Today, we began the adventure of fertility preservation!
It started with a 9:00 am appointment for blood work and an ultrasound. When I got to the doctor's office, I was one of 20 other women who were there for the same thing. I felt bad because all I could think was, "all of these women are dying to have ONE baby and I'm here to make sure I can have MORE babies". I felt selfish and guilty being there, but then I thought to myself, "I am sure none of these women would ever want to trade places with me".
I also felt the need to tell everyone I talked to why I was there. I have no idea why but I dropped the C word about four times....to the lady who took my blood, to the nurse who did the ultrasound, to the nurse who gave me my medication calendar and to a woman sitting next to me in the waiting room who was making small talk with me. Her comment was "doing this on a Saturday is the worst", and my response was "well, I've got one shot to get it done since I start chemo in three weeks!". EEK! It was like the record screeching to a halt. Sorry lady, but I could care less what day I do this! Being here at all stinks and I'd rather be at home playing with my son instead of dealing with this cancer crap!
The doctor's office called me around 3:30 to tell me that all my test results came back normal and I could start the hormone shots and pills. I am taking a drug called Femara (ironically, its also used to treat breast cancer patients). Its a pill I have to take every night for three days. Femara stimulates the ovaries, but will not create a surge of estrogen in my body. Since my cancer is very estrogen receptive, Femara is being used to ensure that during this process, my estrogen levels don't go crazy and provoke more cancer cells to grow. In addition to Femara, I am also giving myself shots of Gonal-f which stimulates the ovaries to grow (and eventually) release lots of little eggs. These two drugs combined are very safe for me and will hopefully produce the desired effect without waking any sleeping cancer cells in my body.
So being the baby that I am, I could not give myself the shot. I made Jim do it. Sorry everyone, but as tough as I am, I hate needles. I mixed up the Gonal-f dosage, filled the syringe, gave it to Jim and said "Stick it to me!!" Well, not really...I said "Hurry up, its gonna hurt!!". And he did, and it did! Ouch!
The Gonal-f shots will continue for the rest of the cycle until I am told that enough eggs have been stimulated. Once that happens, its time for something called a "Trigger Shot". I am dreading this. Its the shot that goes into the muscle and hurts like hell. That shot tells the little eggs to release and within 24 hours, I will have them harvested.
What are the side effects of all of this? Mood swings, bloating, water retention, weight gain (up to 10 lbs). So basically, its like having the worst PMS of your life. There are also some risks too, but being a healthy woman (aside from the little cancer thing), I should be OK. I've read that some women look like they are 4 - 5 months pregnant by "Trigger Shot" day - I can't imagine that and I hope it doesn't happen to me. Fingers crossed, I just get super moody and that will be the worst of it.
On Tuesday, I will go back to see the doctor. I'll have another series of blood work and another ultrasound. They will reassess the shots and determine if the dosage is correct.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Some Cancer Humor
I found this on another young breast cancer survivor's website. I had to repost because it made me laugh. Some of these are so true....
"Cancer is Like a Wedding"
"Huh?" You ask..."One of the worst things to happen to you is like one of the best?" Why yes, yes it is my friend....and I'll tell you why...
1. They are both expensive.
2. You get presents.
3. You get behind in thank you notes.
4. You obsess over every detail.
5. Sometimes you wish you could just hop a plane to Vegas.
6. You have a binder detailing every expense.
7. You have the obligatory nervous breakdown.
8. Your mom thinks she knows what you want.
9. You find the most amazing things to buy on the internet.
10. You talk to relatives you haven't seen in years.
11. You haven't worried about your hair this much since prom.
12. You wear gowns. Sure, one "opens to the front", but who cares?
13. You look at your husband and tell yourself how lucky you are.
14. It's all about you.
15. When it's all over, you think to yourself, "How will I fill the time?"
"Cancer is Like a Wedding"
"Huh?" You ask..."One of the worst things to happen to you is like one of the best?" Why yes, yes it is my friend....and I'll tell you why...
1. They are both expensive.
2. You get presents.
3. You get behind in thank you notes.
4. You obsess over every detail.
5. Sometimes you wish you could just hop a plane to Vegas.
6. You have a binder detailing every expense.
7. You have the obligatory nervous breakdown.
8. Your mom thinks she knows what you want.
9. You find the most amazing things to buy on the internet.
10. You talk to relatives you haven't seen in years.
11. You haven't worried about your hair this much since prom.
12. You wear gowns. Sure, one "opens to the front", but who cares?
13. You look at your husband and tell yourself how lucky you are.
14. It's all about you.
15. When it's all over, you think to yourself, "How will I fill the time?"
Angel Looking Out for Me!
