Since so many wonderful people in my life are inquiring
about what’s going on, from time to time I think I’ll skip the prose and just
list the current progress. Here’s the
scoop as of 8/11/14:
CANCER TYPE: The type of breast cancer that I have has been
identified as “HER2-positive” which means it is an aggressive form of cancer,
but they know how to treat it. Quick synopsis here. The stage of cancer has not been assigned yet because we are awaiting results from some of the recent tests.
TREATMENT: I will be doing 20 weeks of chemotherapy,
followed by surgery to remove at least one breast, followed by 6 weeks of
radiation. Six months after radiation
treatment concludes, I might be going through reconstructive surgery (see
earlier post “The Tale of Big Mountain and Titsy”).
CURRENT STATUS: I’m currently undergoing several tests,
partly to establish baseline health before undergoing chemotherapy. I’m also in the screening process to
participate in a clinical trial that looks very positive for treating this type
of cancer. Once we know if I’m in the
trial, that will determine my chemo schedule.
I’m scheduled for surgery to have a port put into my chest next week. I
feel incredibly healthy at the moment, except that I’m having trouble sleeping (a lot on my mind!) and my biopsy sites are still sore.
FUN STUFF: This week I'm doing a photo shoot with an amazing photographer who photographs dancers all over the world. It has been arranged for months, but now takes on a very special meaning! Also, because it is fairly certain I will lose my hair, I
have started ordering wigs. My first one
should arrive in a few days – a sassy blonde bob! Stay tuned!
HOW YOU CAN HELP: Thank you for all of the kind messages and
nice cards…keep ‘em coming! As you can
imagine, this is a tough time for my whole family. We know it will be okay in the end, but
there’s a long, scary road ahead. I wish
I knew more about what I need at this time, but this is all new me, too. There are some great articles and resources
out there if you're interested in ideas. Here’s one that I like: How to Support Someone Fighting Breast Cancer.
Mostly, thank you for being patient with
me. This whole cancer thing is taking up
a lot of time and brain capacity, and in addition to caring for two small
children and running two businesses, I sometimes don’t have the time to respond
to everyone as thoughtfully as I would like.
But please know that your messages are getting to me…and they mean a
lot.
One of the reasons this will all be worthwhile in the end.
No comments:
Post a Comment