervous. Her experience combined early detection through screening, the need to find timely care, and the physical work of recovering after surgery.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by Our Cancer Stories. Read the original in full
How we source and attribute stories Accuracy and limitations
These are lay summaries of published cancer stories, for information only. No two cancers behave the same way, and nothing here predicts your own diagnosis or replaces advice from your oncology team. Read the full disclaimer