Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!
Comments
-
Hi everyone- had 8 appointments in two weeks 2 hours from home. I saw both surgeons- had breast exam- saw my MO- my PS , a bone scan. blood work for thyroid as well as for the MO, and had a mammogram. I am happy to say boobs, blood and bones are all good !!MO told me I could say on Tamoxifen if I chose, but he felt there was benefit to changing to an AI within two years as new studies indicate. That was the first time I heard of that. I will see him in 3 months to decide then. he said I should be more settled from my surgery at that time and to call him if I wanted an increase in Effexor for hot flashes.
OH the horseback riding looks soooo fun!!
I used to ride as a kid with my sisters when I lived on our family farm. I miss it!! 0 -
NDGrrl, what wonderful news!! Are you breathing more easily now? I'm so happy for you!!! I've also heard of switching from on anti-hormonal to another. It seems that new knowledge about them is multiplying daily, doesn't it?
HUGS!!!
0 -
kayfry....love the photo. Thanks for sharing.
HuntingtonNY....so glad you are done and no node removal. That should make your recovery time so much easier. Just take it easy for a day or two and you should be back to normal. Have a wonderful trip!
0 -
Hi,
I'm not in the lumpectomy club yet, and might not be able to be, but I am just curious, how many of you that had lumpectomy received neo-adjuvant chemotherapy to shrink your tumor in order to have a lumpectomy? Also, anyone triple negative with a lumpectomy? I have larger breasts DD, so originally, I was told I could have lumpectomy with nice little incision, now they are seeing calcifications and may take it off the table. They are also talking about doing chemotherapy to shrink it before surgery, and I wanted to know if anyone has had success with this option. Thanks.
0 -
crs003
1st opinion/diag: chemo; surgery; rads
2nd opinion/diag: chemo; surgery; chemo; rads
What I decided to do: no chemo; alternative tumor reduction; surgery; no chemo; rads
Triple neg
DDD original
Calcifications were known; ones that were suspect were removed
Tumor was reduced prior to surgery w/ alternative treatment by 50%
Negotiated location of surgical site to minimize scar visual (not the norm, it's your body, fight for what you want and believe is right for you).
Do your research, write down your questions, take your research w/ you to discuss w/ medical team, be your own advocate, register w/ ACS and ask to be matched w/ an advocate who has same/similar diag as you. They are a wealth of info when starting out. It's free. Order all the material you will need to make an informed decision.
http://www.cancer.org/treatment/index
Each of us is different, every cancer is different, deciding what treatments are right for you is a very personal decision only you can decide for your quality of life.
Wishing you all the best. . .
0 -
crs003:
I had neoadjuvant chemotherapy which I completed March 3. My mamo February 18 showed no visible cancer. My tumor was 1.7 cm and I had two positive nodes. ultrasound showed no abnormal nodes. Yesterday, I had lumpectomy, SNB, oncoplasty, reduction, and lift. SNB showed no cancer, so did not have ALND, yeah. So far I am happy with my smaller perkier boobs, I was 40 DDD. I think I am about 40 D now and can wear a button down shirt that I couldn't wear before. I have some discomfort, but pain is manageable. I am still on percocet though.
I am hopeful that the full pathology will result in a complete pathological response from chemo. No matter what, I had a very good result from neoadjuvant chemo, my tumor was grade 3, highly ER/PR positive and HR negative.
Joan Lunden has a good blog about her journey with triple negative cancer. She did neoadjuvant to shrink tumor, lumpectomy and then more chemo and radiation.
Good Luck, MJ
0 -
SelenaWolf, I find your post very encouraging. I've having my lumpectomy tomorrow and was concerned that I would be miserable for days. My doctor also said not to go crazy but I should be up and about and doing my normal stuff in a day or two. She suggested I baby that side for awhile but do what I think I can do.0 -
Alexandria28, Welcome! One thing you might want to do is not lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk for at least 2 weeks (on the lumpy side). For one thing, it won't feel particularly good. And you don't want to strain anything. But otherwise you should be fine. I took a pain pill right after surgery and then Tylenol (regular) at night occasionally. Hopefully, you will do the same. Good luck and HUGS!!!
0 -
Alexander, I just had a lumpectomy on March 18. It was very similar to the biopsy only I was put to sleep. I was like Peggy. I had tylenol at the hospital and then again that night and I don't think I took it again. It was not as bad as I thought. I did have two very small lesions that were taken out. Before the lumpectomy I was very anxious!!!
0 -
I was offered (and took ) a Valium (I figured, why not?). They also gave me dramamine. No nausea afterwards. I was very pleasantly surprised at the speed of my recovery.
0 -
Alexderia....just remember to follow instructions to ice the area that first day...15-20 min on 15-20 min off. Does wonders to keep swelling down.
Best of luck for a speedy and uneventful recovery!!!!
p.s. take the valium if offered....
