In shock

@bennymuffins, I don't think a seroma or hematoma will go away by itself, and an infection, if that's what it is, most certainly won't. If it's a seroma, draining the fluid will require another needle in YPOB, but it will take away the swelling, and that will make the POB feel better afterwards. I needed fluid removed from my breast after the drain was pulled and never felt a thing, even without anaesthetic, but with a lumpectomy you may not be as numb in that area as I am. If so, you can ask for a local anaesthetic before having the fluid drained and that should prevent any discomfort.I think you are right to plan on an ER visit if it gets any worse, rather than toughing it out until Monday.

I think you may have misplaced a decimal point on that wig price. Other wig prices I've seen on BCO are in the hundreds of dollars, and some even below $100. Also I'm not sure how this is regarded by the Canadian health care system, but I've read of some women in the US whose wigs were paid for by insurance as a "cranial prosthesis" prescribed by their doctor.

Hi Benny

Here's a couple wig places on-line someone here highly recommended. The prices seem pretty reasonable. The second link are for hats with hair, just in case you wanted to look at those.

1. http://www.wigsalon.com/

2. http://www.hatswithhair.com/

Benny glad you are bit better, :-). Defo no more than 10lbs, a neighbour of mine is out 17 years she told me that she hasn't lifted more than 2lbs with her arm since !! Not being funny but my kettle weighs more than that. About having it drained it DOES NOT HURT, I felt nothing  but sweet relief,

 I know you don't like being poked and proded about, who does ? I have a place in my head I got to when they start, you could go to Diamond, start grooming her and before you know it they are telling you it's all over and you can go.

 As for the wig thing I might get one, but think beautiful scarves  are going to be more comfy and low cost. You tube has some great video clips on how to tie scarves  in unusual and attractive ways.

Off to see tiny GD having a riding lesson soon she loves it so much it is a joy to see.

Bearcub hope you doing ok, thinking about you  (( hug )).

Bonnets, good luck with Rad's, my steri strips gone too, trying to keep them dry while showering/bathing not funny.

Joanne I have worn a bra to bed for many, many years due to painful breasts. Doctor told me to and it always helped, even more so now. :-)

Beacon sure you are spot on about Benny's barn friend's wife . Horror stories aren't what any of us need right now.

Well gorgeous Girls this old biddy is off to have fun with my reasons for living. Love hugs and healing to everyone of you.

Bennymuffins,

I had a seroma after breast surgery for a benign mass....it was so easy and painless to drain because it wants to open up and do that.  It felt a lot better and healed quickly after it was allowed to drain over a few days.  If it comes to this, don't be too fearful of lancing it--in my experience, it was well worth it.

Here's to horses, cats, dogs, all the critter kingdom, and of course, molasses cookies!

Hi Benny

Been a few days since we've heard from you. I hope you're doing good. If you get a chance, maybe post to say "hi"?

Love,

NSJ2

Benny, the wig thing sucks, and it was very hard for me too. It does not have to cost $3000 though. I bought a very cute one from www.wigsalon.com for $102, including shipping. I phoned them to help me with the colour choice, and found them very friendly, patient and helpful. I am glad that you finally have your path report, and that treatment plans have been made. Now you can really move forward, and get this thing over and done with. Easy there with manhandling the haybales and hammering in nails. You can do all that again in a few months, okay?

We were in Calgary last weekend - great city with friendly people! Best wishes and hugs to you! Enjoy your horse; they are such lovely animals.

Benny, I am glad you got your pathology back, looks like your nodes did the job of grabbing those loose cancer cells. Now you can get on with more surgery if required, chemo and rads?? Make sure you get a copy of the report.



Benny, you can try Paula young.com for a wig that will get you through a few months if you prefer a wigs. You can also check out head covers.com also for scarves and wigs but be prepared with them to pay extra for duty at the border. About 20 dollars an order, so if you order from them get everything you may want in 1 order....all in all they both are very reasonably priced.



Lesley is right, I am usually tired the first week after chemo but still manage most days to ride 16 km. a day on my stationary bike....I try to do it 5 days a week. I also walk my dog outside. You may be one of those people that have minimum SE. I have been very lucky that way. I am sure on your good days you will still be out on Diamond...

bennymuffins, you are not alone and you know it. Cried   when I read about you breaking down with Diamond. Wish I had  a large plush toy to weep on. At least they don't tell you to stop crying.

I too am scared about chemo, but as our lovely ladies on here say we have to try it and see. Hopefully we will be on here soon telling everyone how it wasn't as bad as we expected.

Going next week to learn lovely ways to tie scarves, also may get a wig as at least it will keep my head warm. It is really chilly here brrrr.

Dear Bennymuffins, you are way more than a statistic, so don't get hung up on that, please. People beat the odds every day. It is best not to dwell on that. The oncs thrive on that, but we don't have to. On these boards there are many women who are Stage 111, and who have been around for a very long time after diagnosis. It is understandable that you feel sad on hearing what you did not want to hear, and it is so human/normal to cry, and feel down about this. But tomorrow is another day, lift up your head, and go ride your horse. You have already proved to all of us here that you can face adversity and overcome it. Step by step, one day at a time, you will do it.

As for the chemo, if you are on a three week cycle, you will only feel bad the first week or so. The next two weeks you feel reasonably okay, and can function normally. Some people even work full-time during chemo. Everybody reacts differently, and it is not a given that you will have bad side-effects. Rather see chemo as a great weapon in your arsenal against cancer. It may make you feel bad for a while, but it kills cancer.

