So the other shoe finally dropped (March 23rd update after my hospital stay)

It’s been a while since I updated and if you haven’t been following on Facebook, you missed a bit.

Last week I got a cold. Not just a cold but THE Cold from Hell. It hit me Friday night and by Saturday I was down for the count. My radiation treatments were supposed to start on the 16^th.  I had to cancel our annual Irish Heritage Party on the 15^th, and when I called the oncologist office on Monday and told them how I was feeling it was decided to push the radiation off until I felt better. 

On the 18^th, after a month, I went back to work and it was a welcome and long anticipated return. I was glad to be back. After work I went to the Sage Center and my radiation treatments began. Thursday was a repeat of Wednesday – work followed by radiation. I was tired when I got home and took a little nap. When I woke up Thursday night, the first thing I noticed was pain in my shoulder and neck area. I figured it was from the position of my arms during the radiation treatment, and went to bed. 

Friday I didn’t have work, but when I woke up I did notice an extreme lack of energy. It took a long time for me to get up and shower and when I checked the incision, it just didn’t look right. It appeared crusty and redder than normal.  The pain in my shoulder and neck area was bad, worse than the night before. I made a note to ask the doc when I went in for my treatment. 

I finally made it to my treatment and both techs agreed that it did not look the same as it had the day before. They did my treatment and sent me off to see Dr. Bugno. He had a nurse outline the reddened area – a lot of it underneath where I can’t see without using a mirror, and gave me a script for antibiotics. He said it was infected and that he was halting the radiation until after my surgeon saw it and gave the ok. He also said if I got any worse to call him and let him know. I left there a little after 3:00 and headed home and back to bed.

Mike came home, and I skipped dinner, staying in bed instead. At 7:30 I woke up and knew I was in trouble. My temperature was up and I sent Mike a text saying I needed help. He called the on call doc who said to take me to the er. While at the er, the vomiting of phlegm started. I was shaking and dehydrated and they knew they were admitting me right away. They got me on an IV and started pumping me full of antibiotics. Once they got me settled in a room Mike left for the night. 

Saturday my IV blew and they had to put one up further on my arm. Turned out after every 2 doses of antibiotics, my IV was determined to blow. By the time I left the hospital on Monday, I had blood taken out of my left hand twice, my right hand twice, I had 3 IVs and 1 failed IV attempt all in the right arm. My arm is raw.  Saturday wasn’t too bad of a day though. I was able to eat and keep it all down. The pain wasn’t great but they kept me on pain meds through my IV.

Sunday I took a turn for the worse. Couldn’t eat again. Vomiting. Excruciating pain.  My breast was swollen huge. The surgeon (partner to my surgeon) came in to see me again and said Dr. Scwaab wanted to wait and see if the antibiotics would take care of it. He didn’t want to risk any other infection by opening me up again to drain it and he would come see me on Monday. 

With another blown IV they had to put another one in, the first attempt didn’t work, and the nurse that came to try for the second one should probably be tortured. She didn’t seem to understand what was going on and that my arm was swollen, bruised or sore. She began scrubbing away and slapping it RIGHT where the previous IV had been and it was all red and swollen. Granted she got the IV in, but  she caused me a ton of pain and certainly didn’t seem to care. To add insult to injury, she dropped my big old call button/remote right on top of it when she was done. Mike was shocked I didn’t throw her out of the room. I guess that’s just more proof of how broken down I was.

Amy W came in to see me and brought me a book in case I needed something to read. I know she knows what it’s like to be sitting around in a hospital, scared and not knowing what is going on. Her visit was greatly appreciated as were Kelly’s and MiKaila’s. 

 Sunday was over all not good. When my mom was 48, she went into the hospital the day after Christmas with a bad pancreas. It was really bad and a few times they thought it would kill her. But it didn’t. The pneumonia she developed while she was there was what killed her. I couldn’t help but think on Sunday that of course the cancer wasn’t going to kill me, but this damn infection was starting to feel like it could. I was NOT doing well at all. The pain in my body was terrible. My right arm beat up and bruised from the IVs. From my left wrist all the way up into my neck, down my back and through my left breast, the infection was taking its toll and the pain was truly intense. The swelling was stretching my skin to its limit. I couldn’t talk without getting nauseous. Everything was wrong. Mike had to send text messages for me because I couldn’t even do that. He finally went home to crash for the night and I drifted off for a very interrupted night of sleep.

I almost lost my 3^rd IV during the night but the night nurse was finally able to push saline through it. The IV was definitely leaking out of the vein but at that point I didn’t even care, I just wanted them to get the antibiotics in without having to try for ANOTHER line.

Waking up this morning I felt a little better right off the bat. I was able to get a little sleep. They had FINALLY got me some cough syrup during the night shift and that helped quite a bit with my coughing. I ordered breakfast and was able to eat about half of it. Just with the food I got down and the juice I had, I had already had more by 9 am than I had all day Sunday.

