Invasive Lobular Carcinoma: Stephanie's Survivor Story
This breast cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Subtype
- Invasive Lobular Carcinoma
- Biomarkers
- Oncotype DX score 7
- Sex
- Female
- Treatment
- surgery, hormone therapy and reconstruction
- Outcome
- Cancer-Free / NED
Treatment course, step by step
- July 2018 right breast lump removed and found benign, with lobular carcinoma in situ also found
- breast MRI and follow-up ultrasound showed right-breast areas of concern
- September MRI needle biopsy diagnosed invasive lobular carcinoma
- unilateral mastectomy on 13 November 2018 showed 22 small tumors
- Oncotype DX score 7, so chemotherapy was expected to have little to no effect
- radiation not needed because surgery removed all cancer and lymph nodes were negative
- tamoxifen started January 2019 for a planned 10-year course
- reconstruction February 2019.
What happened, in summary
Stephanie was 50 when she found a lump in her right breast on July 2, 2018. Mammogram and ultrasound confirmed the lump, and it was removed in early August. The lump itself was benign, but the pathology also found lobular carcinoma in situ, which raised her future breast cancer risk. Her doctor ordered breast MRI, and that scan showed a mass in the right breast. A follow-up ultrasound found 2 areas of concern. In September, MRI needle biopsy confirmed invasive lobular carcinoma. Stephanie used Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance resources to learn more about ILC and prepare questions for her doctors. On November 13, 2018, she had a unilateral mastectomy. Surgery revealed 22 small tumors. Her Oncotype DX score was 7, indicating that chemotherapy would likely have little to no effect. Radiation was also not needed because the cancer had been removed in surgery and had not spread to her lymph nodes. Stephanie started a planned 10-year course of tamoxifen in January 2019 and had reconstruction the following month. As of July 2023, she was in ongoing survivorship and using what she learned to help others understand lobular breast cancer. Her case also shows how LCIS can lead to closer imaging and earlier ILC detection.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance. 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