Ready for the Last Round

I am ready!  Been taking all my pre chemo drugs.  Tomorrow I will have my last round of Chemotherapy!  Not so excited about the side effects but very excited about being finished.

Today we picked up my last batch of Neupegen, the very very expensive drug that keeps my white blood cell count up!  What a blessing for insurance.  God has been so faithful during my treatment, provision for my drugs to all be covered by insurance.

Saw the Oncologist today and he was so very positive.  Said he would consider me cured.  The surgery was very good and he believes that the tumor was completely removed.  And with the chemo and then some radiation any remaining rogue cancer cells will be blown away.  That was such good news.

I see the Radiation Oncologist on January 6 to see what the plan is for radiation treatment.  I am seeing the light at the end of my treatment tunnel.  

Thank you everyone for your support, prayers, meals, more prayers and friendship!

What a way to end the year!  Good news!  I wish you all a Very Happy and Blessed New Year!!

Round 3 Update

I am so happy to report that Round 3 of Chemo has gone pretty good.  The first seven days were rough.  So very tired and many stomach issues.  But nothing that doing nothing and taking gravol couldn't fix!  I did not work too much the first week, but this week I am feeling pretty energetic!  My taste buds have returned to normal, just in time to enjoy Christmas Dinner.

I am continuing to get lots of rest.  My body makes sure of that -- as soon as it is done I stop!  I am looking forward to getting good reports from my blood work.  Last round of Chemo is scheduled for December 30, so I anticipate sleeping through New Years!

I have been truly blessed with a wonderful husband!  Phil has done all the shopping and planning for Christmas.  He has taken care of me.  He has cooked meals for me that fulfilled my cravings.  Thanks Honey!!!!

I hope that all of you have a very Merry Christmas, full of joy and family fun.

Love Laura

Doing well!

It has been quite a long time since I updated.  I have no real excuse.  Just tired.  That is it.  All the new drugs have done their job, as far as I know.   I have not come down with an infection, requiring hospitalization or anti-biotics,  Thank you neupegen!  I have not suffered from the debilitating bone pain.  Thank you gabapenetin.

I have however been very very tired.  And suffering from nausea.

TIRED -- so tired!  Going shopping for an hour, need a nap.  I get so frustrated at how tired I am.

I am anxiously awaiting a phone call from the pharmacy letting me know if my neupegen is covered for my next round of chemo.   Hard to believe that one round is $3500.00!!!! 

Decorating the house for Christmas is right out of the question.  If it wasnt for Phil and Brian we would'nt have a tree up.  Hopefully over the next few days we will be able to get some decorations on it.  I think that and the Christmas dishes will be the extent of the decorating this year.

I want to thank every one for all your support, prayers, kind words, food etc, etc!  Each one of you has touched our lives in such a big way! THANK YOU!!!!!

Round Two and Update

After having a pretty rough time with Round one of chemo, round 2 seems to be starting off ok!

Round one was a nightmare, bone pain,white blood cell count so low I got to spend a week in the hospital!   The Oncologist has put me on a drug called Neupegen.  This is a very expensive drug ($3500.00 for each round of chemo).  This is to prevent the low white blood cell.  

Friday the 18th was round 2.  So far so good,  I have minor pain, and some really tired moments.  But so far so good.  Praying that this round will be a good one. 

Phil is an awesome nurse, every night at 10 pm, he dutifully injects me with the neupegen.  And he makes sure I am taking all the other medications that I am supposed to be taking. 

It is good to know that I am now 50% done with the chemo!  Only 2 more treatments to go.  Sad to say my hair has all fallen out.  I am getting really good at tying scarves! 

Thank you all for you prayers and your support.  Please keep praying that the cost of the Neupegen will be covered by insurance!

Look What Dana Did!

My blog has had a wonderful facelift!  My favourite colours and a theme that reflects my love of scrapbooking!  All this from the lovely Dana. You must check her out at http://www.designsbydanasears.blogspot.com/.  She is very creative.  Thank you Dana for the new look.  I love it!!

For the Record - CHEMO SUCKS!

I know - I am supposed to be optimistic and upbeat!  Sorry - can't do it today.  While I am very optimistic and know that the chemo is doing what it is supposed to do, I feel crappy. 

I have deep seated pain in my joints and limbs that make walking hurt!!  My ankles hurt, my knees hurt and my hips hurt and every inch in between!  Family Doctor gave me some painkillers but they are not working.

