Well, its been about 6 weeks post surgery. Here's my update:
Left breast simple mastectomy. They took 2 nodes under arm and they were clear. And my margins were clear also. However, I had 6 invasions that were small. None larger than 3 mm. The mass was large 8 x 8 x 6 cm. Stage I, Grade II and triple negative.
Pathology reported no cancer seen in a mammary node in the breast, nor was there any cancer cells in the veins/blood of the breast.
I was in the hospital 2 days. I had only 1 drain. Cutting sharp pain the first few days. I think the first week was the worst and then it began to taper off. The drain site was very uncomfortable. It was finally removed 4 weeks later and I didn't feel a thing when it was removed. I slept in a Lazy Boy chair for 5 weeks which made things more comfortable. The right breast reduction was a great result. Very happy with it. Not much discomfort nor was there a drain. After a week or so it looked pretty good.
So what now? There will be no radiation and no hormones. My oncologist said it was a good thing to remove the entire breast. No reconstruction due to my leukemia as there can be too much chance of infection which I have trouble fighting off. And with the possibility of future corrective surgery, we agreed no reconstruction.
I am Kaiser's test case now. They have not had a leukemia (CML) patient (rare cancer) who also has had breast cancer. We talked about chemo and are still talking. From what my doctor tells me, chemo will only help me reduce my chance of cancer by 5%. That would take me from 17% to 12% over the next few years. And she stated general protocol is no chemo unless the invasions were at least 6 mm. If we go with the chemo, I will need to be off my leukemia drug for almost 5 months. This in itself is a problem. I am in a drug induced remission (not a true remission), so if I go off the drug, my cancer could advance or even change into another more dangerous leukemia. And since I am already immune compromised, the chemo itself could be more dangerous. I'm not sure I am willing to take that risk and may take the risk of no chemo. Since there are no guarantees the chemo will kill ALL cancer cells, I feel damned if I do and damned if I don't.
My oncologist is talking to other specialists in the field. We meet again in a couple weeks.
Mentally, I think I am in a very good place. My husband has been by my side the entire time. We still laugh and are getting through each day. But I think it has been difficult for some family and friends. The men in my life have been extremely supportive. But strangely, the women have been distant. Perhaps they just don't know how to react.
I have to say how amazed I was at how fast the cancer grew. I had a mammogram only 11 months before and nothing was seen. I checked my breasts every month or sometimes bimonthly faithfully. I had a bit of pain around the 2 o'clock area of the breast. As I dug in deeper to see if I could feel anything, I felt a band that was elongated, what I thought felt like a swollen gland. About as long and round as my little finger to about the second knuckle. Within weeks, I felt pain and a mass throughout 2/3 of my breast. Couldn't wait to get it out. So please (men and women), check yourselves monthly.
I also have to say I think breast reduction is fabulous for large breasted women. I can't believe the weight I carried around. The mastectomy breast weighed in just over 5 pounds! That's why we reduced the right breast. Not sure what size I am now as I haven't been fitted for the bra yet. I think next week. But I feel as though I am around a C or small D. Can't hold a pencil under there now! I was a DDD. Yahoo!
If anyone has any thoughts on the chemo situation, I would love to hear them. I am leaning towards no at this time. But am waiting to see what the doctor has to say.
My thanks to all of you for your support. (hugs)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
