Most of my cancer information is listed in my blog.  Before I started my blog, I just wrote out stuff on my webpage which is listed below.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Well, a lot has happened this week and a  lot of my questions were answered, even though it maybe wasn't what I wanted to hear.

On Monday, I went and got an ultrasound on my ovary.  I found out on Wednesday that the mass on my ovary was solid.  At this time, they don't know if it's cancer.  They can not do a biopsy on the mass because it is a risk  that the mass might break.  If it is cancer, this would be very bad.  For that reason, I'm having surgery to remove the ovary.  In the process, I'm having my other ovary and my uterus removed so that I eliminate any risk of the cancer ever coming back in these places.  The removal of everything will also allow me to take a stronger cancer drug than Tomaxifen.  My surgery for this is Friday, August 24.  I will be in the hospital for 4-5 days.  Apparently, when this type of surgery is done, it shuts down your bowel movements.  So, they keep you in the hospital until you can eat and go to the restroom.  Once I get back home, I plan to recuperate for a few days and hope to be able to start working from home soon afterwards.  I will not be able to drive for 6 weeks because of the medical issues and the law.  

I also found out that I will need another surgery on my breast.  This surgery is scheduled for this Friday, August 17.  They need to go in and take out more of the tissue around the area where the cancer mass was located.  This is a precautionary surgery.  They want enough area around the cancer to be taken out so that there is a lower probability of missing some of the cancer.  This can't be determine until someone looks at the tissue.  This happens about 1 out of 10 times.  

As I think I mentioned before, I'm at an intermediate risk of the breast cancer coming back.  My score on the oncotype test was 23 which means I have a 15% chance of getting cancer again in the next 10 years.  My doctor has recommended that I have chemo done.  My gynecologist oncologist, also says that chemo is a good idea since I'm so young.  So, I will be starting chemo about 3-4 weeks after my ovarian surgery.  I was given treatment information from my oncologist.  This could change depending on what they find on my ovary.  Currently, I was told that I would be taking the following three drugs: Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin (as an antibody).  I will be receiving the chemo every 3 weeks for 6 sessions.  My hair will fall out.  (O' joy!)  I do plan to work during this time, but from home.  My immune system will be lowered so it will be better for me to not be around a lot of other people.

Wow, a lot has happened this week.  I think I feel a bit better knowing what is to happen and why.  It's still a scary thing, though.  Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.

Saturday, August 4, 2007

On Tuesday of this week, I received a call from my oncologist.  That should have been a clue to me that something wasn't right.  She told me that in my CT scan that found a mass on my right ovary that is about 4.5 cm.  At this point, they are not sure what it is, but need to know before treatments are decided and started.  

I'm scheduled for an transvaginal u/s test (that should be fun) on Monday, August 6.  I thought she has mentioned an sonogram, but now realize that probably not.  This will tell me what the mass is and whether we need to worry about it.  A lot of women get cyst but this is just bad timing for me.

Also, my oncologist told me that she received back the results from my oncotype DX test.  The results came by intermediate (I have to ask her what the exact number was) that I could get cancer back in the next 10 years.  This means that I'll most likely have to have chemo.

My oncologist appointment is this Wednesday, August 8.  I'll have better information after that appointment to let everyone know what is going on.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

First, for those of you who don't know, the sentinel lymph node that they took out last Friday came back negative for cancer. Yea!  That means that the cancer had not spread from the lump as far as they can tell.  If it did move anywhere else, the radiation treatments that I will eventually do will take care of anything else that might be too small to see at this time.

I had a bone scan done on Monday, July 23.  Wasn't too bad.  I went there and received an injection of radiation.  They did an initial scan with a machine that is basically a tube that goes up and down your body.  I then went back in 2 hours and had the real bone scan done.  The second time, I was in a different machine that kind of looks like the machines you see on TV and kind of expect.  It took about 30 minutes since they were doing a whole body scan.  They started at my head (the plate was really close to my face -- good thing I'm not claustrophobic) and the machine slowing made it's way down my body.  It wasn't so bad except I had to lay still the whole time.  They did a slightly different run over my feet for some reason with a divider between my feet.  

I received a call from one of the nurses at my oncologist's office.  The bone scan came back negative for cancer.  Yea, again!  The only thing that was abnormal was my left ankle, which of course, I broke last year.

