Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!
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Gosh Everyone!
I'm in the opposite weather!! LOL We're expecting 102.2F today for New Years Eve. Whoa!!!! Sunny and HOT!!! Probably one time I'm glad I don't have any hair LOL!
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Sloan- not really doing anything but you are ahead of me so wanted to check with you. I've seen some swear by Biotin and some not but it's worth a try. Please keep me posted.
I think the Herceptin makes mine "slow going/growing" but with the record high temps we have had am not wearing anything. I almost forget about it until someone sort of stares. Oh well...battle scars can cause others to wonder, right?
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LMVizsla- wow, that WOULD wake you up! Sorry about the seroma...mine didn't start until a few weeks out of surgery...took a few weeks to reabsorb...BS checked it several times but didn't drain as she felt it wold heal on it's own and she was right. It felt weird and uncomfortable but not hot to the touch nor was it uncomfortable all day or night. Have a very small pillow that I used for extra support for it when I sat or slept...really sexy and cute, huh?
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Jersey not sure why it isn't done routinely. But being proactive is certainly the right thing to do. They had my mammogram and ultrasound results but no one "ordered the biopsy." I had to ASK the dr. to order it. Sheesh I feel sorry for women who just sit back and wait for things to happen. The medical system is full of red tape. Maybe things are different on the east coast. SMH
Mel...that weather sound loverly to me. It is gloomy, soggy and grey here. Blah
I had my fifth infusion today. One more to go!! And I got my bone scan results back..negative yay.
Funny story, my kids and I were at PF Changs (mmm) last week and someone paid for our dinner. Two days later I was out for breakfast, sitting at the counter and some man,who only spoke Spanish, paid for my breakfast. I must look really pathetic with my bald head. Anyway, I told my kids that I would pay it forward. Today when I went out for breakfast before my infusion ( bad idea cause they weigh me lol) I left the server a 100% tip and wrote Happy New Year on the check. I also had gone to the store and bought some groceries and this morning I went looking for the most pathetic looking homeless person I could find. I found this man and gave him the groceries and told him I hoped he would have a good year. He was very appreciative. I figure my luck is changing finally!! But on the way home from the hospital (I always drive myself, no one goes to chemo with me) I clipped a mailbox and broke my passenger mirror so I guess it's seven more years of bad luck for me ugh!!!!!
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jclc83:
Now your stories are what I needed to hear! Some happy ones! That is awesome! More awesome is your negative results!! 😊
Oh no on the mirror!! Positive thoughts!! Lets hope that is an old wise tale!
I just told my husband that I think they dont like patients like me! The ones that research, gain knowledge & question things.
Happy New Year!!! We are all moving forwardinto a positive new year of 2016!!
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JCLC - OMG I didnt know whether to laugh or cry! I love the pay it forward and I believe that too, what you give out you get back. Hmmm not sure about the mailbox thing? Maybe someones trying to say, if you can of course, have someone drive you?? I too did most of my Chemo on my own, first round every 3 weeks though was too sick had to stay in hospital for 3 days each time. With taxol though I drove in and out. Sometimes I think things happen to remind us to slow down a little, perhaps? Being women though, we are made of Steel!
Sending good vibes and energy! Oh the weather is sooo hot here lol, yes beats gloom...hope it improves. Happy New Year!!
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JCLC, how wonderful of those people paying for your meals. And so good of you to pay it forward. I think we all feel better knowing there are good people, like you, in this world.
HUGS!
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My breast seroma isn’t going away any time soon. BS’ nurse, my RO and my PCP all say it could take a year or more because of the skin thickening due to radiation. Looking at my breast head-on, it can be seen as a swelling on the side. It doesn’t slosh. I am seeing an LE specialist next week to rule out truncal LE, as well as ascertain whether I am developing actual cording and LE in the forearm as well.
