August 2014 Surgery

Hi ladies,

I finally have time to catch up to this board!!!!! Lol I love the traffic on here!!! I'm on my iPad  and my phone reading on one and typing on the other because it's a PIA to keep scrolling!!!!!

So I am one week post-op. I'll start with the good news.....no active cancer cells on my path report.....wooooohooooo!! Drains are still in, one will likely come out tomorrow! This friggin bra is killing me too! The weirdest thing for me is the sensation in my armpit and along the underside of my arm to my elbow, it's numb if I touch it but painful when I move it, like a burning feeling. I know that's from the damage to the nerves during surgery. It's very strange!!! My body is still sluggish from chemo so I am wiped everyday which is getting old! I'm still getting herceptin, last one was 4 days post-op and that gave me the big D this weekend which was not fun. But I'm still here fighting (and winning) this beast so I am not complaining!!! Well maybe a little, lol. 

Shewolf you mentioned the same pain, please tell me it gets better! I hope you are doing well!

My other 8/11 sisters Bobo, Ally2345, ninany, and Lori I hope you are feeling better everyday! Bobo stay right where you are, no need to be on the Oct board if you don't want to!!

ml143333 I felt the same way about my surgery and all my treatments pretty much, I turn into a machine when I get bad news and cry when I get good news. Not sure if that's good or bad but it works for me! I'm her2 +, just one more thing to add onto this journey. Even though it means it makes it more aggressive I'm Kind of glad I'm continuing treatments and still actively fighting this SOB. My MO said that it was likely the herceptin that gave me a clean path report. 

Iwannaseeyoubebrave your pic is awesome!!!! You look so happy or is that the drugs? Lol

Angelfaith we got diagnosed on the same day! It has been a long road!

Sassy seven my surgery got bumped too. The worst!! Glad you got through it and I hope you path report is a good one!

Genny so sorry to hear about your path report. Glad to hear you changed MO's that relationship is just as important as the treatments., I hope this new one is better for you. What ever is in store for you next we are here for you! I feel worse one week post op than the day after my surgery too. I think because I was so numb in the beginning! And goodness gracious about your surgery getting bumped! Cancer can suck it! And so can sitting around!!! Lol

Diva how is the swelling? I hope it is getting better. 

Quilt and iwannacookie and sunnyc Where ever your treatments take you, there is likely someone on this board that has gone through it already. Know we are here for you! I hope you all get good news!!! 

QUILT I had my surgery on 8/11 no antibiotics for me. 

Lipgloss hugs to you and your little ones. I how you recover quickly for them. My kids are 5 and 7 so it's a bit easier, but my heart goes out to you!

Brandy another GREAT post op pic! Beautiful!! Speedy drainage removal and recovery to you!!

Sunshine you will be great! I had chemo first also. The surgery is much easier by far!!!! I hope the same for you. When I was in the hospital they gave me colace with my pain meds and with the one zofran I got. You will probably have an order for them, just ask the nurse! I wore the hospital gown the whole time because I figured it would be easier for them to check the incision site and drains, I was in the hospital for < 24 hrs though. I brought yoga pants and a button down shirt to wear home. 

I hope the 8/18 sisters are in recovery by now and on the road to healing!! Love and gentle hugs 

Sunshine, ganz, gram, sueEllen, and quilt. You got this!!!!!!!! 

-Jules 

It's great to hear from you, Jules and Seashore.  Congrats on the path reports!

Jules, weird armpit and arm soreness and prickly pain is normal and will be with you possibly for months.  I continue to have numbness in my armpit and the back of my arm, going to my back on the SNB side.  My chest is numb across the front on both sides but I am regaining feeling in the lower and upper part of my foobs.  I know that I may never get full skin sensation back.  Hang in there.

