Surgery April 2012

Public Archive
101

Just popping on to say hello to the April Surgery ladies. There is quite a gang now. I’m now 19 days post WLE. Have just noticed in the hall mirror that my boob is noticably smaller (to me!). Got in a bit of a strop and took it out on the hoover. Still house sparkly now! Hope that isn’t insensitive to those of you that had Mx? Not meant that way x

I hope things went well for you today Laura. Was thinking of you earlier. Positive thoughts coming your way…

Hello to Ginger. Sending hugs as sounds like you’re having a pants time at the moment. Your surgeon sounds switched on though wiping out those lymph nodes. I starting chemo in about 3 weeks too so might be joining you on that part of your journey. Have my chemo ‘seminar’ thingamy tomorrow followed by a appt with the chemo nurse. Wonder if I’ll get a start date?

Did your drain come out Karen? I hope you’re feeling a bit brighter? I’m not surprised you’re emotional. Even without having to deal with cancer you’ve had major surgery and thats a big deal. Now waiting? Good luck x

To all the waitees and sore ladies xxxxxxxx

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hi everyone thankfully doggirl drain came out yesterday was’nt as bad as i expected closed my eyes and it was all over lol, nurse told me to take painkillers for as long as i need them as still am quite sore go bsck next week for dressings and hopefully results, problem im having is with sleeping im lucky if im getting a couple of hours a night any suggestions. good luck to anyone having surgery or getting results this week.

xxkaren

103

Well today is the day!I went away for a long weekend to a friend’s son’s wedding. Had a brilliant time but I can’t ignore the inevitable any longer.

I am on the afternoon list for surgery, mx and sentinal biopsy. So if anyone is out there , please wish me the best of luck. Should be home tomorrow with drain in.

Hugs to all of you who are recovering and best wishes to everyone who still has an op. to go. To those still waiting for results I hope that they turn out well.

Better go and get that extra cup of tea and light breakfast before the deadline.

love and hugs Lynn xx

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Best of luck Lynn and stay strong xxx

105

Hello Lovely ladies, How are we all this sunny morning???

Lynn, all the best for today doll, if I did it, you can, cause I am a complete wimp, couldn’t even give birth naturally, went for the sunroof option!!!Stay strong and dont leave the hospital if you feel like crap, take all the drugs going and it will be a breeze, thinking of you xxx

Ginger-How are you doing, you a wee bit more positive?? I do hope so, lifes a bitch and then you die but we are gonna give it a right good fight so c’mon and stay focused xxx

Doggirl-you make me laugh with your hoovering, do you fancy coming round here and doing mine for me, Hubby rubbish and daughters lazy, Have Dyson will lend!!!

Well, i went for the results yesterday. 3.5cm so big in my little former b cup boobie, no wonder I could feel it!!!Grade 3 Agressive but has not gone to the lymph nodes as they did sentinel node removal, so that is good. Heres the but, it is her2 positive so basically it has a higher chance of coming back and it feeds of oestrogen, not great when you are premenopausal and 36!!! But shit happens and we all have to deal with this and we will.

The surgeon says the mastectomy was definetely the right op for me and there were lots of other calcifications there. he says that there is no guarantee with anything and it was a big aggresive tumour but now the NHS would chuck everything at me.

During their meeting with the oncologist, they said that I would be the prime candidate for a clinical trial. I said is that herceptin, he said no you will get that anyway along with chemo, radio and tablets long term!!! So there is new stuff out there for us special her2+ women!!!

So basically it will probably mean now that i wont be treated at my local hospital and will go to the velindre in Cardiff (cancer hospital)so i think that is good. Read a bit about this HER2+ stuff and am now going to phone the breast nurse and put in an application for a complete hysterectomy and ovary removal cause i read somewhere that can help!!! She thinks I’m a nutter anyway, so at least she will have a laugh but no seriously I do want to stay around to see my daughters reach adulthood and spend time with my gorgeous Hubs so i am going to face it Head on, stop freaking and accept and do everything that helps!!!(Apart from giving up wine!!!)

