Long time, no update!
When we left off two months ago, chemo was finished, my eyelashes and eyebrows had fallen out, my ovaries were about to be pulled out and reconstruction was starting back up with my plastic surgeon. I'm pleased to report that it was only a matter of days before my lashes and brows started to grow again, and they came in nice and full. The laparoscopic surgery for ovary & tube removal was quick and easy, as promised, pathology reports on them were completely clear and now there's no way for them to cause any trouble. I am almost 2 weeks out from the final surgery in the reconstruction process and I feel really, really good.
Now I'll start Tamoxifen again (daily oral medication that blocks estrogen receptors), continue with Herceptin infusions through my port every 3 weeks through the end of 2016 and have 2 more echocardiograms to check my cardiac function and make sure the Herceptin isn't causing any heart damage. So far so good on my heart- thank goodness some part of me knows its job and does it well without interference! I'll probably finish Tamoxifen in 2026 so don't hold your breath for that update. :)
We have kept high spirits throughout and we're ever so grateful for all the love and support that has flowed generously our way during all of this. We're immensely thankful for the talent and expertise of the medical professionals we're working with and we couldn't have done it without my parents right behind us every step of the way. I am so proud of the women I know that have made the brave, inconvenient and uncomfortable decision to get a mammogram in any of the last eight months; over 20 friends of mine have gone and 2 have found tumors. 1:8 women seems unbelievable but it is REAL, folks. I hope they, and any women you know, love or work alongside will continue to be scanned. Choose a breast center with a 3D machine. Pay out of pocket (~$130) if your insurance won't cover it. Go every year. What a victory for oncologists, women and their loved ones if every breast cancer patient could start treatment no later than Stage 1.
I am losing track of how often this is the scene. Joe at my bedside in pre-op, all my belongings in a bag at my feet, warm blanket draped over me and a big bruise forming under the surface around my IV site. Thank goodness for him and his quiet strength and unconditional love. Eight months in, our family is tired of appointments, procedures, surgeries and careful hugs. The future is bright; I will rebuild my strength, more of our time will feel like our own and we will eventually get back to the "aggressive hugs" that our boys love…the kind where we squeeze super tight "to let the love really seep in."
I can't wait.
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