I wanna wanna wanna be HERE!!!!!!!!    Biopsy done June 13, got result June 24.  (IDC)    (Mammogram showing very likely cancer was from a month before then, but at least during that month I didn't know that!)        On June 25, surgeon said surgery should probably be in mid July.    (great!)     End of July (when I insisted on a surgeon visit because I'd found a second hard lump-- that echographer later told me was a lymph node) surgeon said surgery "should" be in August.  (OK!)      Then he tells me he's going on vacation August 1 through 22...   but that he "hoped" one of his colleagues would do my surgery before his return.    (Oh..., uhm- OK!)       I've given up hoping that that is going to happen-- but I'm still hanging on to the hope of gettting a date for the last week in August!       So far I have had NO treatment.      Just tests.    (and on that last meeting with surgeon he admitted that he hadn't even looked at the results of those tests since "after all, your surgery isn't scheduled for any time soon".     I told him that I had peeked at my chart and was wondering if I was drawing the right conclusions, and he promised that he would look at them...     (I live in Italy. Things are a bit freaky here.)    Please, I don't need to be encouraged to get indignant and demand care  --- I'm trying very very hard to stay calm because there is absolutely nothing I can do about this situation.      But please please welcome me into this group -    Maybe that can make this happen.    

Don't know where this train is going, but I want it  to get moving, that's all!! 

Welcome, Imheretoo. I hope you get a surgery date soon!  The waiting and wondering part must be so difficult.  Do you know what kind of surgery you will have?  What did your June path resultsay besides that it is IDC?

Hi Juliecc!      Forgot to say that my surgery is supposed to be quadrantectomy plus sentinal node biopsy (plus whatever they decide will have to be done with rest of lymph nodes) plus radiotherapy (and I guess that isn't going to change since the new lump turned out to be a lymph node and not a second tumor).    Surgeon didn't give me a choice.   At this point, if they did ask me, I'd probably say take it all-- but whatever-- just get started!!!     Breast conservation surgery was invented and validated in Italy, so these guys here are real proud of that, I guess.      (On this forum, people seem to talk only about mastectomy or "lumpectomy".      I'm guessing that a lot of people who say they got "lumpectomies" are actually getting the quadrantectomy surgery I'm supposed to get?        Surgeon made a big deal of telling me that a lumpectomy is a completely different thing, that would just take out the tumor and the tiniest rim around it, whereas my surgery will "take out a piece of cake"  -- I guess he meant a pie slice, and wanted to "impress" me with his English...   Anyway--     I was wondering if maybe he volunteered that it was not a lumpectomy (even though I didn't ask) because Americans tend to call any breast conserving surgery a lumpectomy??

My biopsy path result said absolutely nothing besides IDC!!!    (the only "extra" test done was for e-cadherin to confirm the ductal origin)        Won't know anything more until they take this thing OUT and do the path on removed tumor.      Well-- I do know that they say it's 1.2 cm.      Feels bigger to me, though.     

Hi All!  Two weeks after my mastectomy...and btw, I only had the right side, not both, with te and 14 axillary nodes removed...I still have 1 of 2 drains. On Friday, Aug 22, I am scheduled to have more tissue removed, in addition to having a port installed on my left side. I have chemo in my near future, followed by radiation, and after that (I think), a 5 year affair with a pill taken orally on a daily basis. My bs says that she may want the te removed. Oh well...this is not just a journey, it's an adventure!!!  Life is grand and I plan to live it fully!!! 

I'm still in the process of reading through the pages since my last post. I hope to find that my August friends are doing great! I pray blessings to you all!

Thanks for the welcome, Iwannaseeyoube brave! If I don't get a phone call this week, then next Monday (when "my" surgeon should be back to work, fresh, rested and ready to do a great job) I will go to timidly and sweetly ask the nurse if by chance I've been added to the magic list yet. Not that that will get me on the list, but at least I'll be sure they haven't lost my phone number! (I doubt that) It's getting harder and harder to be timid and sweet, but I think that's in my best interest. (and I do realize that there are lots of other cancer patients awaiting surgery)

Actually, on my own, I just had a blood test to do a repeat measure of ALP-- Since on my last exam it was elevated. I guess it was elevated just for a (supposed) vitamin D deficency (I'm checking that too) or for a drug I'm taking for a non-cancer reason, but I want to make sure it isn't continuing to rise... (Blood was drawn last week, and results won't be ready until Thursday, but Thursday is coming)