I do hope you are all going to have a nice day and that you are good to yourself. Got my best friend coming round this morning, we will walk the dogs and put the world to rights. This afternoon I have another BC survivor coming round, nice woman but what a winger. told her last night about this HER2+ and herceptin and she said , oh no, thats not good!!!Its a baddie, talk about making somebody worry more!!! Anyway positivity is what we all need, life is too short. as my mum said a couple of weeks before she died aged 40, never waste a day, live everyday like its your last. I know its a cliche but my mum was right!!!

Oh BTW, got the dressing that has never been changed off, it was fine, I had a good look and it is semi straight and puckered, but towards the armpit looks deformed!!! I thanked the surgeon for the nice work,he laughed. What do I know about mastectomies, bugger all!!!Suppose i should start wearing a bra now, not bothering with the softie as it is double the size of the other boob!!! Honestly, i dont feel half a woman or anything like that, i feel really positive and I dont feel that self conscious!!! Maybe I will have a breakdown over it but I really dont think so cause that is not how I roll!!! Hats off to all you reconstruction ladies, you are so brave going through ops and procedures but I could never be as brave as you!!! I am going to just stick with the right torso as i know call the former booby area!!!

Have a great day Girls, keep your chin up!!! I have all 3 of mine proudly on display xxx

106

Laura, you make me smile, you’re so positive and easy going. What a great attitude you have! I wish I was brave enough not to have recon, but I’m not. The new falsie is going to be called wee Bertha!

My cancer is similar, but smaller than yours, i.e. HER2+, oestrogen+, Grade 3, pre-menopausal and no lymphs involved (well, I’ll know for sure about that after my op tomorrow). I was told no chemo or rads or Herceptin as the tumour is 8mm and they don’t offer chemo/Herceptin unless the tumour is at least 1cm. Bit worrying, but I’m relieved to be avoiding chemo.

I was told getting ovaries removed does reduce the amount of oestrogen in the body, but doesn’t eliminate it completely. Perhaps every little helps though. Will be interested to hear more about this clinical trial you’re joining.

I’m making the most of today :slight_smile:
Jennifer x

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Jennifer darling, sending you lots of healing love and hugs for tomorrow, you are going to be fine just try and relax and make sure you don’t do to much. Looking forward to hearing how you get on,

Big hugs,

Laura xxx

108

Jennifer sending you hugs and positive thoughts for today xxx
Laura feeling better today, got CT app on Friday , wish I had your sense of humour, you keep all our spirits high thank you xxx

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Ginger, thinking about you for your appt, when you have no strength or courage left, you will find some, you’re a woman xxxx

110

Hi

Well made it home the GA was fine although the surgeon did ask if I wanted an uplift on the other breast at the same time as I was having the mx and implant - as I was just about to be sedated I said to him that I did think I was in a reasonable frame of mind to make the decision at the moment!! He agreed and said that we could do it when the implant expander is exchanged - mmm have to think about that would have to go through all the worry about the GA again. Got home today and have a little soreness (where they pulled the drains out this morning) but apart from that no problem with movement arm or anything else managed to wash my hair and pick up the dog poo from the garden - go back for the results from the snb in a week. Does anyone else who has the expander saline/silicon implant feel like they have a lump of concrete strapped to their chest?

  • the consultant said this was normal but it still feels strange - the new boob looks like the one I had before having four children!!

So sorry to hear about Ginger’s news but as has already been said you think you have had all that life can throw at you and then it pulls another one but that’s why woman exist because they can deal with it.

Thinking of everyone who is waiting for surgery and results.

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hi 123ali i also have the expander in and yes mine to feels like i have a lump of concrete in my chest my nurse says the feeling of it will get better as it settles in im a week post op and the feeling of it has’nt got any better. i have to wait for results before they can start expanding it and she has advised me each time they put more saline in it will feel like that again for a few days after, i have chosen to have the left one done to match but this was discussed with me prior to my mx which they will do at a later date.

x karen

112

Been at home now for a couple of days. Feeling good apart from keep forgetting I have a drain in and walking off without it. ‘Ouch!’ I went into hospital at 11:30 and up to the theatre at 1:30. No time to get scared. Out by 4:00 the next day. Have had really good care from everyone.
Now the wait for results but I am not worrying at the moment. Just concentrating on keeping fit and well and having a laugh with any visitors, or people that email and phone.
Going to try for a shower in a few mins.
Karen not sure if you are sleeping yet but I was only sleeping for a couple of hours and then waking. I got diazapam low dose from my docs and when I woke I would take one. Within mins. I would fall asleep. Don’t need them now. But they are like a security blanket. I can relax and sleep because they are there.
Best wishes to everyone.
Lynn xx

