Archive | March, 2012

T-rex

24 Mar

I finally got an appointment with my oncologist and it is not until April 19. It seems like a long ways away but it’s okay because whatever further treatment I have is not emergent, I can heal and feel a little better before more treatement and I keep hearing from many people that it will be worth the wait to get into see this certain doctor.

I am feeling pretty good today. So you can imagine what I look like though my dad has nicknamed me T-Rex (Teah-Rex) and I feel a little like an old lady the way that I walk. I am sore and the skin is stretching so I cannot stand straight up and I walk/sit/stand with either my arms folded or held up funny so that is why t-rex is appropriate. It is pretty funny to see.

I have just felt so blessed to have such wonderful support here in my house, through the mail, through food brought to us, through facebook and blogs and so many ways that it almost makes all of this worth it. It’s so thoughtful and nice to hear of all the well wishes and prayers that are given on my and my family’s behalf and I thank each and everyone one of you for that.

Lab results

22 Mar

Okay, so today is much, much, much better. I have so much more energy, can move my arms more and am in hardly any pain (as long as I take my motrin). I had a post-op appointment with my Dr. and he had my lab results. It was all really good news.

-The sentimal lymph node biopsy is still negative.

-There was about 6mm of carcimona that was removed (that was expected). But my surgeon said he is confident that there are no stray cancer cells in my body anymore after the mastectomy and biopsy results. YAY!!

-What was not expected was a lot more DCIS found. DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) is a tumor in the milk ducts that has not become cancerous yet-but will in the future. The cancer I had was DIC (ductal invasive carcinoma) which was the next step after DCIS. So to make a long story short it was a really good choice to do the mastectomy vs. another lumpectomy because I would have for sure had recurrence of cancer if I opted for the lumpectomy. More good news was that the genetic testing that was done gives a grade of how aggressive the cancer was and mine had a fairly low score. In most women, this means that there is no need for chemotherapy. Studies have shown that if there is a low score and the lymph nodes are negative then there is not much benefit for chemo. BUT…..my doctors have been saying all along that it may be a different case since I am so young. There are only about 250,000 cases of breast cancer a year in women inder the age of 40. I am only 29 so there is a good chance that my oncologist is going to want to be aggressive reagardless of what the scores are. I have a referral in to see the oncologist soon and will see what she recommends for me. There is a chance I will not need chemo but I am still counting on it.

A Hot Mess

20 Mar

It has been 1 week since my surgery and I thought that I would be doing a lot better than I am. I have never had any kind of surgery/hospital stay before other than getting my wisdom teeth out and having 3 babies. I knew that I would be in pain but i thought that the pain meds would help with that. Well, the truth is I have been pretty much helpless for the past week. I can barely move my arms without pain and my Dad teases that I look like a T-rex when I walk around-if you can imagine what that looks like. I had 4 drains but now only 2 up by my armpits so I cannot take a shower. I cannot lift my hands very high so my hair is a royal mess and has only been washed twice this past week. If I could lift my arms I’m sure my pits are very hairy-sorry. The good things is that my family does not seem to mind the hot mess that I’m in. I’ve been quite nauseous/dizzy/sleepy-but it’s nice to see my kids every now and again as they creep in and out of my room. I’ve been taken very good care of by my family, especially Kevin. I don’t know how I would do this without him. My Dad is up here now to help with the kids and my mom will come later this week to stay for a while. I am ready for this to be done with but I think it’s going to take a while. I see my surgeon on Thursday and then we will set up an appointment to meet with an oncologist in a week or two. On Friday, I get my last drains out and can finally take a shower. You know how great a shower feels when you just don’t feel good.

Fighting Breast Cancer

8 Mar

I was given the diagnosis of breast cancer 2 weeks ago today. It has taken me a little time to finally sit down and blog about it.I feel like I am doing really well but the main reason I have not done it is because right now I do not feel sick-my life is just as it was before I knew. I guess I want to just continue with everything as long as I can. My surgery is not until next week and I know that once that happens-everything will be different. It just feels so weird to know that there is still cancer in my body right now and yet I feel so good. Next week, after my bilateral mastectomy I will begin to see an oncologist and start my treatment-whatever that will be. I know that I will feel sick then but hopefully the cancer will be gone by then.

It was a hard couple of days right after my diagnosis as you can imagine. Kevin and I were hardly getting any sleep. It was hard for me to understand because I went to the temple 2 weeks before I had my biopsy and I felt so good there and had no worries about my surgery or what the results would be. I was shocked when my surgeon told me my results. However, as time has passed I realize that I do not need to worry. I am going to do everything necessary to beat this and before you know it I will be having a party to celebrate that it is all overwith and that I am cancer free. I can feel the strength that the Lord has given to me because of the prayers and fasting and well wishes of my family and friends. I am so blessed to be loved by so many and will forever be changed because of it. Thank you everyone!

As the days have slowly passed by I am reminded of all the things that I am grateful for. Here are some of the reasons why I am glad that I have cancer right now. That sounds weird because of course I do not want this but it really was the perfect time for this to happen.

-My kids are young so they have no idea what is going on/

-We have great insurance because Dylan has diabetes so we have to pay a $2000 deductible and then everything is covered 100% till the end of Dec. That includes ALL the surgery and chemo!! Awesome.

-Kevin is done with school and he is the boss in his own office so he can set his own hours and close when I need him. Plus we get to see him every day for lunch.

-We are back in NV so we are way close to family here is Carson and Reno and much closer to the rest of our family in southern NV.

-Breast cancer has a 98% survivable rate and there are so many options for treatment.

-We signed up for a really good life insurance policy 3 months ago. I do not think that Kevin will need to cash that policy in any time soon, but I am glad we have already donethe physicals and health questionnaires because I was really heathy then and now it would either be really expensive for me to sign up or they would just deny me.

-I’ve been wanting to do something different with my hair so now I might get the chance to try something new. (if I have chemo) 

I will try my best to keep everyone updated on what is going on with my. I truly feel blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life and to have the knowledge of the gospel. I know that I do not need to fear but look forward to the future.  A friend shared a quote with me that I love. “Fear not. Be of good cheer. Your future is as bright as your faith.” President Thomas S. Monson

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