Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!

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  • Grazy
    Grazy Member Posts: 373
    edited April 2016

    Oh, Peggy - what a sweet wedding photo - just beautiful. (And you have a beautiful smile, by the way - you radiate warmth).


    Heathet - you're going through the wringer right now. Thinking of you as you recover.

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  • LovesToFly
    LovesToFly Member Posts: 1,133
    edited April 2016

    beautiful Peggy!

    Heathet and Brandford: sorry to hear about those nodes. I remember finding out it was in my node, it wasn't exactly a surprise (an early ultrasound showed that the note was swollen, everybody told me that could mean anything, but I just had a feeling), but it was still devastating. That said, chemo has not been anywhere near as awful as I thought it would be, and I am almost done now, just getting through the last of the side effects! If you need to do it, you will get through it and always remember chemo is a badass cancer killer!

    Heathet I hope your recovery is without complications and easy.


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  • Katzpjays
    Katzpjays Member Posts: 237
    edited April 2016

    Peggy - I love your photos. What beautiful newlyweds! Sending you big hugs

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Heathet, damn! News no one wants to hear. Whatever comes ahead, I know you'll meet it head on and get to the other side. Of course, you're scared - you're human! We're here for you.

    HUGS!

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Grazy, Jill, and Katzpjays, thank you. All the support from you helps!

    HUGS!

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  • IamNancy
    IamNancy Member Posts: 1,158
    edited April 2016

    Peggy - your smile is the same in your wedding picture and in your avatar... sorry your hubby isn't here to celebrate your anniversary.. that is sad but you are a real trooper ..blessings!

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  • Moondust
    Moondust Member Posts: 510
    edited April 2016

    Heathet, I'm glad you are on the road to recovery from surgery. That was a very long surgery!! What a nasty surprise about the positive nodes :( The DCIS turned out not to be IS. I hope your team is sending the tumor for an Onco test now, so you won't have to wait so long for results. If you turn out to need chemo, maybe we'll be doing it at the same time. I was so upset at the thought of having chemo when I first got my score back, but now I am okay with it. Give everything time and you'll be okay.

    Awwww, Peggy. What wonderful photos! You were such a baby when you got married. I got married at 20 but that marriage didn't last. I've been married to my second husband for almost 26 years. I'm thinking of you on your anniversary and shedding a tear with you.

    Brandford, hang in there. You WILL get through it all and come out fine on the other side!!!

    Hi, MJS! Glad you posted. Congrats on losing so much weight! You are one of very few I've heard of to have a CR from neoadjuvant therapy with ER+ and PR+. I am as lean as can be, but still a 36 D or DD.

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  • Grazy
    Grazy Member Posts: 373
    edited April 2016

    I'm back from my RO appointment and planning session. Americans say "the Canadian protocol" but for me being Canadian, I guess it's just "the protocol". :) 16 fractions plus 5 boosts, to begin in 10-14 days. I was prepared to be all covered in marker when I left the planning session, but nope! There was marker on me in a few spots during the session, but they wiped it off and I'm left with only three tiny black dot tattoos that I can barely see. I'll see my RO every Wednesday during treatment either before or after my treatment session to do a check in and and see how I'm doing, if I have any skin issues etc. The university offers an exercise class for free for any cancer patient to help combat fatigue during treatment so I registered for that. My husband said, "I can't believe you had to get cancer to get you into a gym". Funny guy.

    Okay, we're off on our four-hour drive to move older daughter home from school for the summer. Have a good weekend everyone.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Grazy, Sounds like a good plan is in place. I can barely see my little dot tattoos. Your DH IS funny - haha! Have fun moving your daughter home...NOT. Having her home - great! Doing it? Not so much. I remember those days - not always fondly ;)

    HUGS!

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  • bobbin2
    bobbin2 Member Posts: 6
    edited April 2016

    I have seen my PS and MO in the last 2 days. I'm finally getting a sense of what the surgery (5/13) might look like. I will be having a LX on my right breast but because of the location they will have to remove my entire nipple. The PS says she can reshape the breast because otherwise I will have an indentation on the front of my breast. Because the right will be reshaped and lifted she recommends a slight reduction and lift on the left to keep approximate symmetry. This will happen at the same time as the LX and will be day surgery. Insurance covers this as well as nipple reconstruction in the future if I want that. Right now I can't imagine wanting a fake nipple bad enough to do another surgery but I suppose I could change my mind.

