Stage 0 HR-Positive Invasive Ductal Carcinoma: Natalie's Survivor Story
This breast cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage 0
- Subtype
- Invasive Ductal Carcinoma
- Biomarkers
- ER-positive
- Sex
- Female
- Treatment
- surgery, reconstruction, hormone therapy and surveillance
- Outcome
- Survivorship / Completed Treatment
Treatment course, step by step
- Right-breast lump found after nursing; mammogram and ultrasound did not resolve concern
- lumpectomy after 6 months; pathology showed Stage 0 DCIS
- MRI showed suspicious marginal spots
- double subcutaneous mastectomy with nipples preserved and reconstruction
- multiple reconstruction surgeries with tissue expanders, implants, fat grafting, and human cadaver tissue support
- about 8 years after diagnosis, cracked/bleeding nipple sampled during surgery showed nipple cancer/Paget's disease
- surgery removed nipple, areola, and surrounding tissue; further DCIS found in skin
- summer 2016 surgery removed the reconstructed breast
- later prosthetics, LD reconstruction, additional fat grafting, and final major reconstruction surgery on 2 May 2019
- tamoxifen used after diagnosis.
What happened, in summary
Natalie found a lump in her right breast after nursing her third child. Mammogram and ultrasound did not explain what she could still feel, so she pushed for a specialist. After 6 months of watching the area, she had a lumpectomy, and pathology showed Stage 0 DCIS. MRI then showed suspicious spots near the original lump. Natalie chose a double subcutaneous mastectomy, keeping the nipples and moving into reconstruction. What followed became far longer than she expected: tissue expanders, implants, scar-tissue problems, fat grafting, human cadaver tissue support, and repeated corrective operations. About 8 years after the original diagnosis, during surgery number 13, she pointed out a cracked, bleeding nipple. A sample showed cancer of the nipple, described in her story as Paget's disease. Surgery number 14 removed the nipple, areola, and surrounding tissue, and more DCIS was found in the skin. In summer 2016, surgery number 16 removed the reconstructed breast. Natalie later used prosthetics, then tried reconstruction again with LD surgery, more fat grafting, and an implant. Her final major reconstruction surgery was on May 2, 2019, surgery number 20. As of June 2026, she described living fully while still watching her body closely and managing fear of recurrence.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by The Patient Story. 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