Meanwhile, I am feeling truly crummy. Was kept awake much of the night by the sound of my lungs, and despite taking an expectorant am having a tough time bringing up anything despite a very wet-sounding cough. The Duo-Neb didn’t seem to make much of a difference from my rescue inhaler. What’s coming up is yellowish-tan (postnasal drip is very faintly yellowish now). DH (a cardiologist) says I need an antibiotic but that I should call the PCP. My PCP’s office is closed, so I called my MO. Her office said to call the PCP’s service and get the on-call doc, who prescribed doxycycline (Z-Pack gave me a mild arrhythmia the last couple of times I tried it, in 2011 and 2013) and told me to start taking the Medrol Dosepak I keep on hand for emergencies (such as laryngitis just before an impending performance). Waiting for the CVS to get the doxy filled. Meanwhile. the other (indie) pharmacy that was supposed to order Teva letrozole for me could only get Roxane. (Canadian online pharmacy says the branded Femara will take 10-28 days to get to me since they’re getting it from Novartis UK). The CVS carries only Accord brand, which has a bigger laundry list of inactive ingredients than any of the others, OTOH, Roxane’s list is even shorter than Femara’s. When I go to pick up these Rxs, it’ll be my first time out of the house since Sat. (not counting the 5 min. of fresh air out on the deck Sun. morning waiting for my egg to finish cooking). I am gonna make a lousy New Year’s Eve party hostess. But it’s up to me, since DH may be working up to the last minute and DS has to leave dinner early for his comedy collective’s fundraiser. MO’s nurse said the Medrol should put a spring in my step. Hope it doesn’t also put too many carbs in my mouth and pounds on my hips.
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ChiSandy:
I am so sorry you are not feeling well! I will keep you in my thoughts & prayers!!
BIG HUGS from NJ!!!!!
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Saw the PS's NP today. I had pretty much decided the rash was yeast--last night as I was changing for bed I thought I smelled fresh bread--took a shower and put a disinfecting essential oil on the rash. The nurse took one look at the rash today and said it is yeast. She called in a script for it.
I am cleared to drive, cleared to take limited ibuprofen, and cleared to play in the water park at our hotel this weekend with certain precautions (she wants me to keep a waterproof bandage over a couple of the incisions and treat the rash for a couple of days first). After our New Year's holiday it is back to showers only.
Still have quite a bit of swelling and she seemed a little concerned, but said it's not unusual at 3 weeks out and the incisions are healing very well. Mostly I just have to get this rash cleared up.
And the chill/goosebumps are nerves healing/reconnecting/doing what they do. The lady who sold me my LE sleeve yesterday said the same thing. Even though neither of them had heard of it before they were both very confident.
My hair is about 1/2 inch now and slowing down. Just as it gets to a stage where bedhead is a problem--but not long enough to brush. I could start rubbing in some nice dreadlocks at this stage... I had started going out without covering my head and then we had rain/sleet/snow for three days. Thankfully my chemo buddy grabbed a pretty purple crocheted hat for me at our last infusion. They always have hats out, but someone had made some really special ones--mine has a beautiful braid with brass tipped tassles and the one she grabbed for herself had a scarf woven through. They were perfect for each of us!
It's funny how I still have my cold, still have this stupid rash and uncomfortable swelling, but hearing from the nurse that everything looks good makes me feel like a different person. Her reassurances and having picked up my LE sleeve make me feel better about my trip. 11 family members, a waterpark, shows, and mini-golf. It's also my I kicked cancer's butt trip, but I'll have to do another one after rads and the symmetry surgery next summer. ;-)
Hope everyone here has a wonderful New Year's Eve! -
ChiSandy, Your taking Medral took me back to my teens - I took it for my allergies. I never had a problem with it. And it helped. Doxycycline is really expensive these days. I'd be interested in knowing how much you got stuck paying for it, if you don't mind. I hope you feel better. That's far too much going on. Perhaps you might consider cancelling your New Year's Eve party and just rest? Hard to do, I imagine. Just get better!
Musosgirl, I know exactly what you mean. Knowing that you don't have something really awful going on lightens the load.
GET WELL!
HUGS!
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Musogirl Great update!
Glad you are on top of everything and mending! Glad you found out about those chills, that was my experience too as I said of the nerves, what a relief!
Im 2.5weeks post chemo but still no hair...hoping it starts soon..
Enjoy your time!! Happy New Year!