    Word from the MO is that my oncotype dx score is 17. Not bad but not super low. So far the plan is to wait and check nodes before considering chemo. Fingers crossed that my nodes are clear but if not its nice to know there is effective medical technology out there.

    Heathet and Brandford, wishing you calm and strength to face this unwanted news.

    MJS thanks for sharing your story.

    I'm so glad I found this forum! It is great to hear everyone's experiences.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Bobbin2, sounds like everyone is taking good care of you. I'm impressed that you have your Oncotype score before surgery. I didn't know that was done. I had to wait 4 weeks after surgery for mine. After awhile you will know if you want nipple reconstruction. I get not wanting more surgery at this point. Wouldn't have been high on my list either. Glad things are looking positive!

    HUGS!

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  • HappyHammer
    HappyHammer Member Posts: 1,247
    edited April 2016

    Peggy- thinking of you and sending big hugs your way.

    Sloan- traveling mercies! Your trip sounds like big fun!

    Heathnet and Brandford- thinking of you both. BC stinks and I am glad you are here so we can stand beside one another on this journey.

    Love reading about how y'all pack. I like to pack early and then go back and take out about 1/2 the stuff.

    Hugs all around!

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  • bobbin2
    bobbin2 Member Posts: 6
    edited April 2016

    Peggy I think I got my oncotype score before surgery because they put off surgery to do brca genetic testing. They used the tissue from the biopsy for both tests. My tumor is slow growing so they put me on tamoxifen and did a bunch of tests. Funny how different docs do things differently. So far I feel confident in my team.

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  • Molly50
    Molly50 Member Posts: 3,773
    edited April 2016

    Heathet and brandford, sorry abut the positive nodes. I had two but still didn't have chemo. Heathet, take good care of yourself and let others do for you. Peggy what a beautiful wedding photo! You have hardly changed at all.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Molly, thanks! Went out to dinner with Chuck's oldest brother and wife tonight. That was nice and made a positive day.

    Bobbin, that makes sense then. So glad you have faith in your team - that's so important!

    HUGS!

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  • ChiSandy
    ChiSandy Member Posts: 12,133
    edited April 2016

    (((Peggy))). I was 20, too--Bob was 21. So long ago! 49 years together is still extraordinary!

    Brandford, Heathet, bummer about the nodes.

    Bobbin, nobody (but NOBODY--nurse navigator, BS, her NP) ever mentioned the possibility of reduction. The end result was a wash. On the bad side, the weight of my 38I breast caused my SNB incision to open and the seroma to drain (though it healed nicely, I’m sure it contributed to my getting LE & cording); on the good side, I was done with active treatment in time to take my cruise in Dec., which I wouldn’t have if I’d have had to recover from a bilateral reduction in addition to lx and SNB. And on the neutral side, turns out my right breast unexpectedly got larger from radiation, so bilateral reduction would still have resulted in asymmetry for me.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Sandy, isn't hard to remember? We were so very young but didn't think so at the time. Congratulations! What's amazing is that the h.s. band crowd I ran with (all older than me) - all but one of us is still married to spouse #1, all nearly 50 years or just over. All Chuck's brothers are still married to spouse #1. My brother made up for us - he's on #3 but married for 25 years. My classmates who have lost spouses don't seem to be re-marrying. They find partners but marriage isn't for them. I find that interesting. A whole 'nother thread :)

    HUGS!

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  • iammags
    iammags Member Posts: 216
    edited April 2016

    Heathnet sorry to hear the new of the cancerous nodes. May I ask a question? I wasn't aware that DCIS could spread to the nodes. Did they find another invasive tumor also?

    Peggy what beautiful photos!

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  • Peachy2
    Peachy2 Member Posts: 350
    edited April 2016

    Peggy, such sweet photos! Even more fantastic than being married for 49 years is that you still wanted to be. :)

    Welcome, Bobbin! I'm not far from you, in Manchester, NH.

