Best Of
Re: “Going flat: rethinking life after mastectomy" - great article on flat closure and quality of life
Hi, found this post when searching to connect with other people who have chosen to go flat. I had a bilateral mastectomy with AFC four weeks ago and know I made the right decision, just lonely! Hoping to connect with others.
Mare
Re: how about drinking?
Good Morning, Loungettes! Happy TGIF day! The plan for today is to spend the day with Mom, who wants to do the Ocean Drive in Acadia National Park. Neither of us have done that trip for years. Today should be beautiful for the drive. She also wants to stop to make arrangements for her head stone for the cemetery plot. She wants to have "everything all set, and so no one has to arrange anything." Should make for an interesting day.
Teka--I never heard of him until I saw all the info on the news sites about the shooting yesterday. Crazy situation.
Miriandra--wow, what a wild quote! I agree that something needs to be done about gun violence, but I disagree that gun control laws is the answer. If they worked, we'd have seen some progress by now. I think the real answer is in societal changes that support the value of life overall, but I don't know how to make that happen.
mOmmy--what an Ancestry find! Did you know about the local marker before this?
Friday Cocktail Recipe
4.67 from 27 votes
Ingredients
• 3/4 oz White Rum
• 3/4 oz Mango Puree
• 1/4/2006 Mango(s)
• 1/4 oz Lime Juice
Instructions
Blend Ingredients:
• In a blender, combine 3/4 oz white rum, 3/4 oz mango purée, and 1/4 fresh mango. Add a handful of crushed ice and blend until smooth.
Strain and Serve:
• Strain the mixture into a large highball glass filled with crushed ice.
Add Lime Juice:
• Squeeze a wedge of lime over the drink to add a refreshing citrus kick.
Serve Immediately:
• Garnish with a lime wedge or a slice of mango, and enjoy your Friday Cocktail right away.
From
Re: My Husband, My Life, My Love, My Family, My Cancer
Shanagirl - so happy to hear you had great care for your bronchoscopy with good results. Hope the steroids give you some relief.
Here for pocket duty. Hope everyone is enjoying pleasant weather. We’ve started to see some leaves changing!
Re: My Husband, My Life, My Love, My Family, My Cancer
Brochoscopy / Bronchoalveolar lavage:
@threetree @eleanora @intolight @cookie54 @chicagoan @wren44 @mara51506 @tanya_djamila @micmel @goldensrbest
Hi my Dear Lady Friends,
Thank you to all of you for your pockets, and your caring concerning you posts. you all mean so much to me.
My Pulmonologist🌷
I’m absolutely in love with him. he told me don’t worry about anything. “I have a heavy hand when it comes to anesthesia, and you will sleep through the whole procedure. And I was totally out through the whole thing. It was only one and a 1/2 hour. Left the Hospital at 10:00 am, home by 11:30, and I slept all day went to bed early slept all night and all the next day. my Dear Husband was able to make his bi-annual Cardiologist appointment. At 1:50 Cardiologist told him he’s as healthy as a man in his 40’s. Clean ill of health.
Yet I am still so weak and very tired.
My Lung Dr. took good care of me and everything looked clear and all went well. Final diagnosis:
👇
A. Lung, left lower lobe, biopsy:
- Lung parenchyma with solitary non-necrotizing granulomatous inflammation, see comment.
- Negative for malignancy.
Lung, right upper lobe, bronchoalveolar lavage:-Negative for malignant cells.-Alveolar macrophages, bronchial cells, neutrophils, and red blood cells.-No evidence of pneumocystis organisms or fungi on GMS stain. No foamy exudate or viral inclusions.
Rule out pneumocystis pneumonia
LUNGS: No pulmonary consolidation, congestion or effusion. There is no pneumothorax. MEDIASTINUM: Cardiac and mediastinal contours are normal.
So my pulmonologist has me on METHYLPREDNISOLONE and I just hope it knocks this horrible cough out of me. I was up with it all last night, but I’m only on the medication for 2 days.
My Oncologist has the absolutely best specialists he works with. I’m very lucky to have him taking good care of me his concern that he would have to take me off Verzenio is ruled out. No pneumocystis pneumonia so I can stay on the Verzenio which haas kept me stable😊
shanagirl
Re: Starting Chemo August 2025 support thread
Hi ladies! We wanted to share this great thread with More Tips (and a Shopping List) for Getting Through Chemo. We hope you find it useful!
The Mods
Re: My Husband, My Life, My Love, My Family, My Cancer
I was reading up on the likely upcoming paratransit strike and heard their side on a news site here in london. Not only are their wages way lower than regular bus, they are told they cannot go to the washroom since riders cannot be left on the bus. Bus drivers in the city have regular rest stops, like when taking a particular route home from the hospital, they circle around to another hospice and long term care place and this is where they can stop for a rest break, sometimes it is also needed if they are ahead of schedule to bring them back on time. We are left on the bus when they take a rest stop. Paratransit needs the increase to properly reflect how hard they work and be allowed to take a rest break to use the bathroom. They will be voting on Sept 21 to ratify or reject and go on strike. I do support them. Hopefully a deal is set soon after if I am being honest but we will see.
Re: Poll: What's the one piece of advice you'd give to someone newly diagnosed with breast cancer?
Especially in the beginning, my advice is don't tell anyone. Keep it strictly to yourself until you're ready to deal with other people's fears of cancer. However, I also recommend joining an online cancer support group, if you can. Just don't talk to people who don't already know what it's like to have cancer. Also once you tell someone you have cancer, they'll always ask you about it. If you don't want to cope with this, don't tell them in the first place. (PS—of course, tell your medical folks everything!)
Re: How are people with liver mets doing?
@vik2ri Sorry for all you've been going through. I've been very happy with my treatment at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Recently I've been working with Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC. Both places are excellent cancer centers. Certainly couldn't hurt to get a second opinion and to pay out of pocket for treatments that you currently can't get. As we know, cancer is life or death and we can't take our money with us.
Re: Tips for getting through chemotherapy
Hi @crossh! You’re right, this thread is an old one, but still has lots of great tips! You might also want to check out this thread in case you missed it: More Tips (and a Shopping List) for Getting Through Chemo
We also have a thread for those starting chemo in September that you may find helpful (see below). And if your treatment begins in October, we’ll be starting a new monthly group soon, so you can connect with others beginning at the same time.
Let us know if this helps, and if there are any other ways we can support you.
Best,
The Mods
Re: Long term "high oncotype test" survivors
My mo said chemo could take my risk of 23% to 10-15%. I just am not sold on the oncodx test results.
I can't believe how different doctors seem to approach the treatment plan. Mine thought at 53 in excellent health I should take the most aggressive chemo regiment but afterwards do AI treatment for only 5 years. Mo didn't think I should have bmx just because I had ilc and idc.
Aside from my horrible scare last week. I've been good and cancer free with no chemo. My scare was in my DIEP not my good side, go figure it was scared tissue. I hate this poking and proding and scaring me half out of my mind.
meow13