AUGUST 2015 SURGERY SISTERS!!

Artista928

Thanks Mijh1-

Saw bs po. Since pulled 7 cm out (not 4 cm they thought it was) and found microtraces of bc cells in 1 node, he said I could be a IIIa. For sure IIb. It's like on the border it seems because of both the tumor size being so large and the lymph report:

11. Lymph nodes:
Total number of lymph nodes examined (sentinel and nonsentinel): 4
Number of sentinel lymph nodes examined: 2
Number of lymph nodes with macrometastases (>0.2 cm): none
Number of lymph nodes
with micrometastases (>0.2 mm to 0.2 cm
and/or >200 cells): 1
Number of lymph nodes with isolated tumor cells (<0.2 mm and
<200 cells): 0

So seems my chemo will be more aggressive and he said to make a fu appt with RO so I see her next Fri. Kind of nervous.

MizMimi

Hi again,

I had a lumpectomy on Friday. Doing well.. managing pain with ice and tylenol only. I had anti-nausea med during surgery in the IV bag and a patch behind my ear.

The main pain I have is throat pain, neck soreness and ab sorenss. I'm sure that's all from surgery process.

rovnic13

Hi everyone- my surgery for BMX W/TE is Monday. We just dropped our daughter off at college- freshman. My baby girl, last one of three and only girl. 8 hrs away!

I'm having anxiety about the surgery. So scared. I have never had anesthesia before and I'm starting to flip out. I'm also freaking out hoping my sentinel nodes are clear.

Thanks for listening

Xo Grace

quiltlibrarian

Grace wishing you the best on Monday. Hugs

vogliodipiu

..my lumpectomy is scheduled for august 28th and i am so scared to get my boobs cut into, they will also take out my port thank god. the surgeon mentioned something about a long needle being inserted into my breast to find the markers they put in there during my biopsy and i freak out when i just hear "long needle" but i am mainly concerned about the shape of my boob and how uneven they will look after..all together just terrified.

rovnic13

thank you quiltlibrarian!! Xoxo

mjh1

mizmimi - glad to hear all went well in the LX.  I hope they were able to get clear margins

vogliodipiu - welcome.  Sorry I can't answer your specific questions but hang tight and I'm sure one of our other sisters that had a LX will be along to better answer your questions.

To the many sisters (wow, 13 to be exact) that are having surgery next week, I hope all goes well and you have smooth and uneventfuly recoveries.  please post when you're up to it and let us know how you are all doing.  Warm hugs!! 

luvmygoats

vogliodipiu - My 1st instinct is to say that the "long needle" is what is called a wire guided localization shortened by most on there to "wire loc". Sonogram will locate the marker and a long thin wire will be passed very close to the marker to guide the surgeon in the localization of your tumor. A mammogram will most likely be done with wire in place to verify placement. Very similar technique to biopsy in placing. The area will be well anesthetized. I had mine a couple of hours b4 my LX. Got up several times to go to toilet with it in - no problems. Hope this helps.

Molly50

vogliodipiu, Welcome! I had an Lx July 29th. I had 3 guide wires placed for the surgery. The radiologist injected lidocaine first which stings a little, then inserted a long needle guided by mammogram into the area of the mass to mark it for the surgeon. They then insert the wire using the needle and pull the needle out. For me, I had three areas needing wires two using mammogram and one using ultrasound. It was not painful just uncomfortable to be squeezed by the mammogram machine for a long period of time but I think mine took longer because the radiologist found more cancer. The lumpectomy for me was a lot of tissue removed because they found that I have lymph vascular invasion and she couldn't get clear margins. She re excised me during the original surgery. My lumpectomy breast looks better than my unaffected breast because my surgeon did a great job. If I didn't need to go back in for a mastectomy I would be thrilled with my outcome. If you are unhappy with the look of your breast once you heal you can ask to see a plastic surgeon.

I hope this helps.

AudreyB

Wishing everyone having surgery this week peace, prayers and best wishes for good outcomes, and the strength to face test results like the warrior you are.

I was terrified to have the wire localization prior to my lumpectomy back in February but it turned out I was numbed with lidocaine and loopy from some Jamba Juice pushed into my IV it turned out to be less than I feared.

