Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!
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Good news today. Pathology reports had my surgery with clear margins and SN's. Had the cath. swap out today for brachytherapy. I found myself shaking during procedure, I felt odd. Surgeon asked was I in pain and I said no, but I was guessing it was my mind thinking it might escalate to more pain. It was not bad at all. Worst was shots of Lidocaine and those are really just pinches. We left office, got in car and I still felt overwhelmed. I could feel the tears were going to come so warned hubby I wasn't hurting and that I was okay but I just needed to cry. And I did for the first time. It was as if I have been holding my breath for two months and finally could exhale.
I advised the nurse that was setting up my mapping for radiation treatment later that I was a bit emotional today and had a good cry. She smiled and said that most likely I'll have another good cry after the radiation treatment also. Its a good day today.
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Gardennerd, YAY for clean margins and nodes! So happy for you! It is a good day
I got emotional too after I finished rads.Had my one year mammo yesterday & saw RO & MO today for 3 month check up. Mammo was normal, what a wonderful word! Get another in 6 months. Check ups with both oncs were good. Go back to see them both in 3 months. Only issue I'm having is the zingers and tenderness in armpit and near lx site. See BS next week for check up with her.
Have a relaxing weekend everyone!
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GardenNerd, YES!! Wonderful news. I do know what you mean about holding your breath. And the good cry. It is very cathartic. That releases all those bottled up emotions.
Trish, great news! I had my mammo in April and it came back fine (BiRads 2). I think you don't realize how we're on tenterhooks waiting for the results until they come. July will be 3 years post-LX.
HUGS and Happy Weekend!!
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Gardennerd - I posted on here before that I was totally calm when I got my diagnosis, calm when I went in for my lumpectomy, finethe two weeks after. Then I went for my post-op visit and got the fantastic news of clear margins and negative nodes. Four days later I burst into tears at breakfast, much to my DH's consternation. Just like you, I had bottled up all those emotions and finally let the dam burst.
This is a very complicated business!
MJ
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Tappermom, it looks like we'll be rad buddies...and it looks like we've had similar diagnoses and I had surgery a day before you and I'm staring radiation the day after you. We'll have to make sure we keep each other company in this journey. You can private message me ANY time.
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Mustlove: You might want to see if your anesthesiologist can give you propofol. I asked for it for my breast surgery, but apparently they don't use it for that???? I had that the last time I had a colonoscopy and it's WONDERFUL! I woke up and felt like I'd just fallen asleep, with NO side effects at all. In the past, I've been the first one in and the last one out of the GI Center because of the dizziness and vomiting.
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TBalding: I'm to get a calendar with my rad appointments too. They already came through on my appontments on "MyChart" on the internet....don't know if any of you have that where you are. I've already written those on my own calendar and when I get the printout on Tuesday, I'm going to put them into my phone calendar with reminders too. It's good to know that exercise helps with the fatigue. I went back to my Zumba class yesterday and I'm hoping I can continue. I wasn't able to do this until 4 weeks after surgery because the second one was much more painful. But I modified movements too, except by the end of class, my incision hurt because of the arm movements, I think. I've been walking a couple times a week too. And so far, on Femara, which is supposed to cause weight gain, I've actually lost a pound, so I hope I can continue. Good luck with your 1 year exam!!!
I must be lucky or my surgeon is very good. I had a large area removed on re-excision, all the way to the chest wall/muscle. It looks kind of freaky to me, but my RO said it looks beautiful and couldn't believe that I had healed so well and it looked so good after a re-excision. There is small curved indentation currently. Although, she did warn me that after raditation it could become more prominent. My tumor was at 9 o'clock, so it's kind of tucked under my arm and not really noticeable.
Kim: I'm very fortunate that my radiation will only be 4 weeks. And started 5 weeks after surgery. I wouldn't change any trip plans until after your oncologist decides what and how long your therapy will be. As far as pain, I can say I had virtually none after the first surgery, except tenderness from the lymph node removal, and I discovered I needed to keep the surgical bra on for over a week at night. The second surgery was a bit different because of how deep he had to go. And it was actually the tightening of the incision that was the most uncomfortable, feeling sort of like raw/chafed rather than any real pain.
