New boobs and next steps

Hi everyone,

It's been just over a week since I was discharged from my week long stay in hospital. It wasn't bad at all, having my own room and drugs on tap. I met some lovely nurses while I was there, one of which washed my hair for me and helped me shower - which was wonderful! 

My amazing Mom came to visit me every day as did Matt, who took me for a spin in a wheelchair outside in the sun for a little 'date night'. It was also fab to see my family and my gorgeous friend, Lauren. Thank you all for spoiling me rotten!

 

On Tuesday I went back to RUH to get my mastectomy results and have all of my wounds checked out. (There are a few of them!)

I was incredibly nervous and a bit emotional on the run up. It was a pleasant surprise that Mr Sutton was happy with everything and that he found no further tumours. No more nasty surprises! Yay! He was happy to hand over to Cherry and her team to look after me until we meet again in 10-12 months for a review and further 'nips' and tucks. (Excuse the pun!)

It would give my new breast a chance to settle into its shape and size so that he can tidy up further, give me a new nipple, and adjust my good boob to match. Hello free boob lift!

There has got to be SOME perks to having breast cancer, right?

My side/back has a very long scar on it, but it's healing well, and I have a ton of Bio Oil ready. 

 

From the top with my sexy compression bra on, you wouldn't even know that anything was different. And in fact, they are a similar size now that some of the swelling has gone down. Here's a pic! #sorrynotsorry

I know - not bad, right? I'll be bikini shopping soon for my next holiday! ;-)

It's amazing what can be done these days and Mr Sutton is a brilliant plastic surgeon. Good job he and Cherry know me by now, as, when they took off my very sticky back/side dressing and it pulled on my stitches, a few swear words may have accidentally escaped my mouth while I broke out in an instant pain-induced sweat! Cherry once again reassured me that she's heard worse. 

She drained my back of fluid that had been collecting, with a big ass needle that I stupidly looked at before she used it. Luckily my back is still pretty numb, and although I could feel it over the 10 minutes it took, and it was uncomfortable - it wasn't painful. 

I was quite pleased after leaving Mr Sutton and Cherry, more pain relief in hand, new dressings on my boob (complete with paper stitches for support) and a Manuka honey dressing on a small area on the underside that has a little bit of delayed healing. I'm held together with glue and paper at the moment! 

Off I went to celebrate by having a slightly more enjoyable needle experience - getting part 2 of my eyebrow tattooing done. Thank you Bethan - I love them. 

 

I do scare myself every time I look in the mirror as they're really dark again. Looking forward to seeing the final result. Good job I've had them done as chemo is only a few weeks away!

I hadn't slept the night before and was exhausted, but didn't feel like I could relax yet, I was due to meet my oncologist Dr Azam the next day. Cue another rough night's sleep. Yesterday I felt like a zombie. I've had a bit of a temperature and the extreme heatwave we've had this week hasn't helped. Matt picked me up late afternoon for my appointment back at RUH. It was nice to have a change of scenery from the breast clinic and the admissions suite! 

After an hour's wait, we were finally ushered in to meet Dr Azam - a medical oncologist consultant. We went through my version of events right from the start (back in December last year), and then moved on to my results. I'd written down quite a few questions, and one of them was answered quite quickly. It hadn't been mentioned by Mr Sutton, so I wasn't really expecting it, but Dr Azam told me that yes, I had stage 1, invasive grade 3 oestrogen receptive (Er+) breast cancer, but that I also came up positive for HER2 3+ (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2). I had it written down but hadn't actually expected to be told that I tested positive for it!

So not only were the tumours fast-growing and aggressive, but these little protein bastards (HER2) were helping the cancer cells to divide and spread rather quickly too. People with HER2+ breast cancer have a higher rate of recurrence and only around 20% of women with breast cancer are HER2+. Lucky me. So again, just when I think I know what I'm dealing with and what my sentence will be regarding the drugs I'm going to have to take and the risk of it coming back, I have had one last shocker. I'll explain what this means next. 