I am convinced there is someone looking out for me up there....
Just when I thought things couldn't get worse with Shady Grove Fertility, they gave me a very pleasant surprise and shocked me completely. Yesterday, my nurse called to tell me that my medications were being 'comped' by their in-house pharmacy. It turns out that many patients who don't use all their medication will 'donate' their meds back to the pharmacy for cancer patients. All the meds that I needed had been donated and they had plenty in stock. So instead of paying $1,650 for medication, I paid $35. Amazing!
Anyway, this only cements my belief that I have an angel looking out for me and that God works in very powerful ways. I was never one to do self breast exams - I didn't think I needed to b/c I was too young for cancer. But on February 24th, something inside me said "take a feel of the girls just to make sure they are OK"....And I found a lump. I can't even imagine if I didn't do that self exam. My normal annual exam isn't until September...would waiting another seven months to find the lump have made a difference? I think it probably would have and I may not have the great prognosis I have now.
Just when I thought things couldn't get worse with Shady Grove Fertility, they gave me a very pleasant surprise and shocked me completely. Yesterday, my nurse called to tell me that my medications were being 'comped' by their in-house pharmacy. It turns out that many patients who don't use all their medication will 'donate' their meds back to the pharmacy for cancer patients. All the meds that I needed had been donated and they had plenty in stock. So instead of paying $1,650 for medication, I paid $35. Amazing!
Anyway, this only cements my belief that I have an angel looking out for me and that God works in very powerful ways. I was never one to do self breast exams - I didn't think I needed to b/c I was too young for cancer. But on February 24th, something inside me said "take a feel of the girls just to make sure they are OK"....And I found a lump. I can't even imagine if I didn't do that self exam. My normal annual exam isn't until September...would waiting another seven months to find the lump have made a difference? I think it probably would have and I may not have the great prognosis I have now.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
I spoke too soon....
Last post I said this week would be a slower pace with no doctor's appts....WRONG. I'm hurry up mode again. Things are moving quickly with fertility stuff, mainly b/c Shady Grove fertility is a disaster. I'm convinced that no one there communicates. Phone calls don't get returned, emails aren't responded to, paperwork is lost, no one follows up on things they say they will....I'm very frustrated. So now, the payment paperwork was NEVER processed last week so the research was never done into what my insurance would cover and what it would not.
I am also trying to get some of my meds covered by fertile hope (Lance Armstrong started this organization to help cancer patients with fertility issues). Anyway, I am VERY VERY VERY stressed out b/c none of that was done by Shady Grove and I need to start meds this weekend. It takes 3 - 4 days to get the meds via mail order. So again, its hurry up, get this done ASAP so that we can get you the drugs you need to do the fertility 'stuff'.
Luckily, the lady I spoke to regarding this issue was about as annoyed as I was and has (again) sped up the process with a few phone calls. Hoping to get this back on track and moving along TODAY.
I am also trying to get some of my meds covered by fertile hope (Lance Armstrong started this organization to help cancer patients with fertility issues). Anyway, I am VERY VERY VERY stressed out b/c none of that was done by Shady Grove and I need to start meds this weekend. It takes 3 - 4 days to get the meds via mail order. So again, its hurry up, get this done ASAP so that we can get you the drugs you need to do the fertility 'stuff'.
Luckily, the lady I spoke to regarding this issue was about as annoyed as I was and has (again) sped up the process with a few phone calls. Hoping to get this back on track and moving along TODAY.
Friday, May 21, 2010
MUGA and Wigs
Today I went for a MUGA scan of my heart. They perform this scan before, during and after chemo to determine what (if any) effects chemo is having on the heart. Today was a baseline test. It consisted of a shot of a tin compound 15 minutes before the scan, followed by a shot of a radioactive material. They placed three discs on my chest (similar to the ones they place on you during an EKG). Then I had to go into something similar to a MRI machine for the scan. It took 30 minutes. Simple!
The director of the clinical trial office with my oncology group also called me today. So far, all looks good for the trial...he said I needed a few more tests (a physical, CAT scan, blood work, etc). We must be done with all of the fertility treatments by the end of June to get into the trial. In other words, I must have my first round of chemo by July 7th. So far, so good!