I met Websister last week in person. I think you know her too. She's from Calgary, and came to Vancouver Island where I live. What a warm, gentle person she is! If I come to Calgary again, I will make a point of visiting with you two. I promise! (((BIG HUGS!!!)))

Benny, listen to the others. Your MO sounds like a real prince. Remember the reason for your treatments is to kill the cancer ... Are you HER2 + ? That would be the reason for the Herceptin.

Benny,

Okay, take a deep breath.  The MO told you some things today that have scared you, but the truth is that nothing really has changed, and importantly, nothing about your diagnosis is worse than it was yesterday.  

First, about the staging.  You knew that you had 6 positive nodes. With 6 positive nodes, yes, it is Stage IIIA.   When you first posted with your pathology results, I saw that you had 6 positive nodes and I realized that you weren't Stage IIB but you were Stage IIIA.... however I didn't feel that I was in a position to say anything to contradict what your surgeon told you. Staging rules are clear and any more than 3 positive lymph nodes moves a patient into Stage III rather than Stage II.  So the stage is different, but the diagnosis - and what you and your doctors are going to do to deal with this diagnosis - has not changed.

As for the news that you may have micromets beyond the breast and nodes, I understand and completely appreciate why this is shocking and scary.  But did you know that this is a very common concern, even with women who are node negative?  In another thread a few days ago I explained that according to Dr. Susan Love, 20% - 30% of node negative women are actually believed to have undetectable micromets beyond the breast/nodes.  This is the very reason why so chemo is given, both to women who are node positive and even often to women who are node negative. If your scans had showed cancer in your body, that cancer would be too developed to be eliminated.  Chemo might be effective at stalling the growth of the mets, but it wouldn't work indefinitely and it wouldn't be able to kill off the cancer.  The big and very significant difference in your situation is that it's believed that you have undetectable micromets and this means that we are talking about only a very tiny amount of cancer that likely hasn't taken hold yet or started to grow and develop. At this point, chemo can be very effective.  The role of chemo is to kill off these rogue breast cancer cells that have moved into your body so that you never do develop detectable mets and instead, you nip it in the bud. 

It was always assumed with your diagnosis that you would get chemo.  Chemo is only given when there is reasonable risk that there might be undetected micromets.  So really, since chemo was part of your treatment plan all along, nothing has changed. Your MO has provided a clearer explanation of why you will get chemo and this wasn't explained to you before, but it's not at all a change from what your doctors were assuming when they first said that you would need chemo.  

I don't know if any of this is reassuring or helpful or not.  The way I see it, although things have been explained to you more clearly and the risks have been outlined more directly, you are in exactly the same place as you were yesterday, with the same prognosis.  And the prognosis still puts the odds in your favour. 

((((Hugs))).  I'm sorry you had a bad day, with difficult news. 

Dear Benny, you are in my thoughts and in my prayers, and for some reason you have resonated with me from the beginning of your journey here - maybe it's the fact that you're an animal lover like me? I'm not sure why, but it is hard for me to see you struggle with this. You will process what happened today, and will find the courage to forge ahead. Beesie gave you such a good analysis; she is almost as good as an onc on these boards.

I had one positive node, and had to get chemo because of that. Was I upset? Oh yes, was I ever! I was hopping mad. Just hated the idea of  those chemo drugs running into my healthy body, and wreaking havoc there. Eventually I made peace with it, and decided to see chemo as my ally, not my enemy. I remember sitting in the chemo chair as the drugs were running in, chanting under my breath,' KILL, KILL, KILL KILL!' That made me feel good, and boosted my mood. I felt I was really doing something to fight the cancer beast.

Hope you can find some peace, Benny. None of us wanted to be on this rollercoaster, but here we are. This too shall pass, just like everything else, good or bad. It is a great idea for Websister to come with you to your first chemo. She's halfway through her own chemo, and she's a veteran by now! You will also go far to find a gentler, kinder person than her. She will also do Herceptin if I remember correctly. ((((HUGS AGAIN!!))))

Just remember stage 3 is NOT stage 4. I am 3 and 41 years old at diagnosis. There is a ton of hope at 3. I think if you look back at what I posted the one GOOD thing for us is we get hit with the big guns and we don't have choices to an extent so we don't have to second guess ourselves. I am 3 years out and totally cancer free. You can do this and treatments improve ALL the time so treatment now buys time



As someone else mentioned this is just like having a heart problem, which can be deadly too, but you would not pass up having a bypass if it bought you time try to think of it that way : ). We do what we have to do. Diamond is a gem - literally hee hee



Big ginormous hugs this is the rough time it will get better and letting it out is better than holding it in Benny it will get easier, I promise



Lesley

Cry all you want, dear Benny. Tears are therapeutic, and when those tears stop, you will dust yourself off, get back up, take the reins, and ride on. The chances that Benny will outlive you are very slim. Don't torture yourself with these thoughts. Last night I read on Websister's blog about a woman who was diagnosed in 1999 with stage 3 and 6 positive nodes. She is still here, still going strong, still cancer free. Worry won't change any outcome, but it will make your life miserable. So I hope sincerely that this stage will pass quickly, and that you will be back to your old practical self to take charge of the situation. I treated it like a project (unwanted, I know!) and a temporary stumbling block, I devoted about 8 months to do what I had to, and now I'm back to my old life. Enjoy the barn and the animals - they often understand MUCH better than people because they are such good listeners! (((Hugs!)))