Elizabeth & Brendan

My next surgery date has been set for November 30. The Monday after Thanksgiving.  Hopefully the triptophan has worn off by then.  My procedure is at noon and will be in the OR but I will leave that day.  Heck, for part of it they won’t even be giving me any anesthesia since the procedure happens in a place where the nerve endings have not regenerated yet.   I hope they give me some anxiety medicine because I don’t want to see them performing the surgery regardless of whether I can feel it or not. 

I will say that having no feeling is weird and weird when you notice it coming back.

I will now be getting additional screening tests every year: CA 125 blood test and pelvic ultrasounds.  I am more than happy to oblige since the screening with MRIs was more than beneficial.

I will be needing the final procedure (to more or less tidy things up including my abdominal incisions) some time between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Typically things are just done with local numbing solutions but I may have to be put under so while it will be a short procedure, it will be a bit more involved than normally.  At this point I just want to be done with it all.

There is snow sticking in our backyard.  It is October 18.  It is too early. I have said since July that we are going to have a bad winter.  I am a Pisces and we are known to be psychic.

While I still don’t have a winter coat, I did get a new pom hat and that is all I need.  I just hope our visitors next week are ready for the cold.

On a doctor related note, I have another appointment with the plastic surgeon about the follow up procedures (typically outpatient) and when they will be.  It seems strange to have a doctor’s appointment after a long lapse.

That is the total. 

Price of Right rules so technically Aunt Betty wins.

Well the bill for the hospital stay (and surgery) finally arrived.

Anyone care to guess at the total?

I have to say that I love health insurance right now.

This is my oncologist, Dr. Bita Tabesh, on a local news (NECN) segment last week.  I couldn’t get the player to work so you have to use the link.

When we met with Dr. Tabesh on September 11, Brendan began to ask questions about the tamoxifen.  Dr. Tabesh remarked that hopefully we can discuss everything and save a trip to the office in a few weeks.  So we started asking questions and some more thoughtful than others.  Honestly, Brendan had more questions and better quality questions.  I had 2:  Do I have to take the pills at the same time each day?  What happens when I forget to take one?

These questions stem from my actions while recovering from surgery.  I had my “10 o’clock” pills with my aspirin, antiobiotics, colace, and senna.  I had to take these twice a day at 10 o’clock.  Brendan reminded me to take them when he was home.  However, when I was supposed to remember myself there were some issues.  Many times I took the “10 o’clocks” at noon or after Brendan asked “Did you take your ‘10 o’clocks?’”  It is an issue I know.  We are working on a reminder system.

Test result=low risk group=NO CHEMO!!!!!

BFD put it best with “It’s a Yom Kippur miracle!”

At around 6:00 Dr. Tabesh called and I tried to figure out whether calling after hours meant good news or bad news. I answered and she was quick to say the news was good. IMHO, the news was great. Based on the test results and being on tamoxifen, there is a 6% chance the cancer would return in 10 years. Chemo would provide no additional benefit.

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Brendan and I popped open a bottle of champagne and are drinking!

Today was kind of big day. I finally looked down at incisions on my chest. I had already looked at the stomach area a few days ago but have aptly avoided the top half of my body.

The reason I decided to look was because I was taking my first shower since August 24. Sponge baths are not the same. The shower felt great and I could have stood under the cascading water for hours.

The interesting point of me not looking is that I probably should have sooner. Brendan said I should have just to see how things have dramatically improved from the first week (bruising, redness, the dermabond, etc). But I was reading a journal article sent to me by my sister-in-law Wendy (it was Nursing and was about how to help treat breast cancer patients after surgery) and it talked about how the nurse should have the patient look at the incisions and be there to explain everything fully so as to minimize the emotional shock. The Brigham didn’t do that and in hindsight maybe they should have. Or maybe it is something they should have at least offered.

(I may go take another shower today it was that amazing.)