I also had a pleasant surprise from a coworker who is a 6 year breast cancer survivor. She brought in several of her old wigs for me to try on, she gave me a wig stand and some sleep caps for my head. Honestly, I am still not digging the concept of a wig. But her wigs did look very realistic, they felt like real hair and they looked good. She also showed me two pictures of her bald. Those pictures really hit me hard. I don't know why, but all I could think is "oh God, that's going to be me" and I couldn't handle it! It made me so sad...it was kinda of a downer, but also a pick me up in a way because six years later, SHE'S STILL HERE AND HEALTHY!
When I got home from the MUGA today, there was a lovely flower arrangement on our front steps. My civic association from work, Hillwood, sent me a lovely bouquet of flowers. I've missed their last two civic association meetings (first because it was the evening after my lumpectomy and the second because I was off visiting family in NJ). I usually never miss their meetings (its an easy "hi, you have no crime in your neighborhood" and then I get to go home!) but missing two in a row, they asked if everything was OK. I ended up telling the civic association president about my medical issues and she was so understanding! She even added me to her prayer list at church.
Anyway, the bouquet and card were beautiful and it again makes me realize how blessed I am to be surrounded by such positive people. The amount of support I've received from family, friends and colleagues has been amazing. It never ceases to amaze me how many people are also personally touched by breast cancer. Almost everyone I talk to has a mother, sister, daughter, etc who has been diagnosed with the disease.
For now, life goes back to a slower pace. No doctors appointments next week. Next is a follow-up call from my doctor once she gets the chest x-ray and MUGA test results to schedule more pokes, prods and scans.
The director of the clinical trial office with my oncology group also called me today. So far, all looks good for the trial...he said I needed a few more tests (a physical, CAT scan, blood work, etc). We must be done with all of the fertility treatments by the end of June to get into the trial. In other words, I must have my first round of chemo by July 7th. So far, so good!
I also had a pleasant surprise from a coworker who is a 6 year breast cancer survivor. She brought in several of her old wigs for me to try on, she gave me a wig stand and some sleep caps for my head. Honestly, I am still not digging the concept of a wig. But her wigs did look very realistic, they felt like real hair and they looked good. She also showed me two pictures of her bald. Those pictures really hit me hard. I don't know why, but all I could think is "oh God, that's going to be me" and I couldn't handle it! It made me so sad...it was kinda of a downer, but also a pick me up in a way because six years later, SHE'S STILL HERE AND HEALTHY!
When I got home from the MUGA today, there was a lovely flower arrangement on our front steps. My civic association from work, Hillwood, sent me a lovely bouquet of flowers. I've missed their last two civic association meetings (first because it was the evening after my lumpectomy and the second because I was off visiting family in NJ). I usually never miss their meetings (its an easy "hi, you have no crime in your neighborhood" and then I get to go home!) but missing two in a row, they asked if everything was OK. I ended up telling the civic association president about my medical issues and she was so understanding! She even added me to her prayer list at church.
Anyway, the bouquet and card were beautiful and it again makes me realize how blessed I am to be surrounded by such positive people. The amount of support I've received from family, friends and colleagues has been amazing. It never ceases to amaze me how many people are also personally touched by breast cancer. Almost everyone I talk to has a mother, sister, daughter, etc who has been diagnosed with the disease.
For now, life goes back to a slower pace. No doctors appointments next week. Next is a follow-up call from my doctor once she gets the chest x-ray and MUGA test results to schedule more pokes, prods and scans.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Fertility Preservation Update
As most of you know, we have chosen to do fertility preservation to ensure that once all this awful chemo stuff is over, we can still have children. After my phone call with Dr. 'Toad' on Monday, I wasn't feeling the love from him regarding the urgency of this process. Today we met with him again and I am happy to report, we are back on track.
The entire process will start (hopefully) at the end of next week. Everything so far looks good (I didn't expect anything different since we just had a healthy 11 pound baby 9 months ago!). Today we met with the doctor and his nurse for over two hours to go through the entire IVF process, shots, drugs, etc. I must say that the entire process fascinates me - if I were smarter and younger, medicine would be my thing! It was also a bit of a whirlwind too. We learned how to give subcutanious and muscular shots, about all of the drugs (Femara is the one they give estrogen receptive cancer patients) and finally all about the egg retrieval process.
So, we are back on track. I hoping we only need one round of IVF to 'harvest' the right amount of eggs. Another reason we need to get this done ASAP is because the clinical trial I am trying to get into for chemo has very specific parameters. One of those parameters is that trial candidates have exactly 12 weeks from surgery to begin chemo. Waiting any longer than June puts me beyond that 12 week point and would disqualify me from the trial. This trial is 'it' for me - I want to do everything in my power to limit the amount of damage to my heart muscle and I am hoping this trial will prevent that from happening.