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ChiSandy: my lungs send your lungs sympathy. I haven't the same degree of pre-existing lung issues....still crappy, just a matter of how crappy and for how long.
Musosgirl; my surgeons both said "Healing nerves along the incision" though I'd have described what i feel after reduction as "incisions throwing an amazing tequila party, and dancing the conga around my breast, under my arm and up my back"
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Awwww...JLC....you are a funny gal....hoping the mirror thing is just one of those things....no one needs/wants 7 yrs bad luck....sounds like you paid it forward and have inspired my hub and me to do the same....good stuff. Take good care and here's hoping for many blessings in the New Year!!
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Yesterday my bs nurse called me to check how I was after my port removal surgery a week ago. She mentioned that I needed to see the bs in March after rads and get a script for a mammogram. She asked when my last mamo was. I told her oct 2014 for regular, both boobs (which found the left mass that they watched for 6mo), April 2015 for the diagnostic on the left (now cancer side), and an MRI of both breasts in July 2015. She said I was overdue for my mamo, and said the bs may write a script for the right breast to be checked before rads. I said doesn't the MRI check for more than a mamo? I also told her the bs said when he saw me before my port removal that I'd see him in March for mamo script. This nurse made me freak out worrying that there now is something growing in my right boob after just finshing chemo 3 weeks ago. She also said that I may need to have a mamo on the right one and a few months later have a mamo on the left cancer one, then have a mamo on both a few months after to catch both up to my regular mamo schedule. I was totally confused on hearing this.
Did anyone have a mamo on the non cancer side before rads, or before their 3 or 6 month checkup? I see my mo in March for my 3 month, after I finish rads.
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Soooo, ChiSandy....these Old School gals are encouraging rest...me, tooo, me toooo.....seriously....your body may still be on cruise time and we are here saying....please, please, please rest and relax and take GOOD care of YOU!!
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HH, I may stay home and let DS &/or DH play host for our friends at B’way Cellars--while I put the champagne on ice and take a snooze. I’ll see how I feel in the morning. They say that for jet lag, it takes a day to adjust for every hour of time difference, so by Monday my body was back on Central, rather than Central European, time.
Queen, you, Lacey, Cubbie & I may be able to wheeze together in four-part harmony. With GarageBand, it can be done!
With my insurance, a week’s worth (BID) of doxy was $20 at CVS. At over a buck a pill, not dirt cheap but not a budget-buster either.
The indie pharmacy where I picked up my Letrozole has a Kosher-style “NY” deli up front. So while I was getting my ‘scrip filled, I scarfed down a steaming hot pint of matzo ball soup (with chicken & carrots) Seemed to work better than Mucinex, so I bought a quart to take home, along with some chopped liver. Turns out the pharmacist owns the place, and is Jewish too. I also noticed that he took out the gelato cooler and added an additional deli case. Gelato didn’t sell well--customers were there for the deli. He couldn’t get the Teva brand, which would have been $30. So he got the Roxane brand instead, which has fewer inactive ingredients, and it was only $17.50.
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I'll take low tenor/contralto range just now, thank you for asking.
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ChiSandy, my insurance didn't pay a thing on my doxycycline last time (a year or so ago). I paid about $50 for 2 weeks. I was a bit ticked off. Sounds like you hit the jackpot with that indie pharmacy/deli. Good! Just what you needed. Now rest some more!
HUGS!
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Thanks HappyHammer wishing you and all the other lumpy gals a Healthy, Happy 2016!!!
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Dear Annie:
I was treated at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX. Methodist Hospital is down the block. I went back to Houston for my mammo, sono, lung x-ray, MRI, and core needle biopsy last month, in November. (Dx - ALH) My next mammo and sono will be in Florida in May. I am going to go to another center in Florida which will make my mother very happy. Making my mother happy is worth it for me. She has helped me through my tx and without her, I could not have had the tx that I had. I am really lucky that she is so amazing. I have to decide whether I will go back to Houston next November for my MRI or whether I will have the MRI at the new center in Florida. My RO in Houston said that he was concerned about my hematoma from my MRI guided biopsy in May 2015, so he recommends coming back to Houston, rather than having further testing in Florida. I have time to decide. It is hard to get away from work and expensive to travel. I am a single parent so money is tight. That being said, I love my RO in TX.
