Year end review

(1). Discovery

How : During a routine examination her doctor noticed it had been 10 years since her last mammogram. When he discovered this she insisted that my wife make arrangments for the procedure immediately.

When : Two days after the initial exam, they had her mammagram set up to do, it was during this procedure that they encountered the mass. The Doctor from the Breast Center suggested a biopsy of the mass A.S.A.P.

What : Upon doing the biopsy of the tissue from the mss she was informed that she did indeed have cancerous cells and they were in a very aggressive state.

(2). Treatment
Once the initial discovery had been made, the process of deciding how best to treat was the next step. Further tests were made and measurements taken to best guide the surgeon's decision between a full mastectomy or a lumpectomy procedure. it was decided that the best alternative was a lumpectomy followed by a chemotherapy regimen and finally 33 radiation treatments.

Choices : During this time the consideration of the full mastectomy with less chemotherapy and radiation, versus the lumpectomy and a more intense regimen of chemo/radiation.

Decisions : The biggest decision she faced at this point was to decide between mastectomy or lumpectomy. The mastectomy has a higher rate of success and less recurrence, but is also a much larger removal of tissue. Due to the small percentage increase my wife chose the lumpectomy. her thought being if she should have a recurrence that she would then have the mastectomy.

Outcome : The surgery went well and had no complications. She was able to come home just a few hours after the surgery. Roughly 72 hours after her surgery her surgeon called and informed her that he needed to go back into the original site and remove another 1.4 centimeters of tissue. There had evidently been some mistake in calculating how far to go with the actual removal of tissue. I did question this occurrence but it seems that it is common for this to happen since there is no real way of knowing how far the cancer cells have spread without actually going into the area and taking samples of cell growth.
Now with the scheduled surgery behind her, her only real complaint was that the area was a lot more sensitive and painful the second time through
(3). Now & Then

Changes : There have been several changes that had to be made during and after this whole process. In fact almost everything that my wife did had to have new ways of doing them. some of these changes have proved to be major permanent improvements, while some other have only been temporary fixes for temporary discomforts.
Permanent
Temporary

(4). Family +/-
Family members had some very wide ranging emotions and actions once they had been informed, some that were less knowledgeable about the events, even seemed totally oblivious to the fact.

Reactions : Reactions from family members ranged from indifference to caring to fear. One particular family member that was also one of my wifes part time employers Laid her off the day after she was diagnosed because she says” I can’t have you dying in my shop”. In the same week another family member, not only had shown her great support and caring but also, offered the two of us various alternative sources of income performing services that she required help with anyway.

(5). Strangers +/-
Many total strangers would react to my wife with a great caring and compassion , while others would totally avoid her to the point of not even looking her way. Once her hair was gone we had two very odd and yet sad encounters, with drug seekers asking her in the street to sell them pain medications. The first of these occurrences came while we were outside doing some yard work and cleaning up when a old red chevy chevette approached and stopped beside the two of us and proceeded to explain that they knew her doctors had given her some “GOOD” pain drugs and was actually begging and pleading with her to sell her meds. At this point I just told the man to leave while he still could leave, he yelled a few obscenities and left, needless to say I still watch for this vehicle and the bunch of junkies that was in it.

                  

Photo's of Awareness, thanks everyone.

Since beginning this journey with my wife I have seen some of the most unique ways to show support.  

I wanted to share some of these as I think they are a wonderfully whimsical way to share awareness for a very serious problem. I intend to update this each time I find something that really stands out to me as a unique form of support.

Emotions vs Radio Dermatitis

One of the most under looked side of radiation treatments, is the the emotional turmoil brought on by the treatment. I have tried to observe and document the entire process of my wife's cancer treatment from discovery through to her final treatment. I decided to do this because once she had been diagnosed, I began to research any and all information i could get to learn as much as I could. My attempts found most of the normal info we had already received from her various caregivers. Although I did find some information about emotional and mental support, I did not find much in the area of actual first hand observations of a patient and close family member.

I'll first start by saying my wife is very strong person with a normally upbeat attitude. When the treatments began she was excited at the thought of just six more weeks and she would be clear of all treatments and could resume a normal pace without daily office visits. The first week went by without much change at all both physically or mentally, she had noted that right after the treatment she would feel slightly nauseous, but only momentarily. At this point we're assuming maybe it won't be so bad. I then started researching the side effects, some were fairly intense looking burns some were somewhat superficial. I am still at this point trying to believe that hers will be of the more superficial type.

The second week was for the most part the same as last. I have noticed a little darkening of the skin from the bottom of her breast up to underneath her arm. She is still in a great state of mind at this point still her only complaint is the light nausea she is experiencing. We have noticed the darkening is around fifty percent darker on her actual incision than anywhere else. We asked the doctor and he told her that the radiation had a tendency to "bounce" in folds. I will research this further and try to bring more on this at a later date.


Week three finds the visual effect more noticeable as is the emotional. At this point more so than the pain she has become very concerned with the outside effect of the radiation, it looks similar to an extreme sun burn on the verge of peeling. The areas that look moist and ready to peel is the areas she says burns and tingles almost constantly. She was given a product made from aloe and lidocaine  this seemed to soothe it but only after an initial burst of pain and stinging lasting about two to two and a half minutes each time she applied it. She reported to me that it did indeed help some but that she didn't think it was really worth the pain it caused for the good it did.


When we began week four was the first time she told me how she dreaded the thought of going for the treatments. She knew all this was going to become worse as the treatments progress and it really began to weigh heavy on her mind. I can only imagine having to face on a daily basis the very thing that was causing a great amount of discomfort. It was at this point we decided to start counting down the treatment just to be able to visualize some end in sight. This is the first time throughout the entire cancer treatment process she seems to have problems with the emotional side of herself. I do know at least in the case of my wife, she has come to think of herself as Superwoman and now that she has to face the fact she is indeed human and has emotions and feels pain makes it hard. I would think a lot of others have to face these same hurdles. I see a lot of these ladies go through so very much and they just go head strong into all of it, I know it must be very demanding emotionally. I must say I have met some truly amazing people during this journey.

A brand new friend/ Silver Sulfadiazine 
She has  just wrapped up week fives treatments and the effects are far beyond where we had hoped they would ever reach. The darkening has become a lot larger area covering the entire upper quarter of her torso. She has also begun to open up in small places where the "burn" is at it's worst point. The area of the original surgery incision is open and pink, with two areas that appear to go beyond her skin and into the actual flesh. Her doctor prescribed a topical cream Silver Sulfadiazine  that is specifically for the open areas that she is encountering. The cream seems to help over ll but only after brief moment of excruciating burning and stinging, she says it's far worse than the prior aloe based product but does a far better job so she has used it accordingly and it does indeed ease the pain  thus relieving some of her stress.

We are now entering the final week of treatments, the underside of her breast is open and weeping in an area about twelve square inches. She still has only two actual open places, I do hope this stays like this. During this last week of treatments they will "dial in" the radiations path to only cover the are that contained the original cancerous mass. I hope this will restrict the progression of the overall burn but I fear the treated area will become much worse. I have to say I don't know this to be a fact, but I still have some fears. The open areas are requiring treatment with the cream around four to six times a day now. When the the final treatments are done I will report back here with the overall appearance of everything. I will also continue to keep a record of the effects after all the treatments are done. They said she will continue to react for six to eight weeks after the final treatment.

Thanks Team Awesome

Today's post is basically to give thanks to all those people that helped to guide us on this journey thus far. We are nearing the end of the radiation treatment, and none to soon I might add. My wife is really becoming tired from all the ongoing treatments and a forever string of appointments and meds.I know she is looking ahead to when a small break in the action may occur. Here towards the end of the treatments, she has become a little less than excited about the process, but the two ladies assigned to her case have really helped to fight off the depressive thoughts and energy.
Today marks the beginning of the end of radiation treatments for my wife, she will have been through a total of 33 treatments over the past weeks. This has been a long hard journey through these ongoing breast cancer battlefields. I have to say I am proud of my wife for facing all this as she has, she is a fighter and a winner. I pray everyone that reaches for help in this kind of situation can be as fortunate as she has in finding, a community option for treatment and support. The Harbin Breast Center
Harbin Clinic is a team composed of more than 200 providers and 1,400 employees in 20 locations throughout North West Georgia. But this is only part of the team. Approximately 1,000 other physicians not directly associated with Harbin Clinic from throughout North West Georgia and Alabama regularly refer patients to Harbin Clinic and collaborate on care.
Hospitals, diagnostic centers, insurance plans, and other health care organizations throughout the region coordinate services and work with Harbin cancer doctors. For patients at the Harbin Clinic Cancer Center, this broad team approach to cancer care improves outcomes. From the development of a shared electronic medical record to the recruitment of world-class doctors, Harbin Clinic continues to provide patient-care leadership in the region.
The individual team members at Harbin are some of the best I have ever encountered, the techs assigned to my wife's treatment have made her very comfortable in an un-comfortable situation. I have secretly named these two ladies "Team Awesome", they have given my wife so very much support and guidance. The caring they exhibit is far beyond what I have seen in the past in most health care environments, not to mention an environment such as cancer treatment. So this is my thanks to all of the people involved and especially to Team Awesome (Kristine & Michelle), thank you so very much!

Wrapping up the radiation treatments.

We are approaching the end of the radiation treatments, as of today she has 7 left. The last seven treatment wil be of a slightly higher intensity and in a tigher burst, but for the same amount of time each time. They did say to expect the side effect to become a little worse. The whole process has actually been a little less horrifing than I originally thought. I really have to thank the whole staff at Harbin for all there support and knowledge they have given us along the way. The two radiation techs assigned to my wife are very caring and concerned with all there patients. They take care of everyone like they are family, and answer any questions to the best of their ability. I like the fact if they don't know something they don't give her some lame pat answer. In this case they research and help us to research the answers. In this post I have brought some photos of the equipment used. I was able to gain access to these pictures with the help of the staff. I do want it to be known that the public isn't allowed to just walk around and take photos inside the clinic. These were taken only while the areas were unoccupied, and with the full knowledge of the staff. I must offer great thanks to the two ladies that guided us through the photograph and even took a few for me in places I couldn't go, the one I chose to post here today was in fact not taken by me.

New items we like.

New Breast Cancer and Awareness items we've come across.

Radiation, what should she expect?

After completing the last round of chemo we begin the countdown to radiation.  She has already been to a preliminary visit to have special pillow formed to perfectly fit her to insure proper aim of the radiation. I wasn't allowed to be present during this measuring and forming process so I really don't have the full details of what exactly occurs. I will ask her to give me a step by step of what was done later and share it with you at a later time. We are aware that there will be some superficial skin damage similar to that of a burn. We were also told to expect some nausea similar to the chemo, I do hope it isn't as severe since the treatment are so short. I may well very well be kidding myself and her but just from what I have seen from the outside I do think she will tolerate the radiation better than the chemo. I just hope what I think turns out right not only for her but others of you facing the same procedures.

                          

Today marks the nine (9) days out since her last chemo and six (6) days out since her last nuepogen injection. She as of yet hasn't lost her voice to the point she did after the last infusion. I think this was due to a two day break away from the nuepogen upon restarting that particular treatment. I will say the flu like symptoms were a little worse.  The symptoms seemed more severe but of a shorter duration.

Now begins the onslaught of a new set of unknowns. We met the Radiation Oncology doctor, he went over the basic detail of the process but there is still more I do not yet understand fully. I will say as with most of the other doctors his primary concern was to ride my wife about smoking. She full well knows the effect of smoking but she also knows that she will not quit unless SHE decides to. I do understand their concerns but I also understand how angery she becomes when the continually hound her on this subject. I do sometime wonder which is worse for her.

I will be back again soon with another update of our journey anyone reading this that would like to ask or share anything please feel free.