July 2017 Surgery

FelineMum- good luck tomorrow with your surgery.  I spoke with my navigator today and was told I had the FISH test re: HER2 inconclusive, that is what prompted the MammaTest which was also inconclusive.  They said they will test a surgical sample while in surgery.

I hope they can come up with a conclusive HER2 result.   I would not like to have IV Infusions for a year just because they just don't know.

Had my Bone Density test today - I shrunk 1 1/4"/ next week a stress test with cardio/  Ct Scan, bloodwork then a meeting with Phy Therapy.  I'm running out of time to get the things needed from the "to-do" list.  Most important = lots and lots of pillows!

Did anybody stay longer than 1 night in the hospital? I'm not looking forward to my first night home alone. Rather spend 2nd night in hospital - am I over reacting? 

Tomorrow's the Big Day. I'm kinda sarcastic, so I've been calling my surgery 'Bye Bye Boobies.' (I once volunteered backstage on a summer drama camp production of 'Bye Bye Birdie.' Lousy play. Bad pun.)

I'm scared. I've never had major surgery before. Removing my gallbladder was an outpatient, laproscopic (sp?) procedure at a surgery center. I remember the GI saying I'd never miss it, my incisions would heal without scaring and diarrhea was a temporary side effect. Ten years later, I miss my gallbladder; every incision left scars; and Imodium-D is practically a daily necessity. So when my BS says my body doesn't need breasts to function and my mind will have a harder time adjusting ... I think of my gallbladder.

Thank you, rljessu for the well wishes. Pillows of all sizes is what a friend recommended - including small ones for under your arms. She said it takes some pressure off the rib cage. I've been getting creative. Breast forms inside a sock = small pillows! I have a ton of throw pillows, so I plan to use them if needed. Other thoughts have been rolling up a fleece blanket and putting it inside a pillow case or using dried beans or rice to make a different type of small pillow. Maybe a Ziploc bag inside a sock, or sewing a pillow cover and filling it. Rice can be microwaved for a warm pillow/neck buddy type of thing. I use a needle and thread to make things like that. I don't know to use a sewing machine.

What is the MammaTest? I'd love to know my risk of recurrence if I don't have radiation. I'm going to meet with a radiation therapist after my surgery, but I've had serious misgivings since the start. I'm having a mastectomy. Manual exams can't find any trace of my tumor. My BS hopes this means she'll be removing a dead tumor. One lymph node biopsied positive and was the only place my PET scan and breast MRI detected cancer. But now the BS thinks it may have been residual cells from fluid passing through the node? And that all my nodes may be negative. But she still insists I need radiation, but can't give me numbers or a reason other than tumor size.

My prep is no food after midnight; no fluids after 5:30 a.m. That's it.

I'm dreading wearing a bra non-stop for 3 months. I have a post surgical garment/cami for the first 2 weeks. That's supposed to be worn 24/7. My insurance only covered one of them, so I have a fanny pack to tuck the drains into when I wash the cami. I hate bras. I can't wait until I don't need them anymore. I'm getting nipple tattoos vs. the surgical procedure that can make a bump that resembles one (can't think of better way to describe) partially so I don't have to worry about showing thru my clothes.

Thanks to everyone who's commented, given updates, shared info, etc. I'm so glad I found this board. Pardon my rambling.

Good Luck to everyone who has surgery tomorrow

I stay 1 night at the hospital I feel like the nurse kick me out I wasn't ready

Good luck Linwentz. I'll be thinking of you today.

13 dayspost op and i still feel like i am wearing a bra with underwire really tight, digging into my incision. plus heaviness still..btw,am not required to wear a bra

I'm glad you're doing well Sarah. I forgot about the blue part of the dye. There was a blue ring around my nipple was for a few days and the blue pee went away by the weekend. It kind of makes me wonder what the surgeon sees in the OR. Do we bleed purple?

