June 2010 Mastectomy

Getty, I am SO JEALOUS you have your drains out! Mine are still with me. I see the PS on Tuesday and I hope that he will take them out. They are driving me crazy. They feel better when I wear the medical bra that I was given, but hurt when they move around. I am still getting around 20ml every 12 hours, so I not hopeful that they will come out on Tuesday.....

Other than the drains, I am feeling pretty good. I went to a graduation party on Friday and did fine there. I have no plans this week, other than seeing the PS. It's so hard to sit and take it easy when you are used to doing everything for your family and yourself.

Have a great week everyone!

So glad that everything went well for you Jeanne!  Thanks so much for taking a minute to let us know you are dong ok.  I hope you get some rest.

Getty and Reneemac, I am glad to hear you are both doing well and Reneemac I am super impressed that you went to a graduation party.  Reneemac I hope you continue to heal well so your drains can come out sooner rather than later!  As always you ladies have helped to give me hope with your positive feedback and great attitudes.

From some of the comments it sounds as if your doctors let you shower with drains in?  Mine has told me he does not allow showering or a bath until after the drains are removed-sponge bath only....a little extra incentive for me to sit still and heal I suppose.

webstermom, almagetty, 1marmalade1, & Laurie08:

Thanks for your kind words and encouragement, and your welcome invite to hang with you June gals. You might have seen I started a July MX thread, so I'll be here and there, too. And invite you to see me there when the time comes. I'm so glad everyone is doing so well. It's wonderful how you can get on the other side of the fear of the unknown and arrive in a place where you have completed the surgery step, at least for some of us, and move forward with a different perspective. Was disappointed at first when I didn't get a June date, but now, upon reflection, think it may be best so I will have a month to continue to decompress from the double shocks I've had since March, and get organized without rushing. Getting to an alternate state of "normal" sounds good...cleaned house, watered & fed plants, & colored my gray roots this weekend, so, as we say out here, poco a poco, little by little.

 Laurie, I hope you do find something in your thrift store, maybe looking will keep your mind off of other "things." Living in beautiful New Hampshire might just be a trade off for high class thrift store duds, huh? To have the woods in your backyard sounds so lovely.

Have #2 appt. with the PS tomorrow so she can get photos of me before surgery Tuesday, and I can see some example of her work. 1st appt, when she tried to show me her work, her laptop shut off ;~)

Thanks to all of you for wishing me well on my surgery Tuesday. Waiting to hear back from Helenap, too!

PS wondering if any of you, like me, has stopped taking her hormones after being DX, and now  having full on hot flahses & night sweats. I was taking Prometrium & using the Vivelle Dot estradiol patch, both bioidentical hormone replacement therapies. Wow, these sudden and frequent sweats are really something!

Yay Jeanne.  I'm so glad things went well for you, take it easy!

Robin, totally off topic but I had the best vacation of my life in Scotland last summer.  It's been a dream of mine to go there (I'm in Canada) so my husband surprised me with a 2 weeks trip to Scotland/England to celebrate getting through chemo.  We did a 3-day tour to the isle of Skye which was gorgeous and we just thought Edinburgh was like a fairytale.  We also stayed in Glasgow a few days and expllored the Highlands.  It was Homecoming celebration so there was so much to do.  We went to the tattoo which was awesome.  We also spent 3 days in London where I got to see the show Billy Elliott which was phenomenal.  Anyway, as you can see, I could go on all day about it.  I'm from Nova Scotia Canada....Nova Scotia means New Scotland and it looks very similar in landscape and the people are quite similar.  My heritage is Scottish so it was great to see where it all started.  I think I could listen to Scottish history for days and days and never get tired of it, Loved it!!!

