Starting chemo February 2020
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I'm out. 7 hrs. long. Took out 6 nodes. I have vacuums things on my breasts (forgot the name lol). Five drains, two on my good side, three on my cancer side. Port was removed as well. Staying overnight. Will be released tomorrow. That's all the info I got from my fiancé since I won't talk to the doctors until tomorrow.
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Sleep well! Blow in that thing. Have fun with all those drains!
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micdpowers, they have not given me the thing to blow yet lol
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SE- yay for port removal! Boo for drains. I don’t miss drains..ugh. Hopefully you’re on recovery road and this drains are out sooner rather than later! Also, hope you have a quick pathology turn around with favorable results! You’ve got this
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ajminn3, thank you. Hoping for all of that too lol
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Glad you made it through surgery! That's a big step! Hugs!
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wow 7 hours! Glad you made it through and nice they removed the port too.
Drains suck but, if they'll be gone in 1-2 weeks. Best of luck with recovery, don't over do it.
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SE - glad to see you smiling. 7 hours is a long surgery! Rest up and take it easy. Those drains suck, hopefully they’ll be gone before too long.
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For those who have been through radiation, how do you deal with the mask? I feel very uncomfortable and get a lot of anxiety after about 5 minutes. I've only had my simulation and dry run. They lasted about 45 minutes. The techs swear that the real thing doesn't last that long. Please tell me it doesn't!
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Dyson- I didn’t have to wear a mask...I just laid on my back in a mold fitted for me. Radiation sessions for me lasted no more than 15 minutes. My initial one was a good 45-60 minutes long and my arms were asleep by the end! My actual sessions were much shorter!
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my radiation took 15 minutes. I didn't have any issue wearing my mask. I wore a mask for 6+ hours during chemo so 15-20 minutes doesn't even phase me.
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I guess some people do not have to wear the plastic mask that locks you onto the table. Maybe it's because I am having radiation on my neck as well. There is this plastic mask that was formed for me and I cannot move at all while I am having to take deep breaths. It's quite uncomfortable and I feel like I'm going to have a panic attack after I'm there for awhile.
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dysonsphere - yah, that does not sound like fun at all. I don't have claustrophobia exactly, but I tend to get a little panicky if I start thinking about being stuck somewhere and I do not like being "wrapped" (like in a spa). With the MRI and other machines - I find that if I shut my eyes before I even go into the machine or the machine starts moving towards me - and so I never see how close the machines are to me - then I can get thru it ok. I keep my eyes closed and just imagine a huge open sky. Would they let you wear headphones in? Maybe listening to music or a book would help distract you. I don't go for radiation and have no idea what the room/machines are like so sorry if these suggestions are way off. My only other one would be to try to "practice" at home with something to mimic the plastic mask.
When I got the radioisotopes and had to hold still for the pictures I made a game where I closed my eyes and counted the seconds and then would see how close I was to the actual clock on the wall. Example: I counted 1-mississippi, 2-mississippi, etc. for three minutes and then checked how accurate I was to actual time passing. Silly, but just a distraction.
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dysonsphere - I don't have to be in any type of mold really, I lay back with arms over head holding the bars up there. And my head is cradled, but it's not constricting. I do have to wear my face mask, and some bother me more than others, so I make sure to wear the ones that are most comfortable. And I agree with micdpowers, it really helps me close my eyes during any of the tests or procedures where I'll feel closed in, then I don't really notice what's happening. I do have to hold my breath six times each session, but the actual session is usually about 5 minutes long, it's really quick. Maybe 7-8 sometimes.
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UGH I hope I don't have to wear a mask like that. I had a panic attach during my brain scan and they have to bring my fiancé in to massage my legs and help me relax. During my other scan I took an eye mask and covered my eyes before the machine started moving.
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SE, I hope you are recovering well!!
I'm going for my treatment in a couple of hours. Hopefully it is short and sweet. I can do anything for a few minutes! lol
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Good luck lol
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Wow, dysonsphere that doesn't sound comfortable at all. I just had to lay on my back in the cast they made during my simulation.
SE hope you're doing well
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Dysonsphere- I hope your treatments go quickly. The mask does not sound comfortable and I think I’d have a hard time with it too!
SE- hope you are healing well so far.
How is everyone else doing? I got my OS shot yesterday and have round 6 (? I’ve lost track...) of HP along with a DEXA Scan for bone density.
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I'm doing well. I'm just about 2 weeks post final radiation and my skin is healing nicely. I got for Kadcyla #5 on Monday and that's been treating me well (so far). I've been on Tamoxifen for 3 weeks now and, doing well on that too, only SEs are mild hot flashes that don't last long.
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My first rad went better than the simulation and dry run. The tech showed me how to change position in the mask since it was hurting me and it was a much shorter time frame. I also took some Tylenol to help with the discomfort of the table. 1 down, 29 to go!
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Did anyone here left surgery with vacuums on their breasts? It allegedly speeds up the healing process.
And I also had this idea that they were going to cut off my breasts and put together my stomach and chest but they didn't. They took out all the breast tissue through the nipples and removed them. So I still have the outside skin of my breasts.
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No, I didn't have a wound Vac, I thought they only used them if there was issues with the healing. My understanding is that it works great and speeds up healing.
Yeah, I wasn't sure what I expected but, it's not what I got. I actually thought they'd chop it all off and the skin would be very tight and flat. Instead I ended up having little mounds that are now pretty big and round
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Morrigan- so happy to hear you made it through rads ok and have few side effects from Kadcyla and Tam. That’s so, so great!
Dyson- that’s great that your first “regular” rad session was quick. It gets old going in everyday, but you’ll be done before you know it!
SE- I did not have a vac.
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Has anyone's nose hairs started growing back yet? I have at least a 3/4 inch of hair on my head, I've had to shave my armpits and my legs again, and all the "other hairs" are growing back in (in strange formation, I might add) but the snot still just drips straight out of my nose at high speed with nothing to slow it down. My laundry comes out of the dryer with tons of little bits of kleenex that have gone through the wash because I forget to empty my pockets - which are always stuffed with tissue because of the constant drip drip drip.
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No, those are being stubborn, everything else is back or starting to come back.
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micdpowers, my nose hairs have been out. I already went back to waxing my legs.
Question, how come the info for my surgery and hormonal therapy that I have completed don't show on my signature?
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you have to change them to make public in settings
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morrigan_2575, thanks
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My hair is coming in pretty well now, my kids say I look more like someone who did a Covid head shave then a cancer patient now. We are actually doing family photos this Friday and I'm going with my hair, hopefully I can smooth it down and it will look ok. I kind of want to remember this year as it really is. My other hair is coming back (also in strange formations, lol) and my one annoying chin hair has reappeared. I have one hair that would seem to show up out of nowhere each month, that I pluck. I think it's hormonal, so I'm wondering about if my ovaries are waking back up too. Also, my skin is breaking out like a teenager so much acne, and I"m moody. It all feels very hormonal.
Meeting with my oncologist on Wednesday before I start Kadcyla (I think). She sent me a note that I would be switching, but of course my appointment still says Herceptin/Perjetta on my app. I'm also anticipating being prescribed tamoxifen at this appointment. My last radiation is Thursday, I'm ready for that to be over. Do you guys have any suggestions on questions I should ask my onc at this point. I haven' seen her in a few months, I want to make sure I take advantage of the face time while I'm in my appointment and before I start all this new stuff.
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