Regarding scopolamine patches: They really don't work AFTER the fact. So, if you're already nauseated, it's not going to stop that. I forgot to say that I was given one before my re-excision also. Not sure if it helped, or the change in anesthesia did it, but I had no nausea the second time. I was told to take it off after 24 hours. And Zofran does NOTHING for me.
ChiSandy: I could not have done all you did after each of my 2 surgeries. I did get fatigue pretty bad for about a week after the first one, and almost 2 weeks the second. So, I may be one of those who gets fatigued after the radiation as well. My oncotype was 14, with a 9% change of recurrence, so no chemo, and only 4 weeks of radiation. YAY! I am on letrozole already, and I'm somewhat fatigued but it's due to disrupted sleep patterns. I wake after 5 hours of sleep, lie awake for a long time, and sometimes can fall asleep for another hour and a half. I've had sleep issues for years, and finally found a medication that allowed me to sleep 8 hours a night (as opposed to 5-6) and now the letrozole has messed that all up again!!! I'm not loving the hot flashes either!
I'm glad I found this group! It really helps to read about other's experiences.
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So I am almost 2 weeks post op. Lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy. Clears margins and clear node. I swear things are worse now than 2 days post op. Major nerve pain in the arm in which the surgery took place. All the way down to my hand. My breast is terribly sore, the nipple hurts. Anybody else experience this kind of pain? I have a pretty high tolerance for pain, but if I have to live with this, it's going to be problematic.
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I had a similar experience, Renee, at least to the extent of experiencing more pain a couple of weeks after my surgery. My armpit and tricep were especially sore from the SNB. Suddenly at five weeks the pain subsided. I now just have soreness in my breast if I bump it. My tricep is numb and so feels weird but not painful. One thing I lost sight of: There was more than surgical glue holding my incision together. When I read my operative report, I realized I had internal stitches. We have to respect them and let the healing happen.
It will get better! Several ladies here - notably PontiacPeggy - reminded me that I had just been through major surgery.
Hope you're feeling better soon. Give it time!
MJ
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Thank you MJ. It just frustrates me as I am a very active person and at the moment this is really limiting me. You mentioned tricep pain, a lot of my pain is central to my bicep. And the pain in my wrist and hand makes me feel like I have arthritis. It's terrible. I see my surgeon on Monday for follow up and I will make my issues known. I'm just so tired of hearing that it's part of the healing process.
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Tbalding - SO good to hear of "normal" being your word for the day from 3 month mammogram. And hope you soak it in and enjoy the weekend too.
PontiacPeg - thanks so much. Your posts are so supportive to all
Tappermom - I love you sharing about the breakfast burst of tears. I'm amazed yours was four days later. I'm still kind of surprised of myself. I haven't felt like I was holding anything in . . . but apparently I was. Oh heck, it felt good.
ReneeF - hopefully the pain you are feeling is a sign of healing. Nerves are slow to recover.
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Just checking in to say that I am feeling really good today! I had a nanosecond of nausea, which passed quickly before I left the hospital. I was uber groggy post surgery, but I was told by one nurse beforehand redheads require 20% more anesthesia due to a gene mutation. My BS walked in on that conversation and said she would have to agree based on what she has seen. It took a few hours after I got home at 1pm to feel less out of it, but today I feel 90% cognitively. That's really great, since that's not even my norm.
I did not see my BS after the LX, as she spoke to DH that I did great. Not sure if that's normal to see her or not, but I know she had back-to-back surgeries. My wheelchair pusher said they had two complicated surgeries today. I am grateful to God mine wasn't one of them. In all things give thanks! She took only two lymph nodes but told DH they "felt fine." I don't understand that comment, except to assume she could feel if they were swollen or not? Waking in recovery, I cried, not suprised as that was my reaction after my wisdom teeth removal. I had some pain then, but my pain has been extremely mild to quite tolerable. I took only two pain pills yesterday and expect I won't need any further for now. I rested once I got home, though, getting out of bed for about two hours for a meal and to watch a little TV from the couch. DH has been a great nurse and cook.