I'm feeling positive again! And now I'm off to chop off all my hair! YAY! I'll post pictures of the new 'do' soon!
The entire process will start (hopefully) at the end of next week. Everything so far looks good (I didn't expect anything different since we just had a healthy 11 pound baby 9 months ago!). Today we met with the doctor and his nurse for over two hours to go through the entire IVF process, shots, drugs, etc. I must say that the entire process fascinates me - if I were smarter and younger, medicine would be my thing! It was also a bit of a whirlwind too. We learned how to give subcutanious and muscular shots, about all of the drugs (Femara is the one they give estrogen receptive cancer patients) and finally all about the egg retrieval process.
So, we are back on track. I hoping we only need one round of IVF to 'harvest' the right amount of eggs. Another reason we need to get this done ASAP is because the clinical trial I am trying to get into for chemo has very specific parameters. One of those parameters is that trial candidates have exactly 12 weeks from surgery to begin chemo. Waiting any longer than June puts me beyond that 12 week point and would disqualify me from the trial. This trial is 'it' for me - I want to do everything in my power to limit the amount of damage to my heart muscle and I am hoping this trial will prevent that from happening.
I'm feeling positive again! And now I'm off to chop off all my hair! YAY! I'll post pictures of the new 'do' soon!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Chemo Decision
Today I had a follow up appointment with my oncologist, Dr. Denduluri. She is seriously one of the best doctors I've ever seen. Her personality is amazing and she has the perfect bedside manner for someone who deals with cancer patients all day.
First, we went over the OncoType test results. This is the test we were waiting for, the one that determines chemo and if the cancer will reoccur. Reading the results were a lot to stomach, especially when I read the rates of reoccurance in women with my same cancer. We went through the results, page by page and Dr. Dendiluri explained everything. Basically, I have a heterogenius cancer. This means that part of my cancer is estrogen receptive and part is not. Part of my cancer is fast growing, another part is not. The average rate of distant reoccurence (breast cancer growing in the other breast or another organ) for my tumor/cancer type is 31% over 5 years. Because of this, I am the perfect candidate for chemotherapy.
She made three treatments plans for me and explained the pros and cons of each. The three options are 1. Dose Dense (16 weeks), 2. TAC (18 weeks) 3. Tic Tac Toe Clinical Trial (yup, that's the name!) over 52 weeks. Each have big cons....permenant damage to the heart, premature menopause, neuropathy, low white blood cell count, blood clots, etc. After discussing all of these, the best treatment for me is going to be the 52 weeks TIC TAC TOE Clinical Trial.
TIC TAC TOE will consist of three phases....first phase (TC) is 6 rounds of Taxotere and Cytoxan (every two weeks). During this, I will have 52 weeks of Avastin, administered every 2 weeks. Once the TC are done, I will start radiation while still having Avastin administered. After that, its onto five years of Tamoxefin.
But what made today the worst was the conversation with my fertility doctor. I won't go into all the details, but now he's telling me retrieving eggs may not happen when planned and he wants to push it back another month (after already pushing it back a month due to the lumpectomy in April). This would mean pushing back cancer treatment to July. My oncologist was NOT happy with this and when I spoke to the fertility doctor on the phone I was in tears. The man had the bedside manner of a toad on the phone which only made things worse. He was super insensitive and I felt like the almighty dollar was driving this decision (b/c we haven't paid a dollar to the clinic yet, which he made mention of on the phone call). I believe the quote was "we haven't even worked up the total cost of the IVF treatments and if insurance will cover anything" I reminded him of my coverage and that my husband I would not be 'stiffing' the clinic (I was a little nicer than that).
After I hung up, his nurse called me back about 10 minutes later - I got the impression from her that she was calling to smooth things over. She was really sweet and told me she would do her best to get this moving and she understood I wasn't their average fertility patient. I get that they deal with infertility everyday, but I've got freakin' cancer!!!! They are going to permanently shut down my ovaries!!! I'm going into menopause!!! They are going to pump poison through my veins so that I can be here in 10, 20, 50 years!!!! Luckily, the nurse completely understood that. When we were getting off the phone she said "we will get you through this, this is just a bump in life's road. As Jim's mom always used to say, "I'm not ready to leave life's highway". I'm not - I've got too much more to do. This is just a major detour on life's highway...but I'll be back on the road again soon.