    Heathet and Brandford, I also was not supposed to have lymph node involvement. Both surgeons I consulted independently guessed there was 10 - 15% chance. The surgery pathology report changed my cancer from what I thought was "the easy kind" to "oh crap, I really do have cancer." The news knocks the wind out of you, but you listen to the doctors and put one foot in front of the other. Have faith - everything will be okay.

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  • blamoms
    blamoms Member Posts: 113
    edited April 2016

    Peggy Happy Anniversary love your wedding picture.


    Brandford. You have every right to be nervous. I was too but everyone on here has had different results with chemo. It's not easy at times but you are ready to fight. Onward and Upward is my new saying. Keep positive it helps. You will have some down days but come chat on this board it helps

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  • froggie
    froggie Member Posts: 92
    edited April 2016

    bobbins2, if you're not interested in having your nipple reconstructed, you can opt for a 3D tattoo. When I was exploring options with a PS, I mentioned I wasn't interested in having nipple reconstruction. She highly recommended a 3D tattoo - said it was realistic. The RO's nurse also highly recommend them.

    I already spend a small fortune getting nipple covers to slip inside my bra to keep them from showing through on my tees and silky type shirts. Having reconstructed ones that will always be at "attention" and sticking out was a deal breaker for me.

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  • froggie
    froggie Member Posts: 92
    edited April 2016

    Lovely photos, Peggy! A big hug for you. So glad you were able to have dinner with Chuck's brother and wife today and share your memories with each other.

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  • froggie
    froggie Member Posts: 92
    edited April 2016

    Grazy, congrats on getting tats. I'd kill to have them - really.

    Finished my first week on the lt side. I'm hoping the skin will recover some over the weekend. I see my RO on Thursdays. Yesterday was the first time I have seen her since actually starting. She managed to arrange the fields so there was no overlap down my sternum - have 1 cm clearance between the two fields. My hear† is 100% out of the field and only a 1 mm slice of the left lung . Unfortunately, a bigger slice of the right lung is involved but she said is was within the acceptable standards.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    Thank you everyone for the kind thoughts. The day turned out to be less depressing than I thought it would be - for which I am very glad. My youngest son "played" with my wedding photo and enhanced it and it is right on. Here is it:

    image

    As a rather funny aside, the priest that married us left the priesthood not too long afterwards and married a nun.

    HUGS!

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  • froggie
    froggie Member Posts: 92
    edited April 2016

    Brandford, it's OK to be scared and nervous. We all were as we had to deal with this stuff for the first time. It will be OK - we are all here to help anyway we can. There are many here who have had chemo and came out on the other side just fine. I'm sure they will be able to offer tips and coping strategies to help you out. If you don't mind me asking, what state are you located in. What kind of facility are you going to?

    Do you have an appointment yet with your MO? Do you have someone that can go to that appointment with you and take notes for you? You probably should start a list of questions to ask. Would you like help with that?



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  • froggie
    froggie Member Posts: 92
    edited April 2016

    Heathet, glad your recovery is going smoothly but so sorry to hear the news about your nodes. One day at a time, Heathet - you will get through this. I'll keep you in my prayers.

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  • MJS1266
    MJS1266 Member Posts: 222
    edited April 2016

    Moondust,

    My MO was surprised too at the complete response. I'm glad I didn't realize during chemo that it was rare because I sure was hoping and praying for a CR. I had even agreed to participate in a lymph node study but was kicked out because they were negative too. Now I take my Tamoxifen everyday hoping it too does the trick. Good luck with your second opinion.

    Peggy, You were a beautiful bride and a happy couple.

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  • PontiacPeggy
    PontiacPeggy Member Posts: 6,778
    edited April 2016

    MJS, it is wonderful when a CR is achieved. I'm blushing at your kind words.

    HUGS!

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  • Heathet
    Heathet Member Posts: 257
    edited April 2016

    ismmags- my BS talked to me the day after surgery and from what I remember ( I was still pretty loopy) she explained it was invasive - the area they performed the biopsy showed DCIS. The biopsy didn't show a sample of the invasive cancer. I meet with my BS in a week to go over everything. She seemed really upset to deliver me the news.

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  • brandford37
    brandford37 Member Posts: 71
    edited April 2016

    Hello Froggie I'm in Queens New York and yes I have an appointment with oncologist may 3th..every appointment my sister and my best friend their with me.. thanks for thinking about me appreciate it.

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