Health Update
Sep. 14th, 2015 06:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
the_rckI will be starting radiation some time in October. They want to give me a couple more weeks to heal before they try to set things up for that. I will see the radiological oncologist on October 1st. There will be a CAT scan involved because they need to know exactly where my heart is so that they don't hit that with the radiation. Depending on where everything is, they may want me to hold my breath while they irradiate me. They were somewhat concerned that my asthma might make it difficult for me to hold my breath, but I don't think that 15-20 seconds at a time will be a major issue, at least not from the asthma side.
We were hoping that I wouldn't need radiation because the surgeon said, right after the surgery, that base on what he saw I might not. Unfortunately, the pathology showed signs of DCIS that didn't show on the mammogram. Also, as the radiologists told me repeatedly, I'm very, very young by breast cancer standards. If I were even ten years older they might not do radiation at all. Me being so young means that, even though my chance of recurrence isn't huge, it's bigger than they want it to be because it goes up with time.
I might start treatment as early as the second week of October, but it also might be a little later than that. I'll have to go in five days a week for six weeks. They told me that burns, like a bad sunburn and sometimes a bit worse than that, are pretty certain, and that I'm likely to feel very fatigued, particularly since I have fatigue issues to begin with. The fatigue is likely to continue (and maybe even get worse) after treatments stop, but it shouldn't last more than two or three weeks after, so hopefully, by Christmas, I'll be doing better. There are a bunch of other, longer term risks, but all of them are 1-2% things that I will worry about if they happen.
Once the radiation therapy is over, I will see a regular oncologist who will oversee me taking tamoxifen or something similar for the next five years.
The American Cancer Society has a network of volunteers who drive people to and from appointments like this, so I can probably arrange some of my transportation that way. I'm hoping not to lean on them too heavily, though, because I'd much rather have a friend or relative with me. If worst comes to worst, it's $10 (including tip) each way to get to the Cancer Center by cab, and I can do that sometimes. I really don't think I'll be up to using the bus even if it is free.
All three doctors I saw (the surgeon and two radiological oncologists) looked at my incisions and all of that and pronounced themselves pleased with how they look. The surgeon apologized for not trying to do something about the biopsy wound during the surgery. He said he seriously considered cutting it open and stitching it up because he did not think it was healing right, but he decided that he couldn't afford the time to do that, so he didn't. He also reassured me that the pain and numbness I'm feeling under my arm is normal and will go away in a few weeks (6-8). In the meantime, he recommends ice packs.
The drive to the Cancer Center was pretty unpleasant. I didn't notice that when I went to Applebee's with Scott's sister, and I think the difference is that I was wearing the compression top for the trip to Applebee's. Unfortunately, I can't put that top on unaided, and I'm pretty sure that wearing it at night gives me reflux (the surgeon didn't seem surprised that it might and told me not to wear it at night). I guess, any day when I'm planning to drive somewhere, I'll have to get up with Cordelia and have her help me put the dratted thing on. And hopefully, this will only be for another two or three weeks.
Drat. I should have put the pork in the oven as soon as I got home. Scott had to go right out to deal with some more stuff with regard to getting a new car (which probably won't arrive until mid-October), so he's not around to cook the way he hoped to be. I could put the pork in the oven now, but the odds of it being done in time for me to eat it tonight are low. Of course, if I cook it tonight,it will at least be done so that we can all eat it tomorrow. If I don't cook it tonight, we go through all of this again tomorrow.
We were hoping that I wouldn't need radiation because the surgeon said, right after the surgery, that base on what he saw I might not. Unfortunately, the pathology showed signs of DCIS that didn't show on the mammogram. Also, as the radiologists told me repeatedly, I'm very, very young by breast cancer standards. If I were even ten years older they might not do radiation at all. Me being so young means that, even though my chance of recurrence isn't huge, it's bigger than they want it to be because it goes up with time.
I might start treatment as early as the second week of October, but it also might be a little later than that. I'll have to go in five days a week for six weeks. They told me that burns, like a bad sunburn and sometimes a bit worse than that, are pretty certain, and that I'm likely to feel very fatigued, particularly since I have fatigue issues to begin with. The fatigue is likely to continue (and maybe even get worse) after treatments stop, but it shouldn't last more than two or three weeks after, so hopefully, by Christmas, I'll be doing better. There are a bunch of other, longer term risks, but all of them are 1-2% things that I will worry about if they happen.
Once the radiation therapy is over, I will see a regular oncologist who will oversee me taking tamoxifen or something similar for the next five years.
The American Cancer Society has a network of volunteers who drive people to and from appointments like this, so I can probably arrange some of my transportation that way. I'm hoping not to lean on them too heavily, though, because I'd much rather have a friend or relative with me. If worst comes to worst, it's $10 (including tip) each way to get to the Cancer Center by cab, and I can do that sometimes. I really don't think I'll be up to using the bus even if it is free.
All three doctors I saw (the surgeon and two radiological oncologists) looked at my incisions and all of that and pronounced themselves pleased with how they look. The surgeon apologized for not trying to do something about the biopsy wound during the surgery. He said he seriously considered cutting it open and stitching it up because he did not think it was healing right, but he decided that he couldn't afford the time to do that, so he didn't. He also reassured me that the pain and numbness I'm feeling under my arm is normal and will go away in a few weeks (6-8). In the meantime, he recommends ice packs.
The drive to the Cancer Center was pretty unpleasant. I didn't notice that when I went to Applebee's with Scott's sister, and I think the difference is that I was wearing the compression top for the trip to Applebee's. Unfortunately, I can't put that top on unaided, and I'm pretty sure that wearing it at night gives me reflux (the surgeon didn't seem surprised that it might and told me not to wear it at night). I guess, any day when I'm planning to drive somewhere, I'll have to get up with Cordelia and have her help me put the dratted thing on. And hopefully, this will only be for another two or three weeks.
Drat. I should have put the pork in the oven as soon as I got home. Scott had to go right out to deal with some more stuff with regard to getting a new car (which probably won't arrive until mid-October), so he's not around to cook the way he hoped to be. I could put the pork in the oven now, but the odds of it being done in time for me to eat it tonight are low. Of course, if I cook it tonight,it will at least be done so that we can all eat it tomorrow. If I don't cook it tonight, we go through all of this again tomorrow.
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Date: 2015-09-15 12:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 12:48 am (UTC)I think the main thing that I regret is that I really can't sign up for Yuletide. It just seems like a bad idea when I don't know if I'll be up to doing any writing (and that I might not seems like a fair assumption).
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Date: 2015-09-15 03:43 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 08:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 11:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 12:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 02:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 03:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 03:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-09-15 06:49 pm (UTC)