My primary doc came in and was then followed by Dr. Scwaab, my actual surgeon. They talked about setting me up on massive antibiotics so they could get me home and that Scwaab would keep a close eye on me having me check in with him. He then went to look at the wound and wanted to culture it. As soon as he pulled at the scab, the wound blew open and literally began filling the blanket next to me with all of the fluid and blood that was the seroma. His guess was that it was a minimum of 2 liters. It was needless to say, a rather gory mess. 

After it drained for a while though, it felt a ton better. A lot of pressure had been relieved, but now I do have to deal with the open wound, and keeping it clean as it continues draining over the next couple of weeks while it heals. It’s definitely a scary thought. 

I am home now, thank goodness, but won’t be able to work until this is healed back up. My radiation will be postponed probably another month until I am completely healed.

This was not fun. Definitely scary, and I really hope the worst is over now. 

They don’t know the cause. Seromas are normal after a lumpectomy. Infection not so much so. The doctor also said that infections generally happen a week or two after surgery, not a month. The radiation may have aggravated it. The respiratory infection I have may have been a contributing factor. Could be a little of all of the above. Don’t know. Just hope it’s over now. I always felt like I got off easy with how things went having a “little” cancer (even though there was a lot of it). I was lucky to have it in the breast that was already the larger one that will end up leaving them a bit more even once it is all healed up. It just all seemed too easy and I kept feeling like the other shoe was about to drop. Now I’m feeling much more like both feet are firmly planted on the ground.

Fatigue, impatience, and a whole lot of luck

Last Friday, I saw the medical oncologist, who again confirmed no chemotherapy. As he put it, I had little cancers, just a lot of them.  

For those who have asked, I was stage 1. You don’t find out the stage until after the pathology report comes back after surgery (unless it is already known the cancer has spread to other locations from its point of origin).

In two months I will go back to the medical oncologist to start my 5 year regimen of endocrine therapy --- hormone blocker medications. 

This morning I went in for my simulation for radiation. I was told that because there was cancer in one of my nodes (and it was packed in – not something that was stirred up from the biopsy) my radiation will treat my breast and the lymph node area above it. 

I got several little “tattoos” so when I go in for the actual therapy they can line me up correctly. My radiation treatments will take place Monday – Friday at 2:30 for at least 6 weeks starting on March 16^th.

I have been wanting to start my yoga and water fitness classes, but so far the fatigue has really been kicking my ass while my body mends. I’m adding in a vitamin B complex and getting back into my vegetable juicing to try to help combat some of that. Right now it is difficult to make it through a day without a nap.

I do go back to work on March 18^th, so looking forward to that. Getting out of the house will most likely do me a ton of good.

I’m still bruised and battered and six weeks of radiation therapy that is supposed to tire me out even more and leave me a bit on the crispy side is not appealing, but I’m glad to get it started so I can hurry up and get it over with. 

Above everything, I’m thankful. This could have been so much worse. The cancer could have been larger. It could have spread further. I was extremely lucky that it was caught when it was, and often it doesn’t seem real. I’m not usually that lucky, so I still feel like I’m waiting for another bomb to drop. I’m hoping it doesn’t, but the anxiety is definitely there.

Kerri 1 - Cancer 0

So surgery is over, the first battle down.

I got my results from the genetic testing and I am, believe it or not, NEGATIVE for mutations. At least negative on the mutations they tested for. This is good news as far as reoccurrence goes along with good news for Krystle and Kahlen (and well everyone in my family really). What it doesn’t do though is tell us where it came from and why. I’m still younger than average for breast cancer.

I saw the surgeon today and what he said was the LARGEST of the tumors was 2 mm invasive (growing out of the duct). There were also SEVERAL other smaller ones, hence taking an area the size of an orange. My records also indicate it’s a partial mastectomy (instead of a lumpectomy) because “underneath” the tumor he went as low as the lining between the breast tissue and my chest muscle.  So um….yeah.

Had this gone undetected longer than it did, there would have been some serious issues. So even though I’m pretty sure Taylor doesn’t think he probably saved my life by bugging me to get caught up on my mammogram, I think he did, and will always be grateful for having him in my life. 

I also got to have my L-Dex done today – this is a small test where they check the flow of fluid through your body so they can make sure lymphedema doesn’t kick in.

I got my medical oncologist appointment for Friday. The radiation oncologist’s office has to call me back tomorrow to set up my appointment there and I should be starting radiation in 3- 5 weeks. So next week I’m going to go back to work and we will take it from there. 

Oh…. And it’s confirmed I don’t need chemo, so no one can yell at me since I wasn’t going to do it anyway.

I also started looking into some of the “perks” offered to those who get this wonderful disease…I can take a few yoga classes a week (one with my caregiver), a water fitness class (also with my caregiver) along with a monthly drumming group, a creative expressions group and a few other things that sounded interesting to me. And the best part – all free. So yes I might as well take advantage of the good things while I can.