I will not shower until tomorrow, and this surgical bra is keeping everything in place. They told me to keep on day/night until post op appt (minus the shower). I am curious to know how big the incision is, since it was larger than thought, but again, the tumor is out! I am truly thankful to my med team and my Saviour who has provided all that I need to equip me mentally at this time. I believe the LX was the right choice for me, even as this thing presented to be much larger than orginally thought.
While I am sad each of you have had to endure this experience, I am grateful you have chosen to be open and express the goods and bads here. Your courage, strength and positive attitudes are truly inspiring. I have always been an open book to those I know and don't know, frankly. That's not everyone's style, and that's ok. If through my own experiences, I can help another, I will offer that for them. I am ready to tackle the next steps and know the treatment plans/start dates.
I will catch up with posts later, as I am feeling a little tired, as I have been up since 6am. Keep positive and strong!0 -
KimPossible - SO happy to hear that all went well. You are sounding SO good. Keep eye on possible constipation, pump the water in. For me one pain pill with nausea had me off the pain medication. I took Tylenol from that point and that has gradually decreased considerably. Good news. When is your followup appt.? I must add your second to last paragraph is exactly how I feel about this site. You said it just right.
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Okay, ladies. Here's a non-breast cancer topic for you. We are trying to get mothers house ready to sell. The berber carpet is over 25 years old and pretty filthy. There is parquet underneath,of unknown condition. I can see in one room a fairly large area, 4'x4', of parquet was water damaged from a large house plant. No telling what the rest looks like. The den has concrete under it.
So, the question is do we pull it out , repair parquet damage, and replace the den carpet. Or do we just give a flooring allowance? One realtor says gut the flooring and replace it. Another says take up carpet and offer flooring allowance. The other says deep clean the carpet, offer flooring allowance, and call it a day. We just want to sell it fast. Unfortunately, none of us sibs has bought or sold a house in over 20 years and none has sold in this particular area.
This is a 2000-sq.ft. house, transitioning neighborhood half rental in Mobile, AL. Not a red hot market.Worth $$105-122,000 depending on which realtor you talk to.
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ReneeF: I imagine the pain is different for everyone due to where the tumor was and how much tissue was taken surrounding it. I had little to no pain after my first surgery, except for tenderness and a lump under the sentinel node incision. After the re-excision, I had more pain because more tissue was taken, all the way down to the chest wall. I had those bursts of shooting pains, which my doctor explained as the nerves getting used to nothing being there anymore. The tenderness around the incision took about 4 weeks to completely subside. I never had any pain in my underarm, arm or hand though. If that is troubling, I'd give your surgeon a call. Do you have a followup with him scheduled? I saw mine 2 weeks after surgery and will see him again the end of this month.
Kim: It's GREAT that you are feeling so good! Anesthesia can take a long time to wear off and not feel fatigued. My second surgery took almost 2 weeks...I was getting kind of frustrated, but then it just suddenly went away. You have a GREAT attitude and I'm sure you'll get through all of this with flying colors. My "motto" is in my signature. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
Mustlove: I would recommend what is easiest for you...and to not put in anything new, as the buyer will probably want to put their own taste and style into it. What I would do is deep clean the carpet and give the allowance.
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Renee, if it's a sharp, shooting “zapping" kind of pain it's cut nerves already beginning to regenerate and pathways reconnecting. Radiating to your wrist could be referred pain (but it could be completely unrelated to your surgery or tumor—nerve impingement in your cervical spine due to osteoarthritis, for which physical therapy is probably the best treatment—the timing might be just a coincidence). But if it's constant and increases in intensity, it could also be cording—but that usually doesn't develop so soon after surgery. Definitely mention it to your doctor.
Poodles, what’s happening in that neighborhood? Are there a lot of teardowns & rebuilds? If so, you might want to consider that the buyer might be looking either to do the same or gut the place, rehab and “flip” it. If the latter, an allowance might be the wiser thing to do. If the former, no point in either repairing or giving a repair allowance. If people are mostly buying and moving in, then get estimates on how much the repair would cost, and ask the realtor whether in their opinion you could recoup the investment by at least breaking even on the sale price. If you wouldn’t break even, consider the allowance.
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Kim, so glad surgery went well! Keep up the positive spirit. I did not see my BS after either surgeries. But she did talk to my husband both times. I saw her at post op a week later.