First, we went over the OncoType test results. This is the test we were waiting for, the one that determines chemo and if the cancer will reoccur. Reading the results were a lot to stomach, especially when I read the rates of reoccurance in women with my same cancer. We went through the results, page by page and Dr. Dendiluri explained everything. Basically, I have a heterogenius cancer. This means that part of my cancer is estrogen receptive and part is not. Part of my cancer is fast growing, another part is not. The average rate of distant reoccurence (breast cancer growing in the other breast or another organ) for my tumor/cancer type is 31% over 5 years. Because of this, I am the perfect candidate for chemotherapy.
She made three treatments plans for me and explained the pros and cons of each. The three options are 1. Dose Dense (16 weeks), 2. TAC (18 weeks) 3. Tic Tac Toe Clinical Trial (yup, that's the name!) over 52 weeks. Each have big cons....permenant damage to the heart, premature menopause, neuropathy, low white blood cell count, blood clots, etc. After discussing all of these, the best treatment for me is going to be the 52 weeks TIC TAC TOE Clinical Trial.
TIC TAC TOE will consist of three phases....first phase (TC) is 6 rounds of Taxotere and Cytoxan (every two weeks). During this, I will have 52 weeks of Avastin, administered every 2 weeks. Once the TC are done, I will start radiation while still having Avastin administered. After that, its onto five years of Tamoxefin.
But what made today the worst was the conversation with my fertility doctor. I won't go into all the details, but now he's telling me retrieving eggs may not happen when planned and he wants to push it back another month (after already pushing it back a month due to the lumpectomy in April). This would mean pushing back cancer treatment to July. My oncologist was NOT happy with this and when I spoke to the fertility doctor on the phone I was in tears. The man had the bedside manner of a toad on the phone which only made things worse. He was super insensitive and I felt like the almighty dollar was driving this decision (b/c we haven't paid a dollar to the clinic yet, which he made mention of on the phone call). I believe the quote was "we haven't even worked up the total cost of the IVF treatments and if insurance will cover anything" I reminded him of my coverage and that my husband I would not be 'stiffing' the clinic (I was a little nicer than that).
After I hung up, his nurse called me back about 10 minutes later - I got the impression from her that she was calling to smooth things over. She was really sweet and told me she would do her best to get this moving and she understood I wasn't their average fertility patient. I get that they deal with infertility everyday, but I've got freakin' cancer!!!! They are going to permanently shut down my ovaries!!! I'm going into menopause!!! They are going to pump poison through my veins so that I can be here in 10, 20, 50 years!!!! Luckily, the nurse completely understood that. When we were getting off the phone she said "we will get you through this, this is just a bump in life's road. As Jim's mom always used to say, "I'm not ready to leave life's highway". I'm not - I've got too much more to do. This is just a major detour on life's highway...but I'll be back on the road again soon.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Eating Healthy
As many of you know, I've done a lot of reading about nutrition and detoxing since being diagnosed. My two favorite books for nutritional advice are the The Cancer Battleplan and The China Study. Both of these books are geared toward changing the way we view food as a way to prevent and fight disease.
Over the last six weeks I've worked really hard to eliminate meat from my diet. I am happy to report that I have not eaten meat in almost a month! The China Study recommends eliminating all animal products from our diets and eating a plant based and whole foods diet. As hard as I try, I don't think I can follow this guidance completely. I've stopped consuming a lot of animal products and the ones that I still eat are mainly organic. So I'm trying. The main reason for changing my diet so drastically is because I have a very strong estrogen receptive cancer. This type of cancer feeds off estrogen in the body to grow. Many animal products (mainly non-organic milk products) are know to elevate the levels of estrogen in our bodies. If you are interested in the China Study, go to www.thechinastudy.com to read more about it.
Tonight was the first time I've ever cook tofu. All and all, it was pretty good. I cooked it up with a lot of Mexican spices and put it into a burrito with corn, black beans, avocado and cheese. It certainly wasn't as good as a chicken burrito from Chipotle, but I'm trying to slowly change my tastes!
Anyway, I will continue to add more whole grains and veggies into my diet and try to eliminate as much processed and animal-based foods as I can. I do actually feel better eating more healthy and I've noticed a difference in things like my complexion and my nails. I hope this continues!
