WHAT IS NEOPLASM?

Hi - Please read our Guide to Understanding Your Pathology Report - it'll really help you out. A neoplasm is another word for a tumor. Angiolymphatic invasion, if it's positive (I assume it is here, since it doesn't say "no"), means your cancer has invaded the blood/lymph system in your breast. Ki-67 is a gauge of how fast your cancer is growing - anything over 20% is aggressive. HER2-neu is also an indicator of aggressiveness, and your score is positive there, too. p53 is a tumor supporession gene - in your case, negative (better for it to be positive). ER/PR is an indicator of whether your cancer is hormone-receptive, and will therefore be responsive to long-term hormone therapy. Thankfully, your cancer IS responsive, so you'll be able to take hormone therapy drugs to help prevent a recurrence.

So, this sounds like a fairly aggressive cancer, unfortunately. I'll assume you're going to get chemo. Please discuss these results, and your treatment options, thoroughly with your oncologist. You'll want to understand the benefits and risks of everything you'll have to consider. Good luck, and stay in touch here - we can help. PJH