Breast cancer in older women

Two of my friends have recently been diagnosed after mammograms. Both had lumpectomies (one with a couple of lymphomas as well!), radiotherapy and are now on tamoxifen having been reassured that they are now fine.

I hope your friend has the same experience, melina.

Well the article says that it is because women (in many countries - it's an international study ) over 70 less likely to be offered the best treatment.
It is a statistical study and interpretation is very difficult.
It is not an experimental study.
It is also financed by a company that wants to make money out of a test that can (they say) tell the difference between different types of cancers.And a lot depends on how early they are diagnosed.
There are many different types of breast cancer - some aggressive and some not.
It is difficult to make fair comparisons between health services in different countries. Belgium might have better outcomes than the UK for a whole range of reasons.
The best place to look at data on cancer is Cancer Research UK site.
I hope your friend gets the right treatment for her cancer and that she makes a quick recovery.

My 88yr old Aunt was diagnosed with BC 2 years ago - she also had underarm nodules. She had a mastectomy and is now clear of cancer. I'm amazed at how well she recovered although she was very tired for 12 months. She is now ballroom dancing and swimming twice a week and is currently enjoying a cruise. She is incredibly positive and loves life.

My post said lymphomas which not what I typed. It should have said lymphnodes!

Is that really true, that women over 70 won't get treatment because of their age.

Maybe this is due to the cutbacks in the NHS.

God help me then if I succumb to it.

I don't think it's a simple case of being denied treatment because you're over 70. It will depend on the general health of each woman - some may not be suitable candidates for chemotherapy due to frailty or impaired renal function, for example.

No one over 70 will be sent home after a diagnosis of breast cancer with no offer of treatment at all!

I have a couple of friends in early 70s. Both have been treated for & recovered well from breast cancer.

As another poster said it will all depend on the heath profile of the patient to see if they are likely to respond well or not to treatment, if treatment could aggravate another condition etc. etc.

What about mammograms after 70? Because they were not routine, I used to ask for them every three years, but felt I was being a hypochondriac. Then they came out with figures about increased risks, and seemed to imply that us oldies were being negligent in not having tests.
I asked my GP last week, and she just said...keep an eye out for anything unusual.
Should I insist on carrying on with the tests? I am 76. What do others do?

I turned 70 this year and had already decided that, if I didn't receive an invitation for breast screening in January 2017 (which would have been three years since the last one) I would ring up and ask for one. However, I have now received an appointment for a mammogram tomorrow, and believe it may be part of a 'Breast Screening Age Extension Trial for women younger than 50 or older than 70'. Apparently this trial is taking place across England and covers randomly selected clusters, half of whom will be invited and half not, with the study comparing those two groups.

Please don't think of yourself as a hypochondriac for asking for an appointment. In fact, when I mentioned it to the nurse, the last time I had a mammogram, I was encouraged to continue to ring up after the age of 70. My aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 70, was treated successfully and eventually died at 85 of something completely different.

DD rang earlier today to say she had had a needle biopsy of a breast lump today. Consultant is pretty confident that it will be OK. She has several cysts as well apparently.

She did not tell us anything about this as she did not want to worry us till she had some news. 10 days they say for the result.

My sister has had BC twice; once when she was only about 34, so I just hope there is nothing running in the family. But DD assures us that the consultant had been quite reassuring and even suggested waiting and seeing for 6 weeks before a biopsy, but DD opted for today.

My aunt had her second diagnosis of breast cancer at the age of 85. She had another mastectomy and, although 2 lymph nodes were affected, it was decided not to give further treatment due to her frailty. She is now 91, suffering from dementia but with no sign of the cancer recurring. It was obviously not an aggressive type. She may have been elderly but got appropriate treatment.

JessM is right. There are many different types of breast cancer.

Even as a breast cancer survivor, I will not be entitled to breast screening after 70, but a local cancer charity is now offering screening to over 70s which I intend to take up for my own peace of mind.

Women over 70 can self refer for mammograms here jud, does that not apply in Ireland?

Not to my knowledge Kitty. If so, I haven't heard of it.

HIs Aunt had a mastectomy in her 80s , she died at 103 yrs old

OH not his !

That is quite an achievement aggie. My oldest relative had both bowel cancer and, a few years later, a lymphatic cancer after 70. Died of a stroke at 91.
Here is the link to cancer research uk if anyone wants to study the data.
www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/statistics-by-cancer-type/breast-cancer#heading-Three
Comparison between countries is tricky because they may be counting cancer cases in slightly different ways.
To use a different illness to explain - we've all heard about pre-cancerous changes to the cervix - and countries might vary in when they rate cases as actual cancer, rather than as a treatable pre-cancerous condition.
As someone who had a breast cancer in her 40s I'll probably carry on asking for a mammogram every 3-4 years post 70. If you've had one you're more likely to have a second one.

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