After my bi lateral lumpectomies both breasts were dented from tissue removal but the dents filled back out over time. Of course I decided on a BMX in the end.

So, this Wednesday I have my exchange surgery. It's been a long 8 months, but besides the love and support from my family and friends, I want to thank all of you wonderful, courageous women on these boards. There is nothing we hold back. If it helps someone here, it's openly discussed. I don't know what I would have done without all of you. I am truly blessed to have had the honor to talk, laugh and cry with all of you. Thank you seems too little to say.

And now, here are my surgery nails. Fuck You Cancer.

God Bless.

quiltlibrarian

mkinoly grace1366, rleepac and dimccleland
Good luck ladies. Wishing you the best

Hugs

Kimmer33

My thoughts are with all of you heading to surgery this week!

marathongirl

First let me say to those of you who have also had surgery this month, that I'm so sorry you find yourself here and I send you wishes of healing and recovery. I am doing well. I had a nipple-sparing Mx on Aug. 5th with immediate gummy bear implant reconstruction. Having had radiation Tx on that same side seven years ago, it was uncertain if my skin quality would be good enough for a direct-to-implant job but all was well. Sometimes being small breasted can be a blessing. Eleven days out from my surgery, I feel almost back to normal. I started exercising again five days ago and am walking about four miles a day. Looking forward to being able to run again. The drain came out one week post surgery. I do have some tightness, bruising, and unevenness in my newly constructed left breast but understand that will eventually diminish over time. The were no surprises in my final pathology. It was pure mucinous with a spot of DCIS. The only mystery left is whether they will recommend hormonal therapy. (I'm assuming they will.) I meet with the MO on 9/1. I look forward to continuing to follow this thread to find out how my sisters are doing. Best wishes ladies!!

Molly50

Wow, we have a lot of surgeries this week!

- mkinoly grace1366 rleepac dimccleland AudreyB Summerfun Carrie37 Mustlovepoodles Pat307 bjclaywell AJ71 Tuckerdan KarolineH best wishes and prayers for all of you!!

mjh1

audrey - LUV LUV LUV the nails!!  you will be rocking the surgery ward Wed.  Is the ribbon painted on or is that a decal??  May have to copy you in two week!!

Artista928

Good luck to all having sxs this week! It went better than I envisioned it would for me! xo

Summerfun

Hi Grace,

Best of luck with your surgery! Im right there with you. Dropping off our middle child and only girl off at college a few weeks after my surgery. Terrible timing!

I thought this article about the packing off process was hysterical and we can all use a few laughs.

http://www.theonion.com/article/moms-fears-about-daughter-leaving-college-channele-51060

Hang in there!

Looking forward to hearing about your progress!

mkinoly

Thanks for the well wishes for upcoming surgery this week, ladies! Mine is tomorrow and although I'm anxious I'll be glad to have this thing out of me, be on the road to recovery, and get back to my life. Best wishes for everyone.

AudreyB

mjh1, all my nails are permanent French, the ribbon nails are painted overwith white gel polish and the ribbon was hand painted on with pink gel polish.

justamy

Prayers for all of you having surgery this week. You'll be out and in recovery before you know it!

Molly50

Arista how are the TE's for you?

Artista928

Pretty tight and sometimes it feels like a part of it is digging in somewhere, like in the center sternum area or the sides when I lie on my back. Sometimes it's not too bad and other times it sucks when the digging in happens. Not sure why. Maybe as swelling goes down so do areas of the TE start to dig in? Or anesthesia wearing off still? I quit Norco on Thursday eve and doesn't make a diff. Don't feel I need any meds and want to stay off of them in anticipation of chemo probably tail end of Sept/early Oct.

I can't add notes in my biography to say my stage is IIb/IIIa. Reason is tumor was 7 cm which is large and they found microtraces of cancer cells in sentinel node 1. So bs basically said border.

Do you or anyone here suffer from very dry/red/flaky skin? I have seborrheic dermatitis which the oily part is gone and it's now a hot red/flaky mess that my normal coconut oil that helps it some doesn't work. I'm also being cautious about soy stuff since I'm 95% I think it was ER +.