Home from my lumpectomy. The nurses at the hospital couldn't have been nicer: vey attentive & accomodating. I trust my bs so that Is a plus, too! The anesthesia did it's job... no memory of anything! My throat was sore due to the tube... other than that, all was good. The incision was a tad sore ( 3 on a 1 - 10 scale... 0 low--10 high!) They asked if I wanted a Tylenol with codene... yes, please. I am exhausted and drained... let's take the edge off and see what tomorrow brings!

A pleasant surprise was that one of my third grader mom's was the head of surgery. She said she was going to make sure I got VIP treatment The best part was that she snagged me 2 more of those pink, super soft, closes in the front bras. Sweet! They are really really nice! I was told you can order them on Amazon.

I hadn't eaten all day so was a bit hungry when I got home. Soup was the perfect meal for my irritated throat prepared to perfection by my eldest son!

Overalll, the lumpectomy itself has been okay. Not worth the stress and anxiety I put in it. But it is the first day. I have a few weeks to yet slog through. And of course there is the pathology report. So I am not ready to exhale yet

Thanks for all the positive energy and well wishes. My thoughts and prayers are with all of you as we plod along on this unexpected and unwanted journey. We can do this!

my pathology took 5 days MsMisha but i did not get the result until i followed up with the surgeon but the sentinel node biopsy result was quick, after the surgery, i knew already its negative. glad you are done Linwentz

dont have a bra shelabela. but i still feel as though i have one. feels tight. my PS advised me to take it easy for now and no PT until after 3 weeks. but i can use arms for reaching if i need too. anybody else feel tightness and heaviness even without bra?im 2 weeks post op. thanks

I took my bra off because it was too tight & I felt better without it. My dr said that was ok. It is whatever I am comfortable with. I have not gone without a bra since I was 10 so that is a bit strange lol. The drains bug me the most! I do have a lot of tighness in my chest & I think its from the expander

Hi Shelabela thank you for your info. Does your skin seem bunched up too by the incision sites? I had the skin sparing so not sure if its normal for it to look all bunched up for now until the expanders are filled more? It is very strange looking...lol. Mine are probably an A cup size no

The surgery day has come and gone and I am now in healing mode. I originally thought my lx was going to be (relatively) simple ...just go in and remove the bad stuff. But my MRI showed more suspicious areas so I then had more mammograms & an ultrasound. Without another biopsy, nothing was conclusive, but since the sites were close together, I had one big ole lumpectomy I was in surgery for over 2 hours. Don't know if that is long...just longer than what I thought it would be.

My wound from the lx is sore, bruised, and swollen and looks God-awful. When I peeked at it yesterday , I expected to see a divot or a missing chunk but surprisingly ( due to the swelling) the size looks no different. There are these curved stitches so now my breast resembles a baseball.

I tried to take it easy yesterday , a few light chores like laundry and deadheading to break up the monotony of Netflix & solitaire! And of course my mind is going full-tilt over the upcoming results. I am determined to stay positive but I have read that things like dense breasts, being ER/PR negative, and flat nipples are more risks for what I am not sure, but they aren't helpful! But it is what it is and I am what I am and what I am is determined to get through this as unscathed as possible. It is all about attitude, right? So I choose positive and hopeful yet pragmatic enough to be prepared (If that is posssible) to face the worst,

gigilala- ref the number of lymph nodes- the way it was explained to me is they go in thinking they will take all nodes from point A to point B (those points are based on each of our unique situations). We all have nodes placed differently in our bodies do you may have 20 nodes between point A and point B while I could have 12 nodes. So node numbers vary I am sure there are other factors, too but that the point A to point B does seem to be one reason for varying node numbers

glad to hear you are home Felinemum, take it easy and rest. Praying for good results from pathology

FelineMum - glad your surgery went well and your able to xfer on your own. Thankfully my surgery will be on a Tuesday - good point.

Are you wearing some sort of 'binder'?

I Have ordered more pillows - I think i'm up to a mixture of 10 - I'm in prep mode.  Might even buy a Hammock.  

Glad everyone is doing okay.