Surgery results, Carmel 1: Cancer 0.

My surgery was 10 days ago, and today I had to go back into hospital to get my pathology results. These are the results from the lab where they have analysed the two lymph nodes they removed from my armpit, and the remainder of the lump they removed. And happily, it's all good news. There was no cancer in my lymph nodes, which means I don't need to have any further surgery, and the remaining lump was also clear, which means that the chemo had properly killed all the cancer in my breast. I'm so relieved and happy, this is a huge milestone on my treatment journey.

 

Sticking two fingers up at cancer!

My surgeon, Miss L___, removed my dressings, which I've had on since surgery, so it was the first time I've actually seen both of the wounds. They look incredible, she's done a fabulous job. My armpit wound is a small nick about 2cm long, under the armpit, barely noticeable. She very cleverly made the incision for the lump by cutting a crescent shape around my nipple, and then tunnelling in to get the lump. This means I'll have no visible scar in my cleavage, and once it heals, it will be practically invisible. There is a lot of bruising and swelling at the moment, but I already love my post-surgery body, and when I look at myself in the mirror, I see a strong, beautiful woman who has been through so much over the past few months, and I'm so proud of her for getting this far.

Today we also discussed the next steps, as my treatment isn't over yet! In a couple of weeks I will get measured up for radiotherapy: they'll do a CT scan and I will get two little tattoos on my chest so that they can properly line up the lasers, and then, as long as my wounds heal well, I should start radiotherapy about a week after that. I will have 19 sessions in total, every weekday for almost a month, and then I will be finished with what they call 'active treatment'. The radiotherapy is really belts and braces, to mop up any stray cancer cells and reduce the risk of the cancer coming back. The side effects are not as severe as chemotherapy, but most people say that the significant one is fatigue, which can last up to a couple of months after radiotherapy is finished. I'm preparing myself for another few weeks of having a minimal social life. Luckily the nights are drawing in and the temperature is getting wintry, so I'll just curl up at home with some good books, podcasts, movies and hearty food.

I have been given some exercises, which I'm diligently doing three times a day, to regain as much movement as possible in my right arm. At the moment it's quite difficult to lift my arm up over my head, and I'm still avoiding lifting anything heavy, but I'm doing well. Tanai took a week off work after my surgery and we mooched about at home, chilling out and resting. It's actually been quite lovely to rest and recuperate properly after surgery; I realised that I didn't properly rest through chemo and probably pushed myself a little too hard. I go back to work next Thursday so I'm making the most of my final rest days. 

My daily exercises

So, all being well, I should be done with active treatment by the end of the year. I'm looking forward to bidding 2017 farewell, to be honest, and we already have some fun things planned for 2018. I will continue having Herceptin injections every 3 weeks until July next year, and I have just received my first prescription of Tamoxifen, the tablet I'll be on for the next 10 years. I've decided I'm not going to start taking it until after radiotherapy, as I am not keen on having both side effects at once. Today the clinical oncologist also talked about giving me Zoladex injections every month for at least the next two years. This is because I'm pre-menopausal, and my cancer is fed by oestrogen. What do your ovaries do? Produce oestrogen! So Zoladex suppresses your ovaries to reduce the risk of the cancer returning. And along with that there is another injection they want to give me every 6 months to prevent the cancer returning in my bones. I've decided to take some time to research these other options before signing up, as I've heard they can also have some pretty nasty side effects. I want to be certain that their efficacy and the benefits I will receive from them is worth the potential impact on my quality of life. So more on here when I know what I've decided! Until then, I shall continue to be pretty happy with today's news and celebrate this weekend with friends at the Lewes bonfire.