Today, Friday, July 27, I had a CT scan done.  I was a little nervous about this test because both my brother and grandfather were allergic to iodine running through their blood.  So, last night, I had to drink some sulfate liquid.  Not too bad, but not something I would just drink for the heck of it.  I then had to drink another jug of it this morning and then another cup when I got to the hospital.  The CT scan took about 30 minutes, also.  They did a couple of initial scans and then put iodine through my blood. Very weird feeling.  It's very warm through your body and it upset my stomach for a couple of minutes.  (Luckily, I did not have an allergic reaction to the iodine.)  They then did the scans again.  This is more of a tube like machine that scans your internal organs.  I hope to hear the results from that test sometime next week.

Keep me in your prayers.  The CT scan results and the results from my cancer check are the next big things that I'm waiting for.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Yesterday (July 20), was my surgery to do my sentinel node removal surgery.  We got to the hospital at 8:15.  I went to the lab first to have an urination test done.  They do a pregnancy test on all women before surgery.  I then went up to the outpatient surgery area.  The nice thing about doing the surgery at Ohio Valley General Hospital is that I had my own room while I was there.  That was a nice touch.  Aveek and Mom were able to stay in that room the whole time.

Around 9am, they came and got me to take me down to the mammogram area.  They did a couple pictures to see where the clip was that was left in me from the original biopsy.  I didn't realize that is what was left in my breast from the biopsy, but it is basically a holder so they know where the lump was if it does turn out to be cancer.  They had to put a needle and wire into the area.  That hurt like crazy -- very similar to the needle biopsy.  They also injected a radiation dye close to my lymph nodes so that the first node would glow and it would be easier for the surgeon to find.

I then went back to my room.  My surgery was scheduled for 10:30.  I didn't get taken to the OR until about 11:30.  I then waited.  They injected me with something to clear out my IV.  Around noon, they finally took me back to get my surgery.  Put the mask on me and I was out.  Next thing I remember was being woken up in the recovery room.  I did have some pain, mainly in the nipple area.  They did open me up around that area to clean up anything that might have been left from the original lump that was there.  They also took out one of my lymph nodes.  Apparently, it was quite deep and required a little bit more digging to get to it.  I do have about a 4 inch cut which goes under my arm.  I also have a cut in the front of my breast which is stitched up.  

After my recovery, they took me back to my room and gave me a muffin and some more pain medicine.  I ended up sleeping for another hour or so.  They did let me come home which was nice.  I did have some pain last night but not too bad.  My pain today isn't too great, either.  I can't raise my arm too much, though.  I go back to the doctor in 2 weeks to have the stitches taken out.

The doctor told me that I should know by Tuesday if the cancer had spread.  I expecting to know something by Thursday.  He told us earlier last time and it took two days more, so this time I'm prepared.  When I hear the results, I will post them here.

Friday, July 13, 2007

Aveek and I went and talked to an oncologist this morning to find out more information and see what my options are.  The doctor was really nice.  

First, based on the information that she has, it appears that when my surgery is done next Friday (7/20), they will check to make sure that they have gotten out all of the tumor.  She is having testing done on some of the cells of the cancer to determine the make up of the cancer.  This gives them more information to determine what my risk is of the cancer coming back.   If the risks are low, then I will NOT have to have chemo.  I'm hoping for that outcome, of course.  

I will have radiation therapy done.  As I understand, this will take a few weeks, where I will get doses of radiation only to the breast in question every day over a few weeks.  I will also be put on a drug called Tamoxifen for the next five years.  This is to help the chances of getting cancer again lowered.  Basically, since my cancer is estrogen related, this drug helps keeps the estrogen levels in my body low  while helping to stop cancer from developing again.  

I will be getting a CT scan of my body and a bone scan to make sure that there isn't any cancer any place else in my body.  I'll schedule those test for the week after my surgery.  My next scheduled appointment with my oncologist is August 8.

A word of caution to anyone who is on birth control (mainly the pill) and has been taking it for a long period of time.  We think that one of the reasons that I have gotten breast cancer while I'm so young (just turned 37) was because I don't have kids and I've been on birth control for such a long time.  I can only think of one of my friends that might fit into this category -- but keep this in mind if you have other friends that might fit this criteria.  It appears that fitting both of those two criteria can put you at a higher risk.  I don't believe birth control along will hurt you, but having kids reduces your risk quite a bit.  

I appreciate everyone keeping me and Aveek in their prayers!