wow - so much to go through for such a young man.
there are many good websites to get info on BC.  www.breastcancer.org is a
great place to start.  also there are so many local organizations that can
give you info also.  just type breast cancer info into google and you'll
have all the starter info you could want.
what i think is that after the treatment you went through for colon cancer,
the stage 2 breast cancer will be similar, if not a bit easier.  not sure
though.
good luck.

Hi, Jay,

Welcome -- sorry you have need to join us!

You can find a lot of info via this group's FAQ at
http://www.cancersupporters.com/ .  I also recommend "Dr. Susan Love's
Breast Book" -- while it's written largely with a female audience in
mind, the coverage of treatments, etc., is very good & most would apply
to you.

I can't speak specifically to the differences in treatment between men &
women, but much should be similar.  (There are one or two other men
who've had breast cancer who post here occasionally, so I hope they'll
see your post & join in.)  I also can't speak to how your treatment
might change because of your colon cancer history.

My impression is that men normally have mastectomies.  Most women who
have mastectomies avoid radiation by doing so.  However, some (like me)
require radiation even after mastectomy.

With the surgery, they will normally sample some underarm lymph nodes.
If you can get a procedure called "sentinel node biopsy", this is a good
thing -- they use a dye to trace lymph from the breast to the first
nodes where the tumor area drains, and remove those nodes for testing.
   If those are positive, they will likely remove more.  The other
option is axillary dissection, where they remove a larger number of
nodes initially.

With fewer nodes removed, you have a lower risk of later developing
lymphedema in the affected arm.  (Sentinel node(s) or axillary
dissection, you will need to avoid injury to that arm, no needle sticks
there, no blood pressure tests there, etc., for ever. You may be
cautioned to avoid repetitive resistance weight-bearing exercise with
that arm, but there's hearty dispute whether that's true and accurate.)

The surgery isn't too difficult, as long as your tumor is located so
muscle isn't involved (usually true in women; not sure about men).   I
had bilateral mastectomy with axillary dissection.  It took quite a
while -- maybe 6-8 weeks? -- to heal fully, but it wasn't particularly
painful.

It's extremely important to get exercises to do after the mastectomy &
node removal.  A very small number of people experience significant
range-of-motion limitations after surgery, and exercises (basically just
a variety of stretches) can help avoid this.  Most of us just have a
some tightness that can be stretched out over time.

If you do need radiation, that isn't bad, either.  Perhaps in contrast
to your experience with colon cancer, the irradiated area around the
breast doesn't have much in the way of vital organs to irritate, so
usually people just have some light superficial skin burning toward the
end of the course (think sunburn -- in a small number of cases, bad
sunburn).

After your surgery, many of your treatment decisions will be made based
on tumor pathology and node involvement.  If you're diagnosed at stage
two now, my guess would be that you're quite possibly looking at chemo.

If that's true, the good news is that our docs know quite a lot about
managing side effects, because (sadly) a lot of us take these drugs.
The chemo is a rotten hobby, but do-able.  I had 3 months of
Adriamycin/Cytoxan (AC), followed by 3 months of Taxol.  I was sicker
than average on the AC, but my docs kept changing the anti-nausea
regimen until it improved.

You kind of slog your way through it, but you do get through it.  I
worked throughout (with some sick days along the way, and thanks to a
supportive work environment).  I'm about 3.5 years past a stage III
diagnosis, feeling well, NED, and generally doing great.

Please let us know how things are progressing for you, and if you have
any questions, we'll be happy to try to help!

Ann T.
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