Juliecc, on that last meeting with the surgeon, I went with a big list of questions (based on stuff I'd been reading). He was very nice about answering them, but then said (as he had said to me on our first meeting) "don't read a lot of internet"... I'll just assume he wants to protect me from getting needlessly upset ,and not protect himself from pesky questions (although I think there's some of that too)

1_more_Y_me I'm glad you popped in with your positive, accept reality adventure attitude! I started out with that attitude and need to get it back. All that lymph node removal on top of the mastectomy must have you feeling prettty sore!!! Good luck with the further digging to be done on Friday and then chemo and all the rest that follows! (And especially with continuing to find and appreciate the good in life!) Have they told you how long you wait after this next surgery before starting the chemo?

Sunflowercat-- Yay for Thursday and getting started on treatment!!! I wish you quick healing! Handling this all with kids must be extra challenging! Glad you've got step mom to help! Sorry can't help on the hair issue--Mine's short and straight.

Well kids-- it's the middle of the night here-- maybe my phone will ring in the morning???

Wishing the best to all of you!!!!!!!!

jules- the pain and to get is still there two weeks later. I can't seem to lift my left arm very far at all. Oh and smooth move tea if your stool softner doesn't work. I went 4 days once I started percocet and one cup of tea a night made me normal again.  

For those that asked about the drains. I did not feel mine at all when they came out. I didn't need TEs as I will be going way down in size. But the 3 drains I had hurt like hell. I felt instantly better. Took a vallium about 1 hour before appt so that helped. Now that they are out I am attempting to sleep in my bed for the first time since surgery. Can't sleep on my left die to the lymphnode removal pain but I will get there. Been napping a lot. Start my heavy chemo in about a week. Meet with plastics sometime next month and many other appointments. Slowly making it but I found my dad has helped alot. 

To all those with surgery coming up good luck. I am a puss for pain and if I can do it so can you. Don't forget to ask for the nausea patch before surgery. That helped me a lot. 

Imheretoo - my step mom is amazing!  So organized, great with my kids and has the added benefit of having run my dad's former PS practice so she'll be helpful with my post op stuff too.

quilt - I also have node mapping on Wed.  I managed to get into a BC 101 class at my hospital today and the cancer navigator told me I'd be fine as long as I put the EMLA cream on at least an hour ahead of time.  I had NO idea what she was talking about.  Apparently the surgeons office dropped the ball on getting that Rx called in.  I'm hoping it's not that bad of a procedure, but I have a friend coming along to drive me home.  I'll be thinking of you on both days!  Hope yours goes well.

As for the hair maybe I'll just try and blow it out straight the night before surgery.  I think it might scare the crap out of my kids though since they've never seen it straight. (They're only 3,5,8).  Pretty sure my 3yo will tell me it's ugly.  Hahaha!

Ally, I'm so sorry for the rough start.  Six drains! That's just not fair.  I hope your pain quickly gets under control so you can get home and rest up. Praying that sore is just a knick. Hang in there.  Wishing you a better today than yesterday. 

Xxoo

So glad you got a good explanation Allydp!    IT WILL NOT SCAR!!!!!!!!!!  -or at least not for very long and never very apparently (That's an order!)  

What's your hospital situation like?       How many roommates do you have?    (or am I asking a silly question?)    Is the room a comfortable  temp?   Going home tomorrow is GOOD.    

A private room!!    I'll just dream...  (I'm expecting to have lots of nice company to chat with-- hope they don't all snore! --- Hope I don't snore either!)   Most of all, Hope by the time you catch up with your thread reading you won't be needing so much pain med!!   

woohoo Allydp. You are done with one more step!!!!! Gentle gentle hugs. Sorry for all the annoying issues. I don't think that nick will scar. I hope they all go away quickly!! You rest up girl!!!!!

Shewolf thanks for letting me know. The pain is so strange all the way down to my elbow. Seeing the NP today to get a drain removed and am going to discuss it with her.