An Extra Lump

I noticed a move-able lump on my right side about a month ago. I figured it was maybe just scar tissue but I wasn't sure. [You never go back to thinking the way you did before you were diagnosed] So we had Dr. Panwalker check it today. After he felt it, he sent orders over for us to get an Ultrasound done. Oh great! Lucky day! I never really get worked up about things anymore because the fact is... if it's something kucky or scary, at this point there really isn't anything you can do about it. There's no reason to freak out until you figure out what you're dealing with. Then you can freak! LOL
Brett met me after Herceptin to go to the appointment with me. My original Nurse Lisa did my Ultrasound again. It was fun to see her! We teased with her that she is going to get sick of us at some point. Then it was even funn-ier because she told us she had seen us at our Church. Whhhhat?? It turns out that her son played his guitar at our Ward Christmas party and she saw us. I told her she should have some and said hi. What are the chances? Hope we didn't do some weird things while she watched us. LOL
Anyways- back to the Ultrasound. She got me all dressed up in my Sanford robe (it looks like I'm attending some fancy spa. I wish!), gel-ed me up and took some pictures. Then she had another nurse come check it. She gel-ed me up again and took some more pictures. Then they both went to go show the stuff to the Radiologist. It was only a short bit before they came back and let us go. It turns out that it's just a swollen lymph node. Nothing to freak about. YEAH! I asked how long I should plan on having IT. She said it should go away but they don't know when. MY body is supposedly trying to get rid of the crap in my body and a swollen lymph node just comes with the territory. That's my life, I guess. But thank heavens it was just an extra hour at the hospital and nothing serious! Now can someone take me to a "real" spa? LOL

CANCER FREE!!!!

Dr. Bouton aka Dr. Boob Remover called during dinner tonight. He has the pathology reports back from my surgery. He said there was no further signs of cancer in my lymph nodes that they took. And in my breast tissue, there was only a tiny part that was still cancerous (after Chemo) and they got it all!!! They (meaning medical professionals) probably won't give me the Cancer Free ticket for a year or two. We still have a quite a road ahead of us on this Cancer Journey! But for me- CANCER FREE day is today! Let's hear a big WAHOO!!!! Wait... I didn't hear you... One more time for good measure. WAHOO!! Yeah, TEAM SHAY!

Thanks to everyone who offered up a word or two or three or (... you get it)

 of prayer for our family! You are amazing! 

And many, many, many grateful praise to a loving Father in Heaven 

for keeping me around for a while longer! 

XOXO to you all!

Results: Followup (2nd) Ultrasound

Here's the Report:

Here's the pictures from the Ultrasound after my Chemo.

Results: Echo Scan

I asked for a copy of my Echo scan. Here's the Report:

Here's a few shots of my heart.

Results: MRI

Wahoo! The MRI Results

Brett and I questioned whether this was an appropriate WAHOO! moment. But for us it is so... WAHOO!
Dr. Panwalker called this morning. They have the results of the MRI.
First the bad news- I have BREAST CANCER! Surprise! Surprise!LOL
But the good news is...
* besides the original tumor there is no other suspicious areas anywhere including my lymph nodes.
* the tumor size is actually only 1.2 cm (about 1/2 inch) rather than the 2.9 cm that they originally calculated. [They may have included the entire area of the cysts and the tumor when they did the ultrasound]
* they downgraded me from a Stage II to a Stage I. Yeah!
* they are going to cut my Chemo treatments down from 6 doses to 4 doses. Fantastic!
* it will be a less aggressive chemo medication as well. Double fantastic!
See?? Totally WAHOO moment!
Thanks you for all your prayers and faith on our behalf. We sure love and appreciate you. We are experiencing miracles here, people! ;)
Now the icky news-
They are setting up my 1st Chemotherapy Drip for next Tuesday, the 24th. At first, Dr. Bouton suggested to do Chemo first to shrink the tumor. Now that that's not as big of a deal, they said we could do surgery first. (BUT because of my age and they want all my mula- they said they will be doing Chemo at some point) We feel that we'd like to get it "out of the way" so-to-speak. You know- swallow the icky stuff first and then go from there. It also gives us a little extra time to process and figure out what to do with my chest area. We have not quite come to a unanimous vote on that topic yet. LOL Decisions, decisions!!

Finally, just so I don't have to actually say them outloud to anyone- these are the Chemo treatments he is putting me on- Cyclophosphamide and Docetaxel.
Here's where I go into my infomercial (Disclaimer**I am not affiliated or being paid in any way by the makers of Taxotere ® Generic Name: Docetaxel or Cytoxan (Cyclophosphamide) LOL)
Side effects may include the following. Call your doctor to see if this Chemotherapy is right for you. HaHa! I AM So funny!

Neutropenia (low white blood cell count, greater risk of infection)

Low platelet count

Hair loss

Nausea

Vomiting

Diarrhea

Fatigue

Mucositis (irritated mucous membrane in your mouth)

Amenhorrea (monthly menstrual cycle stops)

Changes in nails (brittle or yellowed)

Vomiting

Muscle/bone/joint pain (myalgias and arthralgias)

Low platelet count (This can increase your risk of bleeding)

Increases in blood tests measuring liver function. These return to normal once treatment is discontinued. (see liver problems)

Whew! Ickiness! But I am trying to remember that the anxiety is way worse than the reality! Just keep telling me that! ;)
One more WAHOO just for fun!

Results: Mammogram

Here's the Report:

 Here's the Digital Picture:


Seriously! How does this help?



Results: Biopsy

Here's the Report:

And pictures:

The Mass

Cutting away Cysts

The Marker

Results: 1st Ultrasound

Here's the Report:



A few pictures:



The Cysts



The Mass



Measuring