Delays and Detours

 So about a month ago I went back to see my consultant for a post op check up and to get my pathology results. I went in there feeling pretty good and expecting just to talk about radiotherapy. Ha! I couldn’t have been more wrong!!

Firstly the pathology results. I knew there were 3 small tumours but pathology found an extra one making four in total. They also found 3 clusters of DCIS which is a type of non invasive cancer that has the potential to become invasive. Also surgery did not have clear margins on one side.

All the lymph nodes were removed, I knew the 2 biopsied had cancer cells but pathology found 7 positive nodes out of the 22 removed.

None of this was good news! The amount of tumours and the unclear margin made a mastectomy a necessity. The number of positive lymph nodes meant the chances that this had spread elsewhere had increased.

My consultant said I would need a bone scan and ct scan before progressing. He tried to reassure me that the surgery had got all the visible cancer and this was all just a sweep up. 

The bone scan was fun as I had to be injected with radioactive dye first. I kept waiting for my superpowers to be revealed! Haha. The ct scan also needed an injection and the nurse had trouble finding a vein so I ended up with a big black bruise on the back of one hand.

The long wait for the results ended today when I went back to see my consultant. I was absolutely petrified as I knew bad results would change my diagnosis to Stage 4 - incurable.

Thankfully the scans were both fine although I have gallstones apparently and arthritis in my knees! So my diagnosis stays at stage 3 cancer. I now have a firmer treatment plan going forward. We are still throwing everything at it to reduce the chance of a recurrence as this was quite aggressive 

Basically this means a mastectomy within the next month and I’ve decided against reconstruction. I may post separately about my reasons for this as there’s quite a lot to say. I get 6-8 weeks to recover from surgery before starting 4 months of chemo. I assume I’ll get a little break after that before radiotherapy but hasn’t been confirmed.

So this is where I’m at now. It was a hold up and a detour for the scans but I’m back on track now and just have to keep my anxiety under control so my blood pressure behaves before the surgery this time! 

As for the bloody gallstones, I’ll deal with them once I’ve finished this cancer journey! 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Journey Part 2 - hello from the other side

Image
 Well, here I am! Operation was on Wednesday and today is Friday. It’s been quite an intense few days. So we were told to get to the hospital by 8am on Wednesday to have guide wires inserted. This is when they use ultrasound to place wires into the areas to be removed to help guide the surgeon.  Only issue was that the radiologist had called in sick. They had managed to get another one to cover but we had to wait for her arrive. It was about 10 when she saw me. I was supposed to have 2 wires inserted - one for Damien the bastard tumour and one for an area that hadn’t been biopsied but that looked a bit suspicious. The radiologist though spotted a 3rd tiny area that she felt looked dodgy. She wanted to put a wire in it to ensure it was taken out too but had to get my surgeon to agree first. He was in theatre so there was a huge delay but he did agree. So by lunchtime I had 3 wires stuck in my boob and was waiting on the ward. Now I’d been told my op would be at 8:30am but at this point
Read more

A journey part 1

Ok, deep breath, here I go. So breast cancer has been a lurking presence in my life for a long time. My mum had it twice. First time she had a lumpectomy and radiotherapy. Second time after repeated lumpectomies she ended up with a mastectomy and a decade on hormone treatment. I had it drummed into me about how to check and what to do to mitigate the fact that I was higher risk because of my mum.  Anyway on 26th April I found a tiny lump while in the shower. We were going to Coventry that weekend so I brooded on it until Monday and then pulled on my big girls pants and got an emergency doctors appointment. She confirmed it was there and very small (1-2 cm) she referred me immediately to the hospital and I got an appointment for 9th May.  I spent the time waiting for the appointment googling different things it could be apart from cancer. My appointment included a multitude of tests. I had a mammogram first, then a second one with higher contrast,  then an ultrasound where the radiologi
Read more

Recovery

 I thought I would just cover a few things here that anyone who is themselves or who has a loved one going on this rollercoaster journey like me, might find useful or interesting. 1. You will feel better once you’re home, everyone does, but don’t expect to feel normal! Get help, don’t do too much and if help isn’t automatically offered then demand it!! 2, if you come home with a drain, stick it in a tote bag that you can put on your shoulder. Easiest way to carry it and not forget it.  3. Take the painkillers and don’t be a hero! You will know your own pain tolerance so judge it accordingly. For me, so far paracetamols have been enough. I took codeine once but didn’t like how I felt. 4. Your bowels will be a bit buggered up. Surgery does this and codeine can make it worse. I was given medicine to help and also am eating fruit and prunes! 5. Rest but walk as well! Energy levels will vary but I have found that once I started walking more, my general health felt better. 6. Do your exercis
Read more