Dear HappyHammer:
Wow, you are a certified school counselor too! Small world. Good luck with your tx.
Dear PontiacPeggy:
I cannot even fathom dealing with losing your husband at the same time as bc dx and tx. In fact, I cannot imagine going through that at all and not falling apart every minute even without the bc dx and tx. You are truly amazing. Thanks for all of your posts. You are so helpful. I loved your post about being in the pocket for luck.
Dear everyone else:
Good luck with tx and with the horrible cold, bleak weather. Earthquakes are scary. I have only lived through hurricanes so I can't relate to an earthquake.
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Annie, Luckily all those events were spaced over a year. However, I never had a chance to absorb having BC. DH was so much a "half-empty" guy that I could never allow a hint of being down or scared. And he was in very poor shape at the time. So I just concentrated on him. By the time he was in a nursing home, I had completed all my BC tx, was totally exhausted. Another 6 months saw me as just tired. And then August saw him get sick and September brought things to a very sad end. It was very stressful being DH's full time caregiver for 4 years and I believe it contibuted to me getting breast cancer - that may or may not be true. Now I am just looking forward to moving to be near my youngest son and embarking on a new adventure at age 70. It seems quite exciting.
I try to bring a positive attitude here. It can be so hard but I think it helps. And the support I've gotten here can never be repaid. It truly is priceless.
I can see why you are torn between going to Houston and finding the team you need in Florida. Never easy, is it? Good luck!
HUGS!
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this is a pretty active group so I will ask a question unrelated to bc but common to women, especially post menopausal...has anyone had repair of pelvic floor dysfunction along with hysterectomy?. I have uterine prolapse and rectocele. Have had it for many years. Not painful but bothersome, uncomfortable, now post menopausal and sx have gotten worse. I am considering surgery for hysterectomy with ovary removal as well (dont need them anymore) and prolapse repair but concerned about worsening symptoms, complications etc. I want to stay active and now I am limiting some of my exercise due to symptoms. feel free to pm me if you dont want to share here.
what a great group!
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LisaJ, we ARE an active group and we seem to discuss everything and quite frankly. One more reason to love being here. I have absolutely no knowledge of what you are asking but I'm sure someone here does. Sounds like a good discussion to have anyway since it seems to be a not uncommon problem in women of a certain age. It has to be disappointing to limit your exercising. I hope you find the information you need and can proceed to fix the problem!
HUGS!
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Dear Lisa:
I don't know the answer to your question but it seems like the doctor should be able to do the repair along with the hysterectomy and salpyngial oophorectomy. Good luck.
Dear PontiacPeggy:
At the time that I was dx with bc, my good friend and colleague's fiance was dx with bile duct liver cancer. He died 3 months later. I am still having a hard time dealing with the fact that he died and that he died so quickly. He was very young. It was awful. He was such a great guy. My friend was completely devastated and she still is. I cannot even fathom going through that pain. My hat is off to you for handling it so well AND handling it while being dx and tx for bc. You are truly amazing in my book. One year is not a long time. You are also so helpful to everyone here. Like you said, this website and this thread is so supportive and I am very thankful for having found it. I rely on everyone here even if I haven't specifically addressed you by name or responded to your post.
My radiologist at the women's breast center that I have gone to in Florida was able to dx my bc and my suspicious areas post bc tx, and all of the staff has always been competent and extremely helpful to me. However, there are many changes afoot at the hospital that this breast center is affiliated with. The nurse navigator, geneticist, my radiologist at this center (who saved my life by dx my bc, and I love him), and a wonderful bs in my town (I did not use him for my bc surgery but I went to him for a previous biopsy) are no longer at this center. The bs still practices at this hospital but now, he has decided to do most of his surgeries at another hospital. I am bothered by this because I loved all of these people. They were all integral to my tx. I don't know why they were forced to/chose to leave this hospital. All of these people leaving at once raises a huge red flag to me. 3 out of the 4 are all at the same other hospital now. I do not know where my radiologist went.
