#3 Update in OP - if you have Breast Cancer...

This is the nicest thing I’ve heard in ages. Thanks so much, and I wish you permanent remission and never having to think about breast cancer ever again.

Enjoy your vacation mom ! Hawaii is the perfect place to de-stress.

(((Hugs))) yes, as mom tagged me, this was my type of breast cancer. It is the most common form.  I had multiple tumors, with the largest being 2.5 cm, so just over an inch in diameter.

I had a bilateral mastectomy first and then when the oncotype came back high-risk, I had 8 rounds of chemo after the surgery. I’ve had 3 reconstruction surgeries after the mastectomy, but my experience is unique that way. 

If you have any questions, or there is anything that I can do to support you, PLEASE don’t hesitate to let me - or the rest of us - know. 

mom , have a wonderful time on your trip. Don’t let anything take that away from you. Hopefully you’ll come home to good news.

Ugh mom not the update I thought was coming. But hope you can relax and really enjoy your time in Hawaii and seeing your DS.

I just HATE...and I mean HATE that you are all going through so much in regards to cancer. You know that we are all here for you and to lift you up in thought and love and positive vibes.

Keep us posted.

lucyg...so happy to hear your news!

mom I'm sorry your news wasn't better AND that you have to wait another three weeks for a more definitive answer. We'll be sending you all the good juju until then!

I always find the being by the ocean to be very healing, so try to take a little time taking in the salt air and doing some deep breathing by the sea. Resting mentally and physically will be the best thing you can do in preparation of returning for the biopsy. Praying for a restful and peaceful trip for you.

I had a mammo in October or early Nov. 2019 which showed some abnormal cells which I couldn't see despite the radiologist assuring me that there was a change from my 2017 to 2018 and now a more visible change from my 2018 to 2019 mammos, a biopsy in early Dec where the dr was sure it was just microcalcifications, results in early Jan with showed ADH and a lumpectomy in late Jan of 2020 which came back with DCIS/LCIS. Finished radiation in March 2020 just as covid was starting to shut everything down. At every appointment it wasn't what they were expecting but it wasn't as bad as it could have been (thought it was just microcalcifications, biopsy showed ADH but at least it's not cancer...lumpectomy to remove ADH, but biopsy of removed tumor was actually DCIS/LCIS but it least it wasn't invasive) so it was a weird sort of sad/happy/sad cycle. Bottom line is that it was caught very very early and was treated fairly easily (as in no chemo) in a fairly short amount of time. If you have to have this happen, I hope that it goes as easily and smoothly as mine did. I was very very lucky and am now a big proponent of mammograms and early ID. BTW - my genetic testing came back normal so no good indication of why it happened at age 47.

(((Hugs))) I’m sorry that it is triple-positive. At least there are some specific HER+ chemo drugs out there. 

Since you brought up food, my advice to you is to make a special point of eating all the foods you really love before chemo starts. No one prepared me for completely losing my sense of taste during chemo, and I had a really hard time dealing with that. Things like bagels and cream cheese, grilled cheese sandwiches, hamburgers - previous comfort food - became inedible, because it was just a large tasteless lump in my mouth. I lived on soups and smoothies and watermelon 🍉 (for the texture), because I didn’t have to hold the tasteless food in my mouth for long and could swallow it down quickly.  Canned Chef Boyardee Mini Ravioli became a staple, because it didn’t require much chewing and yet was filling without upsetting my stomach. They put me on excellent anti-nausea/appetite stimulant drugs, so I wasn’t often nauseated, but couldn’t stand tasteless food. And my taste didn’t come back until 3-4 weeks after my last chemo infusion, so it was close to 5 months. 

So, enjoy the sushi and wine. Have a steak, if you like them. Eat all the bread products you crave, because if you lose your sense of taste, you won’t be able to tolerate them.  (((Hugs)))

Best of luck for your treatment drivingmisscrazy. I agree with the advice to eat the things you love. In fact, my cousin was told that she shouldn't worry about trying to eat a healthy, nutritious diet while undergoing her treatment. Her oncologist said to eat whatever she could tolerate. If that meant eating stuff loaded with fat or sugar or salt, so be it.

Yay!! 

What wonderful news!