TIA!

justamy

When I had my BMX in Feb, I got really painful sunburned feeling skin that was very itchy. I learned that several of the other ladies had it too. My doctor said it was because of the nerves that were cut during the procedure. I really didn't find anything to help other than lotion but it resolved itself in a week or so. Wish I could be of more help.

Artista928

Oh, sorry, I meant on my face I have seb dermatitis big time flare up now. Thankfully nowhere else.

Molly50

Arista, I am llB due to 1.7 cm mass in my Sentinel node and micromets in my second node plus lymph vascular invasion which is why I am going back for a mx. I am waiting on MO to determine if I do chemo. BS said rads for sure and will consult with MO about chemo. I am waiting for MRI results to decide if I should have a bmx or stick with umx. I have this fear of the TE's probably from reading too much. Can I admit here how scared I am? I have taken everything in stride so far but am getting scared at how much cancer was in my breast.

Artista928

Molly50- My bs actually changed his opinion on rads. First on Fri he said probably not since micro amount found in sent node 1 but then his assistant called me later to say he wants me to make fu appt with RO and see what she thinks. I'm scared of this because she did say that while they focus on the breast, edges of the heart and lungs are hit too. I don't have heart disease or in my immediate fam (grandparent) but I am way overweight with BMI 35, sedentary lifestyle forever now and could see this developing. Chemo also scares me, especially with my already problematic skin condition on my face. Port/IV doesn't matter. 4-6 hours in a comfy chair even with tv and private room doesn't make it easier. Scared of SE since I live alone, more than sx. To me sx wasn't bad. Had bro here a few days and doing fine on my own except not sure about driving beyond the block I did late the other night to check my mail box.

As for TEs- it's a weird feeling for sure but I guess you get used to it. I try not to focus on them if I feel something is acting up.

I had the choice of mx left or both. I chose both because I didn't want to chance the right one or think about it every time I looked at it, and plus being so dense and big (D/DD), it was just too heavy and not attractive anyway. I want smaller B/C range.

I hear ya on how much cancer was in the breast. I don't see a lot of 6+ tumors in people's sigs. I kick myself for not having had a mammo for 5.5 years until the pain hit. I've been battling anxiety and fam issues and just let it go thinking whatever I felt is hormones/peri menopause.

Think positive and try not to worry. Easier said than done of course but what's the alternative.

Best wishes.

quiltlibrarian

Progress today. I had one of the drains taken out. It didn't hurt and barely felt it move. All good.

Hugs all

Kimmer33

quiltlibrarian "like"!!!

Artista928

I got 2 drains out today of the 4 which is the good news. Didn't feel a thing.

Bad news is seems my guinea pig has a problem. Found some blood in urine and seems to be some on her fleece as well. Not a ton but with gps, they can go down fast. I kinda noticed she wasn't drinking/peeing much but didn't think much about it until now. Could be a urethra stone/infection. Don't know.Her vet is in San Jose, Cherry and Almaden. A good 45-50 min drive is no major traffic. Have appt for Sat am 8:30 when Anna can drive me but not sure good idea to wait cuz can't force liquids down. She won't have it. So if it looks worse before Sat, I'll just have to drive myself there and drop her off until they figure and fix it. Last time she had a upper respiratory infection and the anti biotics stopped her from eating. Wound up having the doc board her at her home to do the feeds cuz I couldn't do it. This was 2 years ago. Man being alone and then this sucks. It was pricey 2 years ago.

Sorry for the sidetrack with my gp in this thread. Was part of my day today.. She's my love and all I have so I'm upset.

mjh1

marathongirl - glad to hear all went well with the direct-to and no surprises in path.  Rest well!

artista - great to hear that you're moving along and got two drains out.  when you finally get the other two out you will feel like a new woman.  Sorry to hear about the gp.  Hope you get to the root of his ailment soon.  If it makes you feel any better I just spent $256 on the vet for him to tell me my dog has arthritis that has flared up and will subside with the antiinflammatories.  If I didn't love my dog so much I would strangle him for giving me anxiety in thinking something was seriously wrong.  of course, the first thing that came to my was oh, my God, he has cancer now!!  I wonder when cancer will not be the first thing that comes to mind.