0 -
HI there ladies.. Im baaaccckkkk.. ok not like I really left.. I kept reading I just didnt feel that I had anything worthy to contribute. so anyhow.. first 6 mo check up after lx and .. bam... drain a cyst and biopsy a mass.. which of course they dont like the results.. so back to the surgeon i shall go.. round 2 rt boob this time another lx. no date set right now (only got the call about this yesterday) They said to expect this type of thing (more pokes and stuff) just didnt expect it so soon. so yeah.. hi again
0 -
Welcome to BCO Alexandria28, a lumpectomy is not a major surgery but it is very stressful leading up to it. Please follow the advice above and don't push it at first. It is advisable to exercise as your Physio or surgeon will recommend, usually light range movements from a day or three after, and then after a time, a bit more to rebuild flexibility and avoid muscles tightening. Follow the guidelines and exercises given by your physical therapist, and you'll be fine.
You may find some useful info here Lumpectomy: What to Expect from our main site and also Exercise After Surgery .
All our best for surgery and recovery.
The Mods
0 -
Panthrah, that's a bummer. I'm so sorry. At least they are finding it quickly. And you know what to expect. No fun though. Many HUGS!!!!!
0 -
Hugs accepted
I have such a busy year.. there is no good time for this. I dont want to take another week off work ( work with combative special ed kids..high school size) ooohh fiddle sticks . last time it was a month and half between biopsy and lx... so i guess we wait and see what they have avail for me *headdesk*0 -
Kudos to you for the work you do, Panthrah. That is so challenging. And you really shouldn't work while recuperating from an Lx (it's not like doing a desk job). Perhaps you can schedule after classes end in June. Or do you just want to get it over with? (That would be my choice but I'm retired, too). Good luck with all your decisions! And more HUGS!!!!
0 -
I want to get it done cause really... i have a week long trip every month this year except for dec at this point.
very eventful year 0 -
Panthrah, a week long trip every month? WOW! That sounds fantastic. So get it done ASAP! HUGS!!!
0 -
RIGHT!! some trips would be easy to lounge and heal others are more active trips. either way i can make it work.. I just need a date set
0 -
and since this is lx #2.. i do not have the stress at all since it will almost be an exact repeat of what i just did .... in sept 14
0 -
True, Panthrah, you do know what to expect which should make it much easier. Hopefully you'll have one of your "lounging" trips soon after the Lx
HUGS!0 -
I'm finding myself a little miffed at my BS, though I've really liked him for the most part. Monday during my post-LX exam, he said that the area would probably fill with fluid. That took me by surprise and I didn't ask any questions and he didn't explain any more. Maybe because I had researched DCIS after my biopsy and before receiving my path results, he thought I'd already know about that, but I didn't and it freaked me out. Now that I have learned about seromas, it doesn't bother me so much, but I guess I need to know that I should be prepared to ask more questions.
I'm still quite sore, almost all of the time, 2 weeks post-op. The scar around my nipple is healing nicely and, thanks to the salve and essential oils I've been using, is reducing in profile nicely. I have to keep reminding myself that I have a large internal wound that will take longer to heal and that I should expect to be sore and tire more easily.
0 -
HI, I also was told by my BS that it would fill in with fluid too and that I wouldn't have a dent there. I did get a saroma and had it drained cause it did hurt. NOt sure why he felt that would be a good thing? I ended up having fat grafting after the fluid was all gone and it filled in the dent quite well. I found out last Fri- I do not have to do it again as it looks fine and the discoloration will eventually leave
0 -
I'm not sure what, if anything, is filling the "hole" in my breast. I'll ask my BS next week. It's been 9 months. I'm surprised that my breast feels rather fuller than my good girl. Perhaps it's because the incision is just below my nipple down (to 6 o'clock). So I have "cleavage" which is something very new
I suspect the surgeons never quite know what to expect from any one patient and their response to surgery. We are all so different. NDgrrl, at least you are doing fine and lookin' good!CurlyCat, some of these things surgeons just don't seem to discuss. I've no clue why. My BS, who is excellent, didn't mention seromas either. Maybe I didn't think to ask so she figured that I wasn't interested in knowing (I was but maybe some people don't want to know).
HUGS to everyone!
0 -
Ndgrrl, that's great that you don't need more fat grafting! Fabulous.
Curlykat, kind of funny that doctors now might not divulge certain information because they assume we've all researched online and know as much as they do. Haha. Well, my BS never mentioned the possibility of seroma either, but I didn't get one, so I didn't know to ask, either.
Peggy, I'm only 11 days post-rads, but I have enough swelling that my treated breast is a similar size, maybe even slightly fuller (if also slightly distorted and very red) than my "good" one. Kind of a little cleavage here too, which is a novelty! Don't know how things will look 9 months post-surgery, though. I don't think anyone knows . . .
0 -
I know what you mean, Kay. Only time I ever had anything resembling cleavage was when I was pregnant and nursing. I actually NEEDED a B cup! Of course, that quickly went away and never came back. I'm perfectly happy with my small girls. But I am going to ask if the BS thinks I'm swollen - I think I am. HUGS!
0 -
Yes, if this swelling sticks around long-term, I'll save money on plastic surgery
0 -
HAHAHA!!!
0 -
Thanks for the feedback, ladies! I feel like maybe it is starting to fill some. I do expect that I'll have lipofilling in the future.
0 -
Ladies, Another reminder that if you are in Southern Michigan or willing to drive, several BCO gals are meeting April 18th outside Jackson, Michigan. Here is the link to our group: Meet in Jackson
We'd love to have more of you join us!
Peggy
0
