Canadians in British Columbia

Hi from central BC [formerly Victoria and Vancouver] I read you guys from time to time, and you seem like such a tight supportive group. How fabulous to have a get together. I jumped in to say Stellamaris that I was in Vancouver for my diep with immediate recon in August and I am sooooo happy I went that route. Have a look on the diep sites too for great info. Who is your surgeon?

Hi Stellamaris and Phoebe58

Nice to "meet" you

Sorry you have to be here, You are in great company here. We have all had different challenges so whatever you are dealing with I am sure someone here can help you through

A friend just found out she has stage 3 stomach cancer . I so hate this disease.. They recently moved to a beautiful spot on the sunshine coast.

Carrie, how are you doing. Please let us know. I pm'd you

Hi ladies, I have been thinking about this group, hope you are all keeping sunshine in your mind and heart during these rainy days. I am taking 3000 iu Vitamin D for that! I have been having some sort of pain/soreness around my node removal and lumpectomy areas respectively. The second surgery (margin revision) was done 3-4 months ago on Oct. 1, 2015, I had not felt pain for a while. Does anyone have the experience with (more) pain/soreness on raining days? Thank you!

Stellamaris: hi welcome! Sorry to hear you have had so many surgeries. Good luck and hope this IS your last one!

Wendy3: hope to hear good news about your scan. Was thinking of you while crossing the intersection in our neighbourhood. Jan show Feb flower, I like that positive thinking!

Take care everyone

HI Ladies!

I haven't posted in this group in awhile, just finished chemo and looking to start rads mid-February. I met with my surgeon today to discuss having a prophylactic right mastectomy, which will happen in June sometime. I am amazed it can happen that fast, I was expecting fall/winter!

Anyways, I have a swimsuit question because we are planning a trip to Italy in May. So I am stuck between a rock and a hard place, in that when we go to Italy I will still have my right breast. I need a new bathing suit to deal with my left mastectomy, and was planning to put a swimform in it and be done with it. I am realizing these are not cheap bikinis, and while I have extended medical that will pay for it, I hesitate to spend that much when I probably won't use it after my right breast is gone, as I plan to go flat almost always. I don't know that a bikini fit for a B cup breast would look good or even work going flat. Does anyone have any thoughts or ideas? I would love to go the "sports bra" style of bikini, as that would give me the most coverage over my scars, which would look fine going flat, but while I still have the right boob? I just don't know what to do.

Thanks for any thoughts you may have for me!

Kim

phoebe58, Dr. Lennox is my PS and I am on a wait-list for an exchange of implants as I am not happy with my Allergen 410's which are hard and cold. But I now have a capsular contracture and got an appt. March 2 with him. I am going to try to diplomatically ask if he will try to get me in to see Sheina MacAdams. I could have picked her at the beginning but it was kind of 6 of one.... But now he is head of plastic surgery in Vancouver which means he has little time other than cosmetic surgery these days. But, one thing at a time and I saw an RMT last week recommended by Sneaky Chiquita and see her again Monday.

Simmer, I understand the bathing suit issue. I bought 2 of the $$ ones in Calgary at a breast cancer specialty store just before my exchange because I was going to the Caribbean soon after. I bought a beautiful one piece which did not fit at all later and gave that to a friend. The other is great, a bright coloured tankini and I would be happy to lend it to you for your trip if it fits.

I would also love to give away the $$$ bras I bought for post op exchange as they did not fit. Brand new and would love to pass them on.

Marian

If you decide you want to see it send me a PM and I will send you a photo. Size 8.

Phoebe, no chance for a DIEP, no matter who the surgeon and it certainly was a discussion point when i first saw him and also an Irish fellow who was there with him at the time. I suspect I have written about it some posts back. I have several scars from previous surgeries not to mention I have no fat/tissue to spare other than for some more fat grafting. Dr. Lennox is a great surgeon, don't get me wrong. And yes he did bring MacAdam in and had her go off to do training in the US just as he did. But he is head of plastics for VGH/UBC now and so is way busy. That is the only reason I might ask him about Sheina.

\stellamaris My reduction side was biopsied \I was told this was standard procedure

Stellamaris -- I had a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy, and yes they did do routine sampling of my breast tissue and nipple on the 'good side'.... that turned out surprisingly to have DCIS scattered throughout, so was very glad to have done both sides! I needed to get the nipple removed on the good side two weeks after my main diep surgery, as it had originally been nipple sparing on that 'no longer so good side'. I have same unusual ILC er+pr- as you, and final path results showed also some ductal mixed in with the ILC.

Hi everyone. The Mount St. Joseph Rapid Access Breast Clinic (oxymoron) let me know today that my UMX has been moved out to March 24th. Is that normal to keep someone waiting 5 months for final surgery? My BS said if I chose direct to implant she could do the surgery Jan 26. I saw the PS on Jan 13, and she recommended a DIEP flap. She said she could do it Feb 11. I don't know if communications between the two offices was messed up somehow, but apparently my BS could not make Feb 11 work. I am completely in shock.

Marianelizabeth: I will not have chemo based on the recommendation of my MO, who feels it is not effective for ILC (my Oncotype score was 27). It is unlikely I will have RT, as my BS said it will not be necessary after a MX, because it is very rare in her opinion, that her MX will leave any unclear margins. The only therapy I will be on is Letrozole for 5 years. Frankly at this point I have very little faith in this team. I'm going to my family doctor next week for a referral to another doctor. I want a second opinion. My BS and MO have been cold and uncommunicative from the start, and are always pushing their own agenda. I am very disappointed in the care I have received at this clinic.

Stellamaris - I had to wait much of last summer for my diep date, due to a perfect storm of coordinating staff summer holidays, the fact that diep takes so much surgical time, so only a couple of openings per month at VGH, and yet I felt they really hustled to try and get it done in a timely fashion. In fact, my BS ended up adjusting her vacation time. I really liked her. Yet, I am one of the unlucky ones who ended up with sketchy margins after a full mastectomy........ I blame it on the nature of my large ILC tumour which had extensive thin lacy fern fronds that are very challenging to see. They also worried that some little frond was too close to my chest wall for comfort...... hence the need for radiation. I am at least relieved that I am not having an implant irradiated, which leads to more complications from contractions. My PS is confident she can fix up whatever rads may do to my diep breast. As for your anxiety re wait time, remember that you have Letrozole in your corner that is helping to shrink, or at the very least suspend, further tumour activity while you wait.

Everyone: thank you so much for your feedback. I was able to have a meaningful discussion with my BS yesterday. Based on that conversation, I proposed that I try another re-excision to clear the margins before the March 24th MX date,. They will hold the March 24th date until the path report comes back. If it is successful, I will proceed to RT. If not, I will proceed to the MX. They have agreed to that, so Feb 11 will be the next and hopefully final, lumpectomy. Fingers crossed.

Does anyone have a good family doctor you can recommend? My previous two amazing family doctors retired one after another. My current family doctor works part time, and does not know the system well--did not give me any referral, does not know anyone on my BC team, does not even think Vitamin D is necessary for BC. I was really on my own. Thanks

phoebe, let me know when you are coming and we can try to meet up. Am hoping stellamaris has one of our BS's.

stellamaris, my BS was not at all warm and fuzzy but not important~~good hands is! Nurse navigator has never been one of my faves but it is because more than anything that she calls me honey, dear etc. way too often. In MSJH OR when a nurse called me dear, I said "no dears please." The anaesthetist then told a funny story after some silence. As an old nurse I find it condescending.