Have decided to have a heart to heart with the Oncologist on the 15th to see if there is some other way of treating the side effect for the next round.  Maybe something pre-emptive!  That would be a good good thing. 

Needless to say , the pain has made it difficult to work.  Monday I lasted 2.5 hours and then yesterday about 4 hours. Today I am staying until the next person arrives to cover me, and then I am going home.  Hopefully to grab a nap, cause I am tired!!!

Here is an update on Phil, he had his surgery on the 25th.  On his right knee.  He is recuperating nicely, and is managing very well on his crutches.  He his home and off work until the first of the year.  Accepting all visitors!!

Thank you to everyone who has called and helped out.  We would be lost with out our friends, family and support team!! 

The Journey so far - Photos

This is the day of surgery- amazing how the kid ( and by that I mean Tara)  can get you to take a picture in the recovery room!  LOL  - showing off the lovely blue tube top that I got to wear.

This is one of the pictures that Andre took of me - the pre chemo hair do!  Not too sure if I will be sharing any of the bald head ones,  only time will tell!

Tanya insisted that this one picture be included!  She likes the hollow cheek look I think! 

First day of Chemo - And look - they want me to do the cooking!  Actually these are the ice mitts that I get to wear during my treatment to protect my fingernails from discolouring and splitting and falling off.  Cold hands - warm heart?

Today, Sunday - I am feeling ok, just very sore joints and legs.  I am tired but doing really ok.  Hoping for a good tomorrow as I have to go to work and get a flu shot.

Now here is a weird question!

I have been approached by many people this month asking me the following question, or some variation of it:
"Would you like to support breast cancer by buying my cookies?"
And here is the response I would like to give:
"I MOST certainly DO NOT support Breast Cancer!!!  There is no part of my being that thinks that Breast Cancer should be supported!!!" 
Of course I would have to quickly follow that up with,  "I WILL SUPPORT BREAST CANCER RESEARCH"

That is what I wanted to say.  Here is what I have said, while smiling.  "I would love to buy your cookies! As a matter of fact I will take two, you see, I have breast cancer and am happy to help you raise funds."

And that my dear friends, ends my rant on the support of Breast Cancer!

The Storm thus far....

Ok, it is Tuesday - yesterday Peggy had her surgery.  Surgery went well.  One lymph node looked suspicious so it was removed and sent off for testing together with the rest of the removed stuff.  And now, we wait. She should be out of the hospital tomorrow or the day after.

Monday afternoon I attended Chemo School.  Tanya emailed me in the morning and asked if I was going to get an A.  I think that I did pretty good!  I am planning on acing all the exams!  Still have moments of feeling totally overwhelmed, but really now,  I think that is to expected!!!

Phil had his knee surgery today, and it appears that all went well.  He is expected to come home tomorrow.  This evening the whole family went to visit.  Tara had been there all afternoon.  Brian and I headed up after work.  Tanya, Andre, Warren and Xavier came and brought dinner for Tara, Brian and I.  Everyone had a short visit with Phil and then we all left him to sleep! 

Tomorrow should be an almost normal day around here.  Phil will be home relaxing and recuperating, Tara will be his caregiver for the day.

Thursday I start the first of my pre chemo drugs.  Getting a bit anxious about my appointment on Friday.  I will update you all later!

Make that a TYPHOON!!

What could be worse than a deluge you ask?  In my experience a typhoon!  A cyclone! Accompanied by whirlwinds and strong rain! 

Today I met with the Medical Oncologist, specializing in Breast Cancer.  After our discussion, I decided to go ahead with the recommended chemotherapy.  He told me that there would be few steps before the first treatment.  Chemo School, blood test, get some prescriptions filled.  I thought that would take a few weeks. 

WAS I WRONG!!  Chemo School is full next week, so I will be having a private lesson on Monday -- yup -- that is what I said, MONDAY!  and the first treatment - FRIDAY!  yikes. 

Add this to what is already going on around here and the deluge is now a TYPHOON!!

It's a DELUGE!

The old saying is "when it rains, it pours".  Well in my house - it's a freaking DELUGE!!!!

As you may or may not know, Sept 15 I had surgery for breast cancer.  The surgery was successful!  Yahoo!

That very same day, my sister was diagnosed with Stage 3 Endometrial Cancer.  That was a shocker to say the least.

