I realized that I forgot to mention the details about the specific kind of cancer that I have. So here it is:
-I have invasive ductal carcinoma
-It's grade 1
-It's a hormone positive cancer
-85% of all breast cancer patients get this kind of breast cancer
-It is highly treatable
-My oncologist called it an "old woman's cancer"
-My PR and ER were both positive, the HER2 is still out
-BRCA results are still out
-They are doing chemo first, then surgery
I do not know yet what kind of chemo or what kind of surgery I will get. My doctors right now are leaning towards lumpectomy, but I am leaning towards mastectomy. My nurse said it is my choice, whatever I want to do....and insurance will cover any decision I make.
My first chemo is scheduled for April 23rd at my Oncologist's Office at Community South. Right now my day planner is filled up everyday for the next week with appointments. I am getting a port placed and sentinel node biopsy on April 17th. I have very "scared' veins that are impossible to "thread" and they said it is imperative that I get this port. I was suppose to get a breast MRI last week and after 3 different people tried to insert my IV, they gave up and said I had to reschedule it until after the port is placed, so they can just use the port to insert the contrast. I remember when I was in the ER this past summer, they had to call in the IV team who had to use an ultrasound machine to find a good vein for my IV!!! I also remember a horror story from January when I had to get a CT with contrast. The tech stuck me 5 times and blew 2 veins before finally calling a nurse over from the doctor's office next door...who stuck me once and got a good vein! I was sooo bruised after that experience! So this port is going to be my best friend!!
Brittney, good luck on your sentinel node biopsy and port placement on Wednesday. Everything will go well and they'll probably give you lots of pain killers to keep you feeling good (and a bit loopy). Your doctor and nurses will take great care of you! Ports are really great - a little uncomfortable while sleeping sometimes but well worth it.
ReplyDeleteI chose to get a lumpectomy because my breast surgeon and oncologist both told me I'd have the EXACT same prognosis with a lumpectomy or mastectomy. At our age, a mastectomy can be a pretty big deal, even with reconstruction. Just please make sure you think about it - a lot. I know two women who had chemo before surgery, and when they went in for surgery, they couldn't even find a lump. I think they still removed tissue for a biopsy to be safe, though. After treatment, you will be screened twice per year (probably alternating MRI and ultrasound every six months), so if anything develops, they would catch it really early. You'll also get CBCs every three months or so after treatments are finished to monitor any abnormalities in your blood. Plus, since you're hormone receptor positive, you'll probably be taking tamoxifen for the next 5 years or so, which will keep any new cancer at bay. If you do end up being Her2 positive, the Herceptin doesn't have any noticeable side effects - it's just an inconvenience to go in every three weeks for a year.
Chemo really sucks, but you will get the opportunity during treatments to meet and talk to a lot of wonderful women who are going through the same thing as you. It's like a bonus group therapy session every time you have a treatment - which I found super helpful. Most women are very open with their experiences, so try to talk to as many women as you can and get their opinions about courses of surgery (lumpectomy vs. mastectomy). Of course if you're BRCA1 or 2 positive, that's a totally different story. Then of course those puppies need to come off.
If you do go the mastectomy route, reconstruction is covered 100% by insurance, and it's a lot easier to do right after surgery than to do it later down the road. I met one woman who had a double mastectomy and did not have reconstruction. Then after chemo and talking to women who were going to get reconstruction after chemo (they had balloon-like things under their skin to keep it stretched out), she really regretted her decision. Her doctor said she could still get reconstruction, but it would be harder and more painful because her chest skin was no longer stretched out. Just some things to consider :)
Good luck with everything and enjoy your beautiful hair while you still have it! Perhaps I'm just vain and superficial, but losing my hair was the hardest part for me. It was pretty fun experimenting with super short hairstyles that I'd never be brave enough to get normally when my hair grew back in though.
There are beautiful, treatment-free days ahead and time will fly. You're being super strong and upbeat about this - I know that's not easy. The worst will be over soon - just keep hanging in there!