For those mentioning additional areas of DCIS on the final pathology........I had my 1cm IDC and that is all that came up on all the tests however when the path came back there was several separate areas of DCIS and 'extensive cancerization of the lobules' that we never knew about.  For me, a mastectomy saved my life, there is no doubt in my mind about that.  If I had gone with the lumpectomy, how would I have known about all those areas of DCIS???  To me, my own personal opinion, mastectomy is the way to go.  I don't want to try to save a breast that tried to kill me, but I know that is important to many women, it's very personal.  For me, I need to live for my small kids, I can't risk it.  My doctor said he likes to say it's a 1 in 3000 chance that you'll get cancer again after mastectomy, because out of his 3000 breast cancer patients, he has only seen it come back in the scar one time.  It's pretty rare. 

almagetty, hey it must be so good to fully shower again! how are you feeling? how many pain pills are you taking these days? do you have spasms re the TEs? my mind is racing on all this stuff, so happy you are moving through it well.jillyg & robin: also having 1st been DX w/ DCIS, further biopsies revealed more, and tomorrow I go for another biopsy type thing, and that will tell if it is underneath the nips. With dense breasts you can't be sure. My BS thinks there is infiltrating in there, too due to the multifocal & multi- centric presentation. Since it is early, it's good to take the time to be mentally & emotionally prepared, yet take care of business, so we can be part of the great statistics your doctor offered, free of disease!Well, finally some form to this crazy diagnosis. Visited the plastic surgeon today. Did I mention she's wonderful? and a real, human being? We were able to set up her schedule with the breast surgeon and hospital for July 22. Yeah. Not really. But it's good to know there's a point of departure from this anticipatory purgatory of waiting to find out when I get to go under and get rid of the several different types of early cancer that live in my breasts now. At least it will happen when they've both returned from vacation, and the appt. is the first one of the day, at 7 am. That means showing up there at 5 am. And being finished by probably midday. This gives me time to get my life a bit more organized and to also get serious about "training" for surgery.She took photos of my breast from every angle imaginable. So possibly she will create a reasonable facsimile out of what is left behind after the breast surgeon does her thing. Ordered a special front zip sports bra as recommended by plastic surgeon. Both my surgeons are young, smart, beautiful, and compassionate. What more can you ask for in a situation like this? Tomorrow I take the breast surgeon on a test run with this subareolar disk resection, and besides this procedure revealing what is under those nipples, and if they can be saved, it will also promote vascular growth that, come July 22, will have spread nicely to insure a better chance at blood supply to the skin remaining after this upcoming skin-saving, possibly nipple/areola saving mastectomy. Whew!

3 days and counting and the anxiety is kicking in big time. Did anyone have dreams about their surgery the closer it got your date?  Everytime I go to sleep my dreams revolve around this darn surgery. I can't wait until this is over.

Wise words from reneemac.  The last few days before the surgery were extremely stressful and full of anxiety for me. Once I was in pre-op, I calmed down. I had a really wonderful and upbeat nurse in charge of my preperation, and I felt I was in very good hands. That helped me to relax considerably. The valium in the IV didn't hurt either.  Good luck to you, wifemomx2. 

Orchidgal: I'm down to only 2 extra-strength Tylenols before I go to sleep at night. I also use an ice-pack after dinner on the site where my drain line used to be, which is still rather sore. Other than that, I'm drug free! I've had just a couple of spasms, nothing to write home about and nothing I would have really noticed if I hadn't read about them here first.  Just random very light jumps of my pectoral, one or two at a time happening hours apart.

I'm glad you like your surgeons. I think that makes a really big difference in how you approach this ordeal. I really like all of my doctors so far. They're people I enjoy talking to, who take the time to talk to me and answer all questions. 

Getty. 

wifemomx2- I haven't had my surgery yet but I am so with you on feeling more anxious.  Everyday I cross off my calender I get a little more anxious.  My only suggestion for coping at night is reading.  I have been reading at least 1 book a week for awhile now.  It helps me with insomnia and with my mind racing.  I read until I am so tired I fall asleep thinking about the characters or the insomnia takes over and I just keep reading.  It helps to  keep my fears at bay.  The ladies here will make you feel better too.  All of us sharing our thoughts and experiences has been so helpful to me.

wifemomx2 - I'll second that - since I've been on here reading posts - I've gained so much and I feel so much better about my choices. I'm sure those 3 days will pass quickly and then you will be on the recovery side. Everyone seems to say that it's easier afterwards  Thinking about you

Laurie08,

I'm with you on books and reading..... needs to be a real good one though!