A couple of days later, I developed a post operative infection.  Got to spend the next 10 days going back and forth to the Outpatient clinic for IV antibiotics.

I got the results of my pathology - the cancer has not spread beyond the tumor, that is good news, there was no cancer in the lymph nodes, more good news!  Then came the small piece of bad news, my tumor was what is called Triple Negative Breast Cancer.  That is the one that does not respond to any hormone treatment. It is often treated with traditional chemotherapy.

Thursday October 20 I get to see the oncologist where I will learn what type of treatment they think will be the best attack on my cancer.  Radiation for sure, maybe chemo,  We will see.

While all this is going on,  Phil finally got a date for a knee surgery he has been waiting for, October 25.  Then my sister got her surgery date, October 24.  Yup that is just how we roll around here!

Oh yeah, and then my infection came back. At least this time I am on oral antibiotics. 

Then last night, Phil's face started to swell up.  He looked  a bit like Martin Short in that movie where his character was allergic to bees and got stung repeatedly!  So off to the hospital we went!  Spent 5 hours there to find out that he has a plugged saliva gland and needed to go home and suck a lemon (not a lemming, Tanya!).

Today - it happened again.  So off he went back to the hospital.  Now he has to suck a lemon, drink lots of water, apply heat and massage.  Hoping that this will not postpone his surgery.

So here is what I can expect in the near future:
Husband - Knee recuperation time 6-8 weeks, no driving for a good portion of it.  And now coping with the plugged duct
Sister - Radical Hysterectomy  - recuperation time 6-8 weeks and then treatment for cancer - radiation and possibly chemo
Myself - antibiotics for 6 more days, starting treatment to eradicate any left over cancer cells.

So there is my update!! IT'S A DELUGE!!!!!!  Anyone got a huge umbrella for all of us to hide under?

Good News!

Everyone needs good news. And praise the Lord, today I got some! This morning my Surgeon gave me the results of my surgery. The tissue removed from the tumor site showed no cancerous cells! More good news! The sentinel lymph node was clear as well! All of this means that there has been no spread of my cancer. I am so encouraged by that news. Now we will move forward with the treatment to make sure there are no sneaky cells hanging around. I will be contacted by the BC Cancer Agency in the next few weeks to get the radiation scheduled. The end is in sight! Only four more days of IV antibiotics, as well. Monday I am going to go back to work. Thank you all for prayers, support, meals, visits and phone calls.

Here we go!

Finally, after a false start and what feels like a very long wait, my surgery is upon us!  Tomorrow at 12:55 pm the surgeon is going to perform a partial mastectomy and sentinel node biopsy.

I feel like, after a month long wait, I am finally about to begin my fight to beat this cancer.  There are still many unknowns, but the treatment is beginning.

I have been overwhelmed  by all the support that I have received, and the offers for help.  What a blessing to be surrounded by so many friends and family.

Thank you for joining me on my journey!

Help Wanted: Expert List Maker Needed

Ok - I have 7 days in which to get things in order for Brian returning to school, being off work for 2 weeks, having surgery, etc., etc. 

On a normal day this would not be a challenge for me.  I would jump into overdrive and create a master list of things to do, and then create all the sub lists and start delegating (ordering people to do things, is probably a more accurate description).  However, this time, I appear to be frozen.  I have a brain of swirling information, appointments, lists, etc and no way of harnessing it all into a plan. 


I am looking for a responsible person, able to manage multiple crazy thoughts at the same time.  The successful candidate will have considerable experience dealing with "sparkle brain", fuzzy logic and shocked numbness. 

Responsibilities will include, but not limited to, interpret medical jargan into english, source out school information, coordinate appointments, navigate crazy brain and general assist a total nut job.  

If this is you, and you are able to start yesterday, require no compensation or benefits, apply by return comment.

The Pink Tour Bus

I have an interesting story to share about the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation's Pink Bus Tour .  (http://www.thepinktour.com/).  July 9 of this year I made plans to meet Tanya and Family at the Burnaby Village Museum and the Farmer's Market.  It was a wonderful day,  Tara met us as well.  I was looking forward to a fun summer family day.  And I was not disappointed!!  (but that is another story for another day)

While at the Market, I was approached by a young woman representing The Pink Tour.  She asked if I had toured the bus that was in the parking lot.  I hadn't.  She asked if I had had a recent screening mammogram.  I hadn't.  She asked if she could take down my information and have someone contact me to arrange a screening mammogram.  I said "SURE!".  Cause we all know I just LOVE having these girls squished and poked and prodded!  Who wouldn't!  So I signed up, and she gave Xavier and I a little pink ribbon to wear on our shirts and we headed on our way!

The following Monday, I got a call to book my appointment.  And would I like to have my mammogram done a the newly opened Jim Pattison Out Patient Centre in Surrey, seeing as it was close to my home?  Of course I said "yes, that would be fine".  They booked the appointment for the following Thursday.  4 days away.  What happened to it takes months to get an appointment? 

I was the first appointment of the day - so I was in and out of the clinic in under 15 minutes.  Two squishes a side and they sent me off with a lovely recipe card and the promise of a letter with my results in about 10 days. 

Didn't give the mammogram another thought, until I got the result letter July 29.  Letter said, findings were not normal and I should call my family doctor to arrange follow up.  I made arrangements to go to see my family doctor the week of August 8th as I had a number of other appointments the previous week.  Well, apparently, the new Breast Health Clinic had other thoughts!  On Friday August 5, I got a call from the clinic,  could I come back please for some more tests.  And could I please come in on Monday, August 8.  And be prepared to be here 3 hours.  WOW!  3 hours for a diagnostic mammogram?  How many pictures did they need?  I know my breasts are large, but really come on!!

Monday arrived, and off I went.  Checked in to the clinic, met with one of the nurses,  Found out it was going to be more than just mammogram.  That was a relief!  I got changed into the lovely hospital gowns and joined a waiting room of women, all armed with ipods, or books, or knitting.  Something to pass the time.  And I waited.

It was first a diagnostic mammogram, then I had an ultrasound.  Then I read my book, watched a cooking show on the TV, talked to a few of the other women there.  Then I saw the surgeon.  He told me that on the right side I had a cyst, nothing to worry about!  That was good to hear.  Then he told me that on the left side there was a 4mm "something".  And he wanted to find out what it was.  He wanted a surgical biopsy done to find out what the "something" really was. 

So back to the waiting room I went!  The nurse came to me and told me that there was no time that afternoon to do the biopsy, could I come back on Wednesday.   I said"Why not!" 

While she was off arranging that, another technician came and got me, whisked me away to an ultrasound room where yet another technician and doctor where waiting to do a Fine Needle Aspiration.  That is where they insert a fine needle into the "something" and take a sample for the lab to look at.  That was finished and off I went, armed with my next appointment.

Wednesday I checked into the clinic and had a wire inserted into the "something".  This was done by a doctor who quided the wire by looking at yet another mammogram.  Yes, that is what I said, another squish!!!   The surgeon, a lovely lady,  then froze the area, and using the wire as a guide surgically removed the tissue at the end of the wire.  That is where the "something" was.  But as luck would have it, there was no "something" at the end of the wire, just some breast tissue!!  So, the surgeon made a decision to just go back into the breast and take an area very close to where the the wire was and hope to grab the "something"!!!  I am glad to report that she was successful!  

The "something" was sent off to the lab and I was sent home, armed with an appointment for the following week to get the results.  The lovely nurse suggested that I bring someone with me to that appointment just in case.

Well!!! Just in case?  We were so totally not prepared for the results!  Phil and I both just stared at the doctor.  She told us the good news./bad news story.  Good New - we think we got it and it is very treatable, the Bad News - you have breast cancer.  WHAT???? You could have knocked me over with a feather. 

In a matter of minutes we had decided on a partial mastectomy, the date was chosen for surgery, we were loaded up with resource materials and headed off to the first of many pre op tests. 

In the days that have followed I have been to my family doctor for a chat and he filled out all the paperwork he has to do.  I have talked to my daughters (son is still away at camp).  Talked to my mother.  Told my sisters and brother.  Send emails and private messages to friends.  Informed everyone at work.  Oh yeah!  and run a whole gamut of emotions.   

I am trying to work through all sorts of crazy emotions.  I have laughed, cried, prayed, cried.  And at moments even denied that I am in the state.  But the reality is I have Cancer.  And now I going to have to figure out how to live with cancer.  I will be using my blog here as a journal of my journey.  Feel free to comment, support, suggest and pray! 

And all of this to say - THANK YOU Canadian Breast Foundation Lady for encouraging me to get a mammogram.  You may have saved my life!