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Poodles, when I worked in real estate the "should I make the house move in ready" or sell "as is" often came up and I will tell you there is no right answer. That's a pretty large range in price you are being quoted - are they all "listing prices" or some what they eventually feel you will get. ChiSandy's comment about what the buyer would do with the house is important. When I sold my mother's home a number of years ago, I took a "low offer" and stipulated that there would be "no repairs". The house was 20 years old. My folks had done all the maintenance items (although it turned out there was a problem with the air that we hadn't realized) but very little In the way of "upgrades" or "cosmetics". The buyer did a fabulous job of rehabbing it and made a nice profit but we were glad to be out of it. The carpeting especially screamed the '80's and Mom wouldn't consider replacing it as it was "still perfectly good." My experience is that if the seller offers a "allowance" that buyers will come in low (because of ____) and then ask for the allowance too. You can authorize your realtor to say that you know the house needs some work and that is why you have priced it lower than the market. Another consideration - if you redo the floors, will that highlight other things that need doing, i.e., a paint job, kitchen or bathroom appliances etc. Good luck - another hassle to add to your already full plate.
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Poodles, I vote for clean and an allowance. Definitely don't replace. I pulled up the carpet in my Pontiac home about 10 years ago. I did NOT refinish the floor though I did but a product on it that made it look a bit better. I'd say the floors hadn't see daylight in 50 years. Sandy & Taco have the right idea. Say you've priced it to reflect the condition it is in. Hope it sells ASAP!!!
HUGS!
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Taco & Sandy, the neighborhood was built in 1968 primarily for professors at the college across the street and other professionals. Over the last 15-20 years the homes have increasingly been occupied by students and young families who are renting. If you ride through the neighborhood you can tell exactly who rents and who owns. The homes in the subdivision go for $95,000 to $125,000. The homes on either side were bought for $95-100K by an investor who fixed them up and rented them to a company who has turned them into group homes for autistic adults. Parking is constantly a problem due to staff coming and going.
Personally, I don't think my mother is going to get more than $105k. Floors are really the least of the problems. There have been no upgrades in the kitchen or bathrooms. There's a small backyard with rusty fencing, rotted posts holding up the front awning, the sliding glass doors look frosted, and the front lawn is a very steep slope. The house has aluminum wiring. I suspect the sunroom in not up to code. And the hot water heater was never vented properly--the first thing that assails you when you come in the side door is the odor of natural gas. I have pointed it out to my mother several times, but she swears she couldn't smell it.n There is NO WAY this house will pas an FHA inspection. At least the AC is brand new and the roof is in good condition.
Considering the low value of the house, I'm really not in favor of doing a lot to it, but my brother-in-law is really beating the drum for fixing things up and my mother has ultimate trust in him. She does not trust me at all, so I'm not going to advise her on ANYTHING related to financial stuff. I'm going down there next weekend to visit her, as are my sister from MS and my brother from NC. We're going to meet up with the sister who lives down there and try to come to some suggestions that they can take to my mother. I'm really hoping they can convince her to sell 'as is', rather than put several thousand dollars of cosmetic work into it.
Complicating the whole shebang is that Mother never transferred title from her husband's name to hers. So it's still in his name only. Dave left a very confusing Will regarding the dispersal of the house after she sells or dies in dispute. Both his kids are dead and there is only one grandchild. As Mother reads the will, she believes that the grandchild gets 50% of the house; the way we read the Will, it looks to us like he gets 25%. Unfortunately, Mother told him that he would get 50%, so that's what he is counting on. She's going to need a good estate attorney and probably a real estate attorney to figure this out, I think. The grandchild has a step-mother who is a tiger mom--if he doesn't get what he wants, I KNOW she will hellp him contest it. We really nee to get Dave's Will interpreted properly. Mother adores the attorney who drew up that stupid Will, so she's NOT going to want to go to anyone else.
Ugh. This is such a mess.
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Boy, Poodles, NOTHING in your life is straightforward or easy, is it? Good luck!!!
HUGS!
