Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!

MJS1266

Loving grouches,  I had to make a similar decision last year.  I am 54 so a little older than you.  As my cancer is ER/PR+, my BS and MO had both mentioned considering an oophorectomy after the BC was taken care of.  My mother passed away from Ovarian cancer, so that has long been a concern.  There isn't a whole lot of cancer in my family but there is a whole branch of our family that we don't know.  My brother had prostate cancer in his 50's.  I had genetic testing and came back with a VUS in the Lynch Syndrome group which increases risk of ovarian, endometrial, colon, and a few other cancers.  When I met with the gynecological oncologist, I was a bit shocked that she recommended a complete hysterectomy.  As there was no rush, I did take my time to think it through.  I finally decided to go ahead knowing that I would regret it if I got a cancer that I could have prevented.  I had laproscopic surgery with vaginal assist.  I stayed one night in the hospital then a second after I had a reaction to opiod pain meds.  I really only felt off for a few days but did have to restrict activities for six weeks.  The better I felt the harder it was to have the restrictions.  I had a short-term increase in hot flashes but after a few weeks went back to a mild level.  I am on Tamoxifen now, so hard to say what is due to hysterectomy, normal menopause, or tamoxifen.  My SE's are mild hot-flashes, short-term memory is a bit eratic, and vaginal dryness.  But I had all those before.  I don't regret my decision at all.  The SE's are easily manageable.  Also, I had met my max out of pocket, so it didn't cost me anything.  Good Luck with your decision.  MJS

Eleanora23

What a nice pix Pontiac Peggy !

Molly50

LG, I am glad you are making the decision that works best for you. Talk to your gyn about if you can do a supracervical hysterectomy so you can keep your cervix unless you have the risk of cervical cancer as well. Otherwise I had laprascopic vaginal assisted hysterectomy as well. It's not a bad surgery to recover from but surgical menopause is living hell. As long as they are OK with you being on Tamoxifen instead of AI's you will get some bone density protection. I highly recommend Hystersisters dot Com for reading and support for hysterectomy. It's an amazing forum with lots of good information and support like bco.

Lovinggrouches

Thanks all for the advice and the web site. I will definitely look into it! RO agreed with MO to have the hysterectomy. I will think on it over the weekend some more. They said I would definitely take the tamoxifen, even with hysterectomy. I think I m going to do it! HUGS to all!!!!

PontiacPeggy

LovingGrouches, a hard decision. But I'm sure you are feeling better now that you are almost ready to make that decision. We support you no matter what you decide!

HUGS!

iammags

LG doesn't it just feel good to make the decision? When I have to make my mind up about something I feel so much better after I settle on the decision. Hope you do , too.

Molly50

the nice thing about making up your mind is the peace that comes with it

Lovinggrouches

Thanks Peggy and Mags. I think the only thing that's holding me back, is that I'm pretty sure because of how swollen my uterus is and how big the cyst is, I'm afraid they will cut me open like they did a friend of mine, instead of being able to do vaginal assisted scope, and she was out for 10 weeks!! Oh well, I think in the end I will have more peace of mind. Years of peace of mind vs. 4-10 weeks of my life= hysterectomy!!!!! LOL!!!!! HUGS to you all!!

PontiacPeggy

LovingGrouches, I can see why you are concerned. Is there an option of draining the cyst prior to surgery? I don't know about such things but I know I had one in my breast that was drained and disappeared. Maybe yours could be made smaller. While 10 weeks is a very long time, years of peace of mind probably outweigh it (in the long run). Ask your surgeon!

HUGS!

HappyHammer

Poodles- (and, others)- we have a small block of rooms at the Courtyard Marriott in Hickory for ChiSandy's concert . It is very close to the venue. We can easily get more rooms. We just need a number by Thursday, May 19.

Courtyard Hickory, 1946 13th Avenue Dr SE, Hickory, NC 28602- literally 2 miles from Holler Mill which is where American Honor Alehouse is located. Also, we may have dinner Saturday night there at Highland Avenue Restaurant. Delicious farm to table restaurant.

HappyHammer

So, completed last Herceptin treatment today. YAY! It has been a year of treatment and so now, the invasive parts are over. Am on Arimidex for 10 years. Will have first diagnostic mammo in 2 weeks and followup with BS end of month. Check in with the MO every 4 months. Now to find my "new normal" and to work harder on eating well and exercising well. Heading to see what's up with the exercise threads.

Woo-hoo for me Hugs to all of you! Your support has helped me tremendously!

PontiacPeggy

Congratulations, Happy Hammer! That's wonderful!!!

HUGS!

HappyHammer

Thanks, Peggy! Hugs to YOU.

ChiSandy

Congrats, HH! I really need to get motivated--have been giving in to my chocolate addiction.

Wish I could arrive a day earlier and hang with you all on Sat. night the 21st, but I have to do a showcase and host a song circle at SERFA that night. So I’ll see everyone on Sun. the 22d!

fightergirl711

That's amazing Happy Hammer! Congratulations!

Lovinggrouches

Yay!!!!!! Happyhammer!!! So happy for you!

Molly50

HH, congratulations!! LG, I had a very large uterus thanks to fibroids and adenomyosis and it was no problem doing a LAVH. They will usually tell you that there's a chance of converting to TAH but they try to be less invasive these days. Honestly though unless you keep your cervix the recovery time is the same. You have a vaginal cuff replacing the cervix which is the biggest reason for restrictions during recovery. Feel free to PM if you want to talk.

Grazy

Congratulations, Happy Hammer, on completing your Herceptin treatment! So happy for you

Peggy, I hope you're getting over your bug and starting to feel better.

ChiSandy, I chuckled at your chocolate addiction comment - I seem to have developed one!! Not even for 'good' chocolate, though; I've developed a craving for KitKat bars! Who knows...