Over the last six weeks I've worked really hard to eliminate meat from my diet. I am happy to report that I have not eaten meat in almost a month! The China Study recommends eliminating all animal products from our diets and eating a plant based and whole foods diet. As hard as I try, I don't think I can follow this guidance completely. I've stopped consuming a lot of animal products and the ones that I still eat are mainly organic. So I'm trying. The main reason for changing my diet so drastically is because I have a very strong estrogen receptive cancer. This type of cancer feeds off estrogen in the body to grow. Many animal products (mainly non-organic milk products) are know to elevate the levels of estrogen in our bodies. If you are interested in the China Study, go to www.thechinastudy.com to read more about it.
Tonight was the first time I've ever cook tofu. All and all, it was pretty good. I cooked it up with a lot of Mexican spices and put it into a burrito with corn, black beans, avocado and cheese. It certainly wasn't as good as a chicken burrito from Chipotle, but I'm trying to slowly change my tastes!
Anyway, I will continue to add more whole grains and veggies into my diet and try to eliminate as much processed and animal-based foods as I can. I do actually feel better eating more healthy and I've noticed a difference in things like my complexion and my nails. I hope this continues!
Friday, May 14, 2010
Welcome!
The whole web blog thing kind of weirded me out at first. I felt it is a little strange to tell people, "hey visit my site to read about me and what's going on with my treatments". But then I realized that I was typing the same things over and over and over again to friends and family. And after a while, I just get tired to talking about cancer. Yuck - what a downer of a topic.
Anyway, this is my first entry. For those of you who are survivors, or know anything about breast cancer, here are my 'stats':
Invasive Ductal Carcimona (IDC), Stage 1
Lymph Node Negative
ER+ (86%)
PR-
Her2-
Ki-67 48% (High)
tumor size = 1.5 cm with multi-focal necrosis
tumor = grade 3
OncoType Score = 46 (High)
So that's it in a nutshell. This cancer is very estrogen receptive and is growing quickly. So far, this is what's happened:
1. Found lump on February 24th - felt like a grape right up against my rib
2. Excisional biopsy on March 22
3. Diagnosed with IDC on March 30
4. Breast MRI on April 5 (negative for other masses)
5. Lumpectomy on April 14 with Axillery Node Dissection (negative for cancer in the lymph nodes)
6. BRCA1 & BRCA2 test negative (yay! I don't have the breast cancer gene!)
7. OncoType test results came back on May 11th = 46 (High). Boo!!! Top score for this test is 50 - of course, I had to be an overacheiver and get a score of 46! :-(
So treatment will be as follows:
Chemotherapy for four months, followed by 6 weeks of radiation, followed by 5 years of Tamoxifen.
My oncologist also is going to test me for genetic reassortment. Quite honestly, this is so above my level of understanding....the reader's digest version goes like this....there is a lot of cancer in my family and they want to see if for some reason, I have some genetic weirdness going on that Liam would benefit from knowing about. It would also help to determine future treatment and future testing to ensure that this never travels to another part of my body. Still waiting on that test result.
Cancer stinks. I hate it. So I'm going to kick its butt out of my body for good.
Anyway, this is my first entry. For those of you who are survivors, or know anything about breast cancer, here are my 'stats':
Invasive Ductal Carcimona (IDC), Stage 1
Lymph Node Negative
ER+ (86%)
PR-
Her2-
Ki-67 48% (High)
tumor size = 1.5 cm with multi-focal necrosis
tumor = grade 3
OncoType Score = 46 (High)
So that's it in a nutshell. This cancer is very estrogen receptive and is growing quickly. So far, this is what's happened:
1. Found lump on February 24th - felt like a grape right up against my rib
2. Excisional biopsy on March 22
3. Diagnosed with IDC on March 30
4. Breast MRI on April 5 (negative for other masses)
5. Lumpectomy on April 14 with Axillery Node Dissection (negative for cancer in the lymph nodes)
6. BRCA1 & BRCA2 test negative (yay! I don't have the breast cancer gene!)
7. OncoType test results came back on May 11th = 46 (High). Boo!!! Top score for this test is 50 - of course, I had to be an overacheiver and get a score of 46! :-(
So treatment will be as follows:
Chemotherapy for four months, followed by 6 weeks of radiation, followed by 5 years of Tamoxifen.
My oncologist also is going to test me for genetic reassortment. Quite honestly, this is so above my level of understanding....the reader's digest version goes like this....there is a lot of cancer in my family and they want to see if for some reason, I have some genetic weirdness going on that Liam would benefit from knowing about. It would also help to determine future treatment and future testing to ensure that this never travels to another part of my body. Still waiting on that test result.
Cancer stinks. I hate it. So I'm going to kick its butt out of my body for good.
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