The new center that I will be going to is approximately 1 hour from my house. They have a stronger MRI machine than the one in my town. (3.0 GE Tessla magnet as opposed to a 1.5 GE Tessla magnet.) I am sure that the 3D mammo and sono would be comparable though. My MO in Florida remains the same and she is "the Guru". She is the absolute best doctor and I am so lucky that I am her patient. I have time to decide whether to have my MRI in Florida at the new center or at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. I love my RO at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. It is such a difficult decision to make. I am glad that I have time to decide.
Thanks again to everyone and good luck.
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Peggy-Sorry to hear about your DH, it must have been so difficult for you. I imagine it must be exciting to be moving near your son. It will certainly be an adventure!
HH-It is ironic that we are all counselors, lol. I feel very fortunate to have such a great job. The parents definitely are the ones that often need behavior plans/mods. When I taught I always thought that the parents were my greatest obstacle to overcome. Denial seems to be a common thread.
614-My mother too has been a great source of strength and support throughout this BC journey. It will be good for you to make her happy. She probably worries about you when you travel to Houston. My mom makes the trip to Houston with me. MD Anderson is a great treatment center. My husband was treated there for Aplastic Anemia, which has been in remission for years now. Being a single parent must be challenging w/ BC
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614, the death of your friend's fiance had to have been difficult. Especially with you just being diagnosed. I know you are there for your friend and being as supportive as possible. But it is hard to accept. All your oncs leaving your hospital and going to another is very unsettling. Have you considered following them there?
Annie, thank you. My moving plans have really helped me get through the past few months. I'd thought about it while DH was alive but I just couldn't see how it could be done. He wasn't well enough to travel anywhere by any means.
Good night and HUGS!!
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Dear Annie:
My mother went to MD Anderson Cancer Center with me when I had my surgery. We were there for 2 weeks. Timing was great because I was dx in the summer. My mom was a HUGE help. She is the person who was able to get me in to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center as a patient. That was life saving. My mom was a patient at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center too (lung cancer) and so was my step-father (prostate cancer). That is why I chose to be treated at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
I went to Texas by myself for my entire radiation tx. My mom could not go with me because I had to be there for too long. I was very lucky because I connected with the Chabad of Houston at Texas Medical Center/Rice University. They helped me tremendously so that I did not feel all alone in another state by myself without a car/transportation. My daughter is in college, My brother flew in from Colorado to watch my son who is in high school while I was having my radiation. Luckily, my brother was able to work remotely so that he could come to my house. Also, he is the best brother in the world to do that for me. Yes, my mom is very worried about me. She does not like that I went to Texas by myself.
My mom would have gone to Texas with me last month but I told her not to go. She fell 2 years ago and she is still in pain when she walks so I did not want her to have to travel. I told her that I need her to come to Texas with me if any more bc is found, but that she did not have to go just for routine tests and for a biopsy.
Dear PontiacPeggy:
I am glad that you will be moving closer to your son. That will be a new lease on life for you. Enjoy it.
I am not going to follow the staff to the new hospital because the new center that I will be going to is a better women's center. The hospital that the staff went to is the hospital where my step-father was treated with chemo when he could no longer travel to Texas. It is a good hospital with an excellent reputation but the breast center is better and that is why I will travel 1 hour to go there. It is a shame because I travel so far to work every day and this center is in the opposite direction.
Yes, I am there for my friend and she is there for me too. Unfortunately, we were both out of work at the same time on family medical leave. Her fiance and I were both diagnosed in June 2014. It was a very difficult time.
I feel extremely lucky however because I was diagnosed early and I am fine. I also have so many terrific people in my life, including the wonderful and supportive ladies on this site. I am thankful for that.
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Annie, I, too, would choose to go to the best women's/breast center. Still it is hard to have to change doctors. I'll be doing that too when I move. Hopefully my 3 oncs will know of someone or someplace I can go where I will feel as comfortable about them as I do my current team.
I notice you had your Lx one day before I had mine.
You have a great family - nice, isn't it?
Happy 2016!
HUGS!
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wow, you guys move so quick! I read a lot but cannot always respond and certainly not to everybody! I hope that's OK.
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