Orchid gal: what is that nipple resection you are having? I've not heard of that before

Jilly G: That's a lovely thing of your hubby to do for you, yes Scotland is abeautiful place. We live about 15 miles south of Aberdeen on the NE Coast of Scotland. About 1 mile from the sea in the middle of nowhere - fantastic.... Originally from Kent in SE England, have been up here since '92 - certainly wouldn't go back home now....... too many people, too many cars and too many houses... So glad you have a lovely time... Where were your folks from originally then? Have you looked into the genealogy?

So with you all about nerves/stress - I don't have a date yet but if I dwell on it I'm feeling pretty sick and fearful.

Robin- my diagnosis was done with mammogram and then MRI.  I agree that I feel that the BMX is the right decision for me- I just wish it wasn't something I had to decide.  Also, when you are describing where you live it made me want to jump on a plane and come see. It sounds gorgeous and quiet- just my style.

Orchidgal/Melissa- I am thinking of you today- I hope all goes well.

I'm seeing my onc for the first time tomorrow since LMX June 1.  Surgeon has already told me nodes were negative, but I have no other details yet.  I'll ask for a copy of the path report when I see onc - I seem to remember surgeon saying there were other areas of concern in the breast that was removed, though. 

Good luck and best wishes to ladies going to surgery today or this week.  It'll be over and you'll be on your way to recovery before you know it!

Hello everyone! I'm so new on this and still confused about terms some of you use.
I'm gonna have a mastectomy on Thursday 24th of June just 9 days before my 30th birthday.
The whole thing scares me for real and esp. since I'm pregnant (10 weeks) and had a lumpectomy just few weeks ago, no lymph nodes removed. But tumor grew more and had no clear edges,  is a non agressive one and there's no metastasis. I need to remove the remain cells in my left breast.
The recovery from lumpectomy was ok but mixed with the pregnancy symptoms (mood swings, fatigue, and so on) didn't make it easy for me or my husband.
Now the simple idea of going under surgery is scary and my mind can't stop thinking about what will come next. Doctor said that mastectomy is my only option as radio treatment is impossible with a baby in my belly, also because I'm so young the chances of a recurrence are quite high. Chemo will come after baby is born (end of November).
I cry a lot sometimes, I never imagine myslef in this situation at all. And I so wish I could breastfeed my baby... but seems like it won't be possible at all.

Hi Joystars

Very sorry that you in this position, but welcome to our group. I am awaiting a double mastectomy courtesy of LCIS and have found this a very useful and supportive forum.

It sounds like your doctors are taking excellent care of you and your baby and I'm sending you positive thoughts.

Whereabouts in Norway are you? I live in Scotland but I'm working in Stavanger on and off for the next few months....feel free to PM me

Robin

wifemom: yes, all the ladies here are fantastic, and we are such a super group of strong, sensitive, caring, courageous women. so thankful for this forum.

laurie: thanks for your well wishes on my surgery today. your hair looks beautiful! I agree mx is the best way to feel ultra safe.

almagetty: thanks for the info. sounds like you are healing so well. must be good to get off of the constipating narcs, and seeing your way to no pain drugs, soon.

marmalade: good news on your nodes! am wondering if there is something else in your path what it matters now that you've had mx? holding good thoughts for path to be good, too. 

robin: re dx of dcis/lcis: I was in denial that I was in danger, or even had cancer, I kept calling it a "condition" but after mammo, ultrasound, two core needle biopsies, a surgical biopsy, and an MRI, I'm a believer. So many who've had lumectomies have it return, then after having rads, hard to recon. getting it out seems to be the best revenge! subareolar resection is to check to see if the nipples can be saved, and to stimulate vascular growth so when I have my bmx in July, there will be better blood supple, but mainly it is to find out if bc is under the nipps. apparently it's a new procedure some docs are doing these days. wish they were doing the snb today too, and get that out of the way. oh well, have a wonderful day everyone.

orchidgal:  I will be seeing the onc tomorrow - he will be going over the whole path report with me, so I'll know more then.  All the surgeon said was that he took out the first series of nodes, and they were clear.  How many are in the first series?  Beats me.  Guess I'll  find that out tomorrow,too.  I'll let you know.  Other than that:  wore one of my old bras today, stuck the poofie in it, and went out shopping for a few hours.  Not in the least uncomfortable, felt pretty good.  I'm still a little sore on the sides where it is a little swollen still, but other than that, doing well.

Sending hugz to all the Tuesday surgery ladies.