PontiacPeggy

Grazy, I think the bug is mostly gone. Cough is hanging on - probably because the allergies are so bad. Argh!

Sandy, I love dark chocolate but right now it is not agreeing with me Luckily, I am not having that problem with wine!! That would be terrible.

TGIF, Ladies!

HUGS!

1step

Hello to all. I've been off the boards for awhile- I really struggled through AC, even more than I really realized. I started Taxol a few weeks ago and other than the Benadryl and steroid fog that follows, I feel like a real human being again. I've even started kickboxing classes at my jiu-jitsu gym since I can't grapple while I have my port in. I was feeling so bad that I had stopped seeing my LE therapist. Luckily, MLD and compression garments seem to be keeping things pretty well in control. This week, I finally managed to do some research and found a LE treatment place that takes my insurance, so no more trying to manage those payments.

I had hoped to go to the NC meetup, but that was before I knew I would be in chemo. That's my birthday weekend and I'm a HUGE fan of folk music, but weekends are, well, foggy for me to say the least. The day after my first Taxol, with the full dose of Benadryl, I almost set my house on fire-twice. They've lowered me to a half-dose, but they told me the first time they had to give the full dose. Steroids have always had odd effects on me as well.

Know that you are all I my thoughts and prayers, and hopefully, I'll be better able to keep up with you all again.

mustlovepoodles

Thanks for the hotel info, HH and happy no more herceptin to you!

mustlovepoodles

HH, do we need to call the Courtyard Marriott directly or go through you?

Kaneli

Dear Loving Grouches. I am 61, and I had a total hysterectomy at 43. I had severe fibroids and it was emergency surgery, because I was bleeding out. I had to receive 2 pints of blood, etc. It's a long time ago now, but I am so happy that I did the whole thing. Yes the surgery was rough, but I was very low on blood, so I'm sure that played a part in it. My OB/GYN put me immediately on premarin, and anti depressants, Now of course, having had BC 18 years later, I question the part the hormone replacement therapy played in it. Who knows? I was so sick and I just went along with what she recommended. I am older, wiser, and do a lot of research now. It sounds like you are educating yourself and will make the right decision. My main point to you is, I am so happy that I decided to have a total hysterectomy. No birth control, no uterine or ovary cancer fears, etc. I did not want any more children, and I have never missed the ovaries. My surgical menopause was not extreme. I did stop taking the premarin and antidepressants when I was about 50, and never looked back. I think I could have stopped taking them sooner, but hindsight is 20/20. Anyway, good luck to you and I am sure that you'll make the right decision.

Lovinggrouches

I sincerely appreciate all of your advice. Peggy, Molly, mjs , mags, kaneli and anyone else I missed. I made the decision today. Dr. Called with good biopsy results, but they are working on approval for the hysterectomy after radiation completed. I feel so much better that I made the decision!!! HUGS to all!!!

tbalding

Congratulations HH!

LG glad you got a good biopsy report!

3 weeks after surgery, finally feeling like my old self. I've between going to excercise class for about a week & half & yesterday was first day I felt like I didn't have to force energy. Not back to full speed, but getting there. Trying not to remember that in less than 2 weeks have to go through it all again. Wasn't painful, just ready to be done with this part. Have a good weekend! Trish

Grazy

LG - so glad you made a decision and that you're happy with it! Sometimes that's the worst part. You always sound so upbeat and have a great sense of humor, which helps immensely!

Trish, so glad to hear you're recovering well, but I can't believe you have to go through it again! It'll be a slightly different experience with the sentinel node biopsy this time around, but you'll have a better idea of what to expect this time post-surgery. Keep us posted when you go back.

Had my second radiation treatment yesterday and I just crashed last night at 8:30 and woke up half an hour ago at 5 a.m.! I'm going to assume it's the culmination of all the stress over the past two weeks with my mom's health crisis and not due to only two radiation treatments! It sure has felt good being back in my own home and in my own bed, something mom is also saying after her surgery. She's coming along slowly but being well taken care of by friends, family and a PSW in the mornings - she's remarkably resilient for her age. Looking forward to just taking care of myself now for the next while (hope that doesn't sound too selfish!!).

Have a good weekend, everyone.

PontiacPeggy

Grazy, you don't sound selfish at all! You HAVE to take care of yourself. If you don't, then you won't be able to help your mother or anyone else down the road. I think this is the hardest part of our BC journey. We always give rather than caring for ourselves. You've been under tremendous stress so it isn't surprising you crashed. It was exactly what you needed. Now just lounge around all weekend and do a lot of nothing. I'm glad your mother is improving. That has to be a huge relief.

Trish, keeping you in my thoughts and in your pocket!!

HUGS!

Grazy

Thanks, Peggy! You're a wonderful mama bear :

PontiacPeggy

Grazy (blushing), aw gee, thanks! Definitely take care of yourself! Keep in mind that you cannot care for everyone all the time. Sometimes you have to turn that care over to others. I found that out the hard way. I had to put DH in a nursing home since his care had come beyond what I could do after my dx and tx. Not only did I not have the stamina but I realized I was killing myself. I believe if I had not put him in a home, I'd have been dead in 6 months. Exhaustion can be deadly. End lecture.

HUGS!

Lovinggrouches

balding, glad your doing better! Grazy, don't be surprised if the fatigue lasts for a while- I couldn't believe that 5 minutes or less of radiation would do that to me either, part of it is probably work+stress+driving 2 1/2 hrs a day+radiation. Stay hydrated too ! Me and the hubby are two peas in a pod this week. I can't sleep due to burning and itching and he's sleeping TOO MUCH from taking muscle relaxers for sciatic pain and muscle spasms. Maybe we need to switch meds? LOL!!!!!!!!! HUGS to all!!!!