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Maybe the drafting attorney can decipher the will for you. The percentages may be affected if there is language in there that mentions shares going to legatees “per capita and not per stirpes.” “Per stirpes” means that if, for example, there were four legatees named in the will and one of them dies before the testator does, the estate would still be divided up four ways—25% to each surviving legatee and 25% divided equally between the dead legatee’s heirs. “Per capita” means that each surviving legatee would get 1/3. A good probate attorney and a good real estate attorney would be ideal, but an experienced general practice attorney would have expertise in both fields.
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Hi Everyone!
I know this is probably not the right place to post this, but seeing as there are so many smart and insightful women on this thread who have already been where I am, I thought I'd post here. I got my surgical pathology results back, with almost all really great news! The tumor is nothing to worry about- tubular and slow growing. Technically I don't even have to do hormone therapy for it- no chemo, and 7 weeks radiation as expected. I am very grateful!!!!
Thing is, they found all these other cells and markers, although everyone was adamant that they aren't technically caner- LCIS and ALH, or lobular neoplasias. Apparently I have "active breasts" which makes me laugh!!!! Lots of monitoring and MRIs in my future- along with tamoxfin to tamp down the markers. I've read this is unusual to have this much "activity" on top of the invasive carcinoma-- what do you guys think? Has this happened to you? Anyone else with markers and tons of follow up in the works? Much thanks for any responses--
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Thanks for the suggestion, Sandy. I do know that the will gave my mother 50% and each of his children 25%, with the term "per stirpes" assigned to his son (his daughter never had children.) So, maybe Mother's attorney can help us with this. I'm not sure how to go about getting title transferred to her. She is pretty weak most days, so jumping through hoops down at the courthouse would be hard on her (she can barely hold it together long enough to go to the doctor.)
And you are right, Peggy. NOTHING in my life is simple, it seems. And the fact that we are renovating our own house to get it ready for market just makes things that much more difficult. Thankfully I have a great supportive husband who allowed me to buy about $200 worth of bathroom fixtures, drawer pulls, hardware, and 8 new satin aluminum doorknobs this afternoon--the ones in place are 40 years old and most of the brass is worn off. And it only took about 20min for us to decide on a paint color for the whole interior! I mean, who does that?! WE DO.
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Natty, I’m confused—if it’s “tubular” but still cancer, it’s not “benign," but rather, non-aggressive and slow-growing. The LCIS and ADH are risks for invasive cancer but not necessarily pre-cancers (i.e., the LCIS may never turn into ILC and the ALH may never become LCIS).
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Poodles, when you get Mom's house sold, your house sold and moved to where YOU want to be, I suggest you go "off the grid" for a few hundred years
HUGS!
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Help! I have a friend who had a prophylactic double mastectomy after having ovarian cancer 5 years ago and testing positive for BRCA genes (mother and father both had BC). Anyway, she is miserable right now. Had implants or whatever the first step is with the mastectomy. She said she is looking at 4 more surgeries in the next year and is hurting. Is this usual? She's in southern California so I'm supporting her long distance. Can you tell me what's normal/usual?
HUGS!
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Peggy, you laugh but going off the grid is exactly what we're planning! Seriuosly, the plan is to sell the house and move up to our RV in north Georgia. We may decide to take a trip out to the Pacific Northwest to stay with my sister for a bit, decide if we want to stay out their longer. Maybe spend the winter in Florida. You know, having my job go south really feels like a gift now. We've been talking about selling the house, but it was always qualified with "we need to stay in my service area". Well, not anymore! I can work anywhere. I have two degrees, nursing and elementary/early childhood education. So I can do a lot of things. Whee~!
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ChiSandy- I'm sorry if I didn't make it clear about the tumor pathology. The actual invasive carcinoma tumor is definitely cancer, but slow growing and tubular. I'm just surprised that they found different markers and pre cancer cells that had nothing to do with the original cancer in the tissue surrounding the tumor-- I've not read of this, and I'm a little freaked out. I just thought it'd be the tumor, end of story.
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Peggy, if your friend has more surgery ahead she probably got TE's to stretch the skin and pectoral muscle. They can be quite uncomfortable. She can ask for muscle relaxant to help. Encourage her to post in the TE A Beginner's Primer Thread in the reconstruction section.
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