What it's like right after lumpectomy

kuiahope

I am almost 17 and I have about 1.3 cm of cancer in my right breast. I am scheduled for a lumpectomy followed by 3D-conformal radiotherapy. It has not spread to my lymph nodes (yet) I play a lot of sports at school (cheer, soccer, softball, and track) and the season starts a week after my surgery. Will I be able to throw the girls in the air, because I'm a base, or run an entire soccer field by then? Or will I have to step out of the season until recovery is over? Softball and track start in March so I'm not very worried about that, but cheer starts soon and soccer starts right after. My surgery will take about 20 min(they said) because it's really small and has not spread very far. I most likely will have dissolvable stitches and the incision is supposed to be about an inch and a half right above the nipple.

I became cheer captain this year and I really don't want to have to throw the season away if I don't have to.

Any advice?

MsPharoah

Hi Kulahope and sending out big hugs to you. Have you asked your doctor what your activity restrictions will be after surgery? Everyone is different and I am sure that your physical conditioning will help you recover much sooner than most, but a week for recovery seems really short to me. My only advice is to follow doctor's orders and all the best to you.

MsP

Moderators

Hi Kuiahope-

This is a lot to deal with at such a young age! We agree with MsPharoah, check with your doctor about what your activity restrictions will be after surgery. A week after surgery, you should be able to move around fairly well, but we would think that the level of activity you're talking about would be too much too soon. It doesn't seem like you'd have to sit the season out, but another week or two of recovery before starting would probably be a good idea!

The Mods

Moderators

Kuiahope, have you gotten any further insight from your doctor?

Please keep us posted on how you're doing -- we're all thinking of you and sending our positive thoughts for a speedy recovery!

--The Mods

queenmomcat

Mostly checking in to see if you've gotten a chance to talk to the oncologists yet? And congratulations on being made cheer captain!

The short version is that you'll be sore at first, but I can't imagine that the entire season's going to be a loss

You'll probably need to take it easy for the first week of the season at least--that'll put you at two weeks out from surgery, and that's when I could start resuming a lot of my normal activities (lap swimming, weight lifting) But you will NOT be immobilized! Just sore, and even then I'd bet you've had a sports injury that hurt as much. Do you feel comfortable taking the coach aside and explaining your problem? He/she might be able to help you work out a plan so you can at least participate in the practices for that first week, and ramp up to normal as you recover from surgery.