113

Back from seeing the surgeon, he said they found 9 nodes and 7 of them had cancer but chemo did away with it. He said I could have had more healthy nodes they don’t know that now because chemo can melt them away. The 7 nodes affected didn’t have loads of bad cells in them though. The tumour was 7 cm and was still so after the OP, but cells showed a significant response and that’s what they would hope for. Margins were clear, but he says there could still be cancer cells in the skin for example, they never know that. So without any treatment my 10 year survival would be 25%. With chemo it increases by 20%, with Herceptin by 30% and Tamoxifen another 11% if it all responds well. He did say though because it has been a big tumour and its node involvment and because its inflammatory character the 10 year survival is around the 50% with treatment working well. So that’s it. Oh and my MX site looks good, swelling might take another 6-8 weeks to go down he says, but he doesn’t think I will develope a seroma. I’m very happy about this as I dreaded the “very common” seroma acc to all that medical staff.

Christine xx

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Hi babes 367

That’s a relief its alright for the consultant to say that it does feel like that but I am pretty sure he hasn’t had one fitted!!! Put a bra on for the first time today along with a normal fitting top - I refuse to wear ‘baggy’ tops just to make everyone else feel less uncomfortable! I can notice the difference but to be honest unless someone was having a really good look its not too bad. Walked up to the school to pick up the children and I think surprised a lot of people who thought I would still be laid up in bed!
I think I will probably will go for the uplift in the other breast and this can be done at the same time I exchange the expander - but that’s going to be some months down the line so I don’t have to worry about that now. Just waiting for results on the smb next Friday - the waiting is always the worst part. Once you know what you have the deal with it - I find it makes it easier. I can’t change the results I just want to know what they are!!!.

Lots of love to everyone. xxx

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123ali i agree with the waiting being the worse they did the snb before i had the mx and expander so i know lymph nodes are clear they are unsure as to whether they will get clear margins and may be a chance of invasive behind the dcis as it was so widely spread get my results next friday, can’t believe you walked to school so soon i walked to local shops and felt like a was climbing a mountain my consultant says it will be a few months for me aswell before they replace expander and do uplift, im hoping in a few days expander won’t feel like i have an intruder in my body lol

x karen

116

hi lynne not still not sleeping get couple of hours at most feeling more drained by the day think a visit to the doc may be in order if just to get one night of good sleep thanks for the advise

x karen

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Karen my doctor was very supportive. Just talking helped.
I have also been using a V pillow that I bought from Dunelm Mill. This keeps me more upright and stops me turning and catching my wound. I was also given a small very soft heart shaped pillow at the hospital, which I put under my armpit. This is just so comforatable and comforting.
You are absolutely right. A good night’s sleep will make you feel so much better. Go and talk to your doctor. I asked for anti anxiety meds rather than sleeping pills. But you can discuss this with him/her.

Here’s hoping that good night’s sleep will bw soon, and many of them.
Hugs xx Lynn

118

Hi everyone

Still feeling a bit tender but trying to get on with everything - though I was doing really well until I received my sick note via the post from the Hospital - the dates are wrong!!! I know its only a little thing but I had self certified myself for seven days (four prior to the operation as I was a total wreck!) and needed one to run from the 23/04 (the op was 20/04) - discharged from the hospital on the 25/4 so made sure that I explained that I needed the note from the 20/4 or the 23/4 so guess what its turns up in the post and runs from the 26/4 so I am three days adrift!!! I know its only a little thing and can be sorted out but it reduced me to tears!!! The reasonable side of me knows it can be sorted out but the saying ‘the straw that breaks the camel’s back’ rings true. I can’t even read the hospital doctor’s signature so don’t know who to contact. Seeing the GP tomorrow for more painkillers (I hope) and then back to the hospital on Friday for the results of the snb. I had the expander implant and wonder if anyone else is experiencing pain from the little plastic port just under the skin? The pain from this is more than the mx and arm which now feels like nettle stinging.

119

hi all ihad lymph node clearance and am getting pains in boob well looks likke a bit of swelling how can i get rid of it as feels like heart burn to? xx

120

Drain removed yesterday, what a relief!