A Love Story...

Boy, did this put a smile on my face!

  

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Have a Safe and Happy Weekend!

She made my Heart rock!

I was oh-so pleasantly surprised when the mail arrived on Monday.  A wonderful friend, that I met when we shared a room at a Breast Cancer Retreat last year, sent me a VERY special gift. 

Inside the lovely little pink satin bag there was:

A beautiful, polished, HEART ROCK!  Along with a touching note that said it made her think of me when she saw it, and that she just had to buy it for me.

What an incredibly thoughtful surprise!

It would be difficult for me to explain just how much this little surprise meant to me. 

To say that it touched me deeply and made my heart smile would not be an exaggeration.

Sometimes, the littlest of gifts can make the biggest impression.

Thank you Joy!

I love you.

I've been called to Active Duty!



Some of you may remember when I 'joined the Army' last year.    It was shortly after I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.

Well, I've finally been called to action!

I received the following email (copied and pasted here for you) today:

Grow the Army of Women

On-line survey for breast cancer survivors

If you know of anyone who has ever had breast cancer, please share this with them!

Dear Nancy,

We need women in the United States who have been diagnosed with breast cancer of any stage (including LCIS and DCIS) to take part in an on-line survey developed by researchers who are trying to identify individual characteristics that may put some breast cancer survivors at higher risk of developing uterine cancer.

Studies have shown that the drug tamoxifen, which is used to treat women with hormone-sensitive breast cancer, can increase a woman's risk of developing uterine cancer. These researchers want to identify certain personal characteristics that might influence whether or not a woman taking tamoxifen goes on to develop uterine cancer. It is NOT necessary to have taken tamoxifen to complete this survey.

Please read on to learn more about what's involved and who can participate. And please don't forget to tell any of your friends or family who are breast cancer survivors about this on-line study!

What's the study about?

The research team wants to develop a tool that can determine whether a woman with breast cancer is at higher risk of going on to develop uterine cancer. Women will be separated into two groups: 1. those who developed uterine cancer after being diagnosed with breast cancer and 2. those who did not develop uterine cancer after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Comparing the two groups will allow the research team to investigate the specific individual characteristics that are associated with developing uterine cancer after being diagnosed with breast cancer. If you were diagnosed with uterine cancer before you were diagnosed with breast cancer, you can still participate in the survey.

What's involved?

If you sign up for the Breast Cancer, Uterine Cancer, and YOU Study, you will be sent a link to an on-line survey. The survey is confidential. This means that you will be asked to provide basic demographic information (such as age and ethnicity), but that you will NOT be asked for any identifying information (such as your name or e-mail address). The survey will ask questions about your smoking and exercise history, breast cancer diagnosis and treatment history, reproductive health and menstrual history, and personal and family medical history, including whether or not you have been diagnosed with uterine cancer. The survey will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.

Who is conducting the study?

Michael Milam, MD, MPH, at the University of Louisville Brown Cancer Center, in Kentucky

Where?

Anywhere in the United States – this is an on-line study

Who can participate?

You can join the Breast Cancer, Uterine Cancer, and YOU Study if you match ALL of these MAIN categories:

• You are a woman over the age of 18
• You have been diagnosed with breast cancer of any stage (including LCIS and DCIS) at some point in your life
• You have access to the Internet and are willing to complete an on-line survey
• You live in the United States

If you RSVP for the study and are found to be a match, you will receive a link to the on-line survey.

If you're a Breast Cancer Survivor and interested in joining, click below.

Yes, Sign Me Up

If you know of someone else who might be interested you may share information with them by clicking here:

Share with a Friend

~ end of email ~

Even though my cancer was 'hormome-sensitive and in spite of the fact that Tamoxifen has been proven to reduce the chance of a women having a recurrence of Breast Cancer,  I chose not to follow up my mastectomy with Tamoxifen, even though it was suggested by my surgeon & oncologist,  partially because I had heard (and read) that it can increase a BC survivor's chance of developing uterine cancer (not to mention blood clots).   I'm glad that this subject is being studied so that we can learn whether or not it is worth the risk to take it.

October is BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

I had planned on 'finishing our 'walk' today but felt it more important to share this wonderful video.    I found it on the Breast Cancer Recovery Facebook page.  Along with the video, there was this awesome quote:

"Some days there won't be a song in your heart.  Sing  anyway." 

  Emory Austin

Thank you Pam.

I'm HUNGRY!!!

I am SO hungry.  Famished.  Not that I normally eat breakfast anyway but today I can't and therefor I am hungry.  I am also very thirsty.  Parched.  I'm having more surgery early this afternoon and can't eat or drink anything until I'm in recovery.  Sure, then I won't WANT anything because everything will taste and smell like metal or a salt block and I'll have no appetite at all...

whine.  whine.  whine.   Katie (BBG)~ want to help me out here?  ;-)

This blog will resume when I stop feeling sorry for myself!


P.S.  I did post a new update on my CaringBridge site.  I wanted to spread the whining around!  You can click on the link in my sidebar to go to my CaringBridge page...

The last photo of me...

...BEFORE I turned into a walking SCAB!

My wonderful "Princess" (firstborn daughter, Pam) took this picture of me with my Grandsons last week.  I love those boys SO much!  However, that is not why I'm posting the photo today .  I posted it on my CaringBridge site and introduced the boys as my "post-operative medical team".  On here,  I'm using this photo to show me before I turned into a disaster area ~ not that I look all that great in this  picture but everything is relative...

A couple of hours ago, I put my hand to my face, only to discover that I had a great, BIG  PIMPLE, right on the end of my nose!   I went into the bathroom to use the mirror to witness this atrocity, where I noticed that I not only have a rose like Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer, but I also have a second pimple, on the tip of my chin!  As if that weren't bad enough, I have a great, big, honking COLD SORE in the corner of my mouth.

My mastectomy is scheduled for this Wednesday morning. 

 I figure I'll be a walking scab by then!

...sigh...

Cancer's turn...

I try to keep my cancer related discussions to my CaringBridge  site but I don't seem to be able to embed a video there.  The link to this video was posted on the Breast Cancer Yahoo Group that I'm a member of.  Since I've already done a 'sheepy' post today, I thought it would be OK to share the video.
I think it's awesome:



Gotta go dig out my boxing gloves...

Take off your BRA!

I just joined the Army!

The  ARMY OF WOMEN that is...



Won't you join me?

There are lots of organizations looking for the CURE for breast cancer.  The Army of Women is different.  We're looking for the CAUSE.   So that we can prevent  breast cancer from occurring in our daughters or granddaughters.  The Army of Women is looking for any woman of any age or ethnicity, with or without breast cancer,  who might be willing to participate in studies that will help researchers learn what causes breast cancer to develop. 

Please check out the Army of Women  website and see if this could be something that you (or somebody you know) might be interested in participating in...

DAMN!

I tried posting this on my Caring Bridge Site but it wouldn't let me embed the video.

Not too sure that I like the voice (or perhaps the 'type' of music) but I love the words and the meaning behind them. I would love to hear someone with a 'softer' voice sing it. Or someone like Chris Daughtry. I have a friend who is also battling breast cancer and she's feeling kind of down. This made me think of her so I emailed her the link...

CaringBridge

Just a quick note before I head into a doctor appointment.  I'm sorry for being so out of touch the past few days.  I really need to stay in touch with my "blogging family" ~ your friendship and support means so much to me!

I've been doing tons of reading and research about treatment options and reconstruction options.  I've also started a CaringBridge Website    to keep updated with my progress and my thoughts as I embark on this new adventure.  If you'd like to follow along, sign up for email notification and you will be notified when I make a new journal entry.  You'll be asked to sign in with your email  address ~ this is to keep spammers off of my site.  I'll probably keep the majority of my breast cancer information on there but I'm sure some will spill over onto this blog as well.    ;-)

Gotta run ~ I have a doctor appointment in an hour!

Mastectomy it is!

Pam and I met with my breast cancer surgeon today.  A very intense, serious, yet compassionate woman.   We also met members of my "team" who will work with me and support me during my battle with breast cancer.   It was decided that my best option will be to have a mastectomy and completely remove my left breast.  There are two other areas with clusters of calcifications similar to the one that was biopsied and the only way to know if they are also cancerous is to do another Stereotactic Core Needle Biopsy.   After Tuesday's experience, I can assure you:  that just ain't going to happen!!!   The chances are good that at least one of the sites will also be malignant plus I have many individual calcifications spread throughout the breast.  There is no way to biopsy them all and with one cluster confirmed to be malignant, a "wait and see" approach is not a viable option.  For these reasons, with my doctor's agreement, I decided that a lumpectomy just wouldn't be a reasonable approach for my situation.  At the very least, I would need 5 to 7 weeks of daily radiation treatments (at a hospital 45 minutes from where I live) to follow up if I went with the lumpectomy. 

Dr. Johnson suggested that I am a good candidate for reconstructive surgery so Pam and I will meet with a plastic surgeon who specializes in breast reconstruction next Wednesday.  After that appointment, we go back to see Dr. Johnson and set up my surgery.  It will either take place late next week or the following week.  I'm anxious to get it done with.  I feel good about my chances for a full recovery and I just want to get the surgical part over and done with so I can start healing. 

Again.

Fear of the Unknown...

I love the music set to this video.  It fits so perfectly.  It's also a wonderful example of how worked up we can get ourselves when we face something we've never dealt with before...



Yes.  There is a reason for my choice of this video today.  I am facing something I've never dealt with before.  The doctor called me a day early.  He called yesterday and asked how my breast was feeling after the 'nerve incident' on Tuesday.  I told him it was still sore but not nearly as bad as the day it happened.  Ice packs and ibuprofen kept me reasonably comfortable.  Of course I asked him if he'd heard anything back from the biopsy.  He had.  The samples are malignant.  I have breast cancer.

I'm meeting with another doctor tomorrow, to discuss my treatment options.  It appears my first decision will be lumpectomy or mastectomy. 

Wow.

Now, I need to learn everything that I can about my cancer and my options.  Once I have more knowledge, I don't think it will feel quite so scary...