Dr Azam went on to say that although my cancer was aggressive, my tumours were small, and he reminded me that my nodes were clear. I am using past tense because, as it stands, I should be cancer-free right now. All of my further treatment is a precaution. They are unable to tell if any rogue cancer cells have travelled around my body, so next steps are to kill off any potential cancer cells using a few different drugs, over quite a long period. 

Next week, I'll be meeting another oncologist to have my wounds examined as the doctors will be unable to start me on chemotherapy if they haven't healed sufficiently. I will also need to let them know when my fertility treatment will be finished so that I can start chemo right away. 

Tomorrow we're off to Bath clinic to start the IVF preservation process as there is a risk that the chemotherapy can destroy my fertility. I have done my homework and have asked to take a drug called Zoladex, during chemo, which will give some protection to my ovaries and how they function. The IVF process should take 2-3 weeks which will give my wounds a little more time to heal up. 

 

Department A12 is going to be my second home for the next year. A whole year?! Well, chemotherapy will be administered here every 3 weeks for the next 4-5 months. Because of the HER2+, I will also need to take a drug called Herceptin for the next year (every 3 weeks). This is done intravenously and will start halfway through my chemo treatment. So here's the plan:

• FEC-T chemotherapy (3 rounds of FEC every 3 weeks, followed by 3 rounds of T plus Herceptin, every 3 weeks - all intravenously. 

• I will need a blood test before each chemo session, and it is supported by a host of other drugs, including steroids and anti-sickness medications.  

• Once my chemotherapy sessions are complete, I will continue to visit the oncology ward every 3 weeks for a year to complete my Herceptin therapy. 

• I will also be starting my sentence taking the drug Tamoxifen for 5-10 years. 

• Over the next few months, and years, I will need to return to hospital for numerous tests: bone density scanning, heart scans, mammograms, MRI scans, ultrasound scans, fertility testing, gene testing, blood tests, and if I get sick, I may need antibiotics - via a drip if I'm very ill. My immune system is going to be extremely low, so I will be very susceptible to viruses and bugs. (Hoping winter is kind to me)

I've decided not to use the cold cap during chemotherapy, for various reasons. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, cold capping (scalp hypothermia!) is a method whereby the nurses place a cap filled with gel, on your head for 2 hours before, during and after chemo. This freezes the blood in your scalp in order to protect your hair follicles from the chemicals. Cold capping is painful and time-consuming. It only works for around half of the people that use it, and those people still experience some hair loss - mostly thinning on top. Chemo works by circulating through your blood stream, so theoretically, if you use a cold cap, the chemotherapy may not reach any cancer cells that may be lurking in your scalp. 

Plus - I'd rather start with fresh, new hair in a few months than to try and patch up bald spots. Apparently your hair comes back better than before you lost it, and potentially a different colour, texture or style (straight or wavy).

I'm getting hold of some fab hair and scalp treatments to promote new hair growth. I heard a heart-warming story this week - a lady with alopecia who underwent chemotherapy for breast cancer, had a pleasant surprise when all her hair grew back after her treatment finished!

 

So, the next few months are going to be pretty rough, with lots of potentially nasty side effects from all of the chemicals/drugs being pumped into my body. Some of them include:

• Extreme tiredness
• Menopausal symptoms (eek-hot flushes and mood changes!)
• Joint pain
• Headaches
• Nausea
• Potential thinning of my bones (risk of osteoporosis)
• Risk of blood clots
• Eyesight problems
• Weight gain (nooooo!)
• Hair loss 
• Loss of fertility
• Dry skin/brittle nails - loss of nails
• Mouth ulcers/infections
• Dry skin
• Chemo brain! (brain fog: difficulty concentrating and remembering things)
• Putting off starting a family for 2+ years (this one is definite) 

As you can imagine, this is a lot to take onboard. I have a library of booklets and DVDs now to help me get through the next 5+ months. And of course I have a lot of support from Matt, family and friends, plus my new friends through the invaluable support