Recently diagnosed, surgery pending, scared to death!

Aortus said:

You're stronger than you think
It seems to me like you have already taken the bull by the horns, Rose, when you decided on what surgery to have. There will continue to be moments of fear - the same fears everyone in your position has faced. It won't be easy, but with love and prayer and support and your own internal strength, you WILL make it. May God bless you!

Joe

Hi Rose and welcome. The
Hi Rose and welcome. The name of the game is fear and waiting. I just had surgery 3 weeks ago. So before surgery, you fear what else they might find,will there be pain, and you wait to find out. After surgery you fear the treatment and you wait to find out what all it going to be. Thats as far as I have gotton so far. I start Chemo in 2 weeks. Good luck to you

Rose, I am sorry for your dx
Rose, I am sorry for your dx but you've come to the right place for support. This is an amazing group of people who support eachother from dx to well beyond being disease free... I hope you will participate often... this board has at times been my life line... it's a wonderful place to ask for information, there are many who have already completed the journey you are now embarking on as well as many who are just beginning the process... welcome... we are here for you!

Hugs,

~T

similar situations
I had a very similar situation to what you are doing. You won't know a lot about the rest of your treatment until pathology comes back after the mastectomies.

I had a diagnosis through biopsy with invasive ductal carcinoma on the left side. Made the decision to do bialateral because I'd been arguing with things for years (I'd had 3-4 biopsies and a lumpectomy.) I also had a tiny spot on the right--no one really thought it was anything, but they decided to biospy before surgery to make sure.

The right side was IDC also. Didn't change my decision at all, but sure knocked me on my tail. It wasn't cancer spreading from one breast to the other, two separate occurences at the same time. After all, I took both of them the same places, so they were both exposed to the same things--same genetic make-up.

It did change the sentinel node biopsy--they did both sides, and I had no node involvement on either side. If the cancer in the right hadn't been found until after the mastectomies were done, they would have had to take all the lymph nodes, you can't go back and do the sentinal node biopsy. So if they can biopsy your suspicious area before the surgery, it might make sense. I'd ask.

Because my tumors were small (1.4 and .6 centimeters) and because my Oncotype DX scores were low (9 and 16), my benefit from chemo would be non-existent--and the risk of long-term side effects (heart damage, other cancers) didn't make that treatment reasonable.

So, after the surgery, my treatment is basically over. I'm taking Tamoxifen for 5 years--May 1, 2009 through April 30, 2014 but I've had no side effects at all.

I had DIEP flap reconstruction at the time of surgery--just a varation of TRAM that's a little more complicated. I was in surgery for 17 hours! No major complications, but I was in the ICU for two days, in the hospital for 7 days, and back to work at 6 weeks. I'm now 3 1/2 months out of surgery, and I'm back at the gym working out every morning--sit-ups don't work yet, ha, ha! But, as others will tell you, the part you are doing now--waiting, getting tests--that's the hard part. Even if you have chemo or rads, at least then you are involved in the fight.

Welcome to the discussion board.
Lisa

Rose84-fear is part of our survival....
It sounds like an oximoran, but it's true. Fear is normal and it's something that comes with being told that you have bc. It sounds, though, that you are being proactive and that is a great attitude.

As to what to expect, I think the ladies before me explained it well. Surgery, chemo, possibly rads, and then drugs. You may, or may not, have side effects from the meds, and you could have minimal side effects from the other treatments. If you, however, do become nauseated from chemo, there are some wonderful anti-nausea drugs that your oncologist can prescribe. You may, or may not, lose your hair and you may, or may not, have a metal taste in your mouth. I ride the fence on these, because everyone is different.

As for rads: you may, or may not, experience a "sunburn." I had minimal irritation from rads, but used an aloe cream and alfaphor (sp?) to relieve it.

As for meds: again, everyone is different as to how they react. Some have minimal or no side effects, while others have extreme side effects. Once again, however, your med team can guide you through as to how best eleviate, or minimize, the side effects (should you have any).

I wish you well. You will soon be on the road to recovery once surgery is done. I welcome you to the boards, but sorry for your dx. You'll find an amazing amount of support here.
dmc

cats_toy said:

Rose
Scary yes! no one will tell you otherwise. But try not to let the fear rule you. Sounds like you have already decided to beat this so that is a great first step. If you have faith in your doctors, let them guide you on the journey, they will be there every step of the way. We will too. Just ask the question, and you already see the response. Let us know how it goes and when your surgery will be.
=^..^=

Rose
You've come to the right place. These ladies are awesome. I know they have all put their arms around me when I started posting.

I got home from surgery 2 days ago and am now staying at my daughters. I had a modified radical masect on the right side and all lymph nodes were taken under my arm. Talk about scared, I thought I was having a heart attack before I went in for the surgery. All I can say is hang in there. Iknow I wasn't a good patient either as I was pissed at the whole world. It is not as bad as I anticipated. They make you as comfortable as possible, had a wonderful support team and am recouping now. I don't know what the future will bring me as far as treatment yet, but as much of a chicken as I am, I feel I will handle whatever needs to be handled.

God bless you and stay with us.

Love,
Maryann

Hi Rose, welcome and I am
Hi Rose, welcome and I am sorry you have to go through this. I know it is very scary, but you will get through it ok. I had a lumpectomy so I can't advise on the tram. I wish you the best of luck and am here for you if you need support. Eil

Welcome Rose........
Welcome Rose. I'm very glad that you found us.

I had mastectomy, but did not have reconstruction, so I have no advice there. But please take to heart what everyone has said here and know that we will be with you every step of the way. Don't hesitate to voice your concerns and your questions.

Hugs,

CR

DianeBC said:

Just want to say welcome to
Just want to say welcome to you Rose too and to say that I will pray that you find strength. We are here to support you so please keep us updated.

Tram Flap
Hi Rose! Welcome! I had a single Tram Flap almost 9 years ago. I would be willing to try to answer any questions. Please e-mail me here and I will help you as much as I can. I, too, was terrified but it wasn't as bad as I feared. HUGS!! Cathy

CR1954 said:

Welcome Rose........
Welcome Rose. I'm very glad that you found us.

I had mastectomy, but did not have reconstruction, so I have no advice there. But please take to heart what everyone has said here and know that we will be with you every step of the way. Don't hesitate to voice your concerns and your questions.

Hugs,

CR

Welcome Rose. I am so sorry
Welcome Rose. I am so sorry that you feel scared. Just know that we are all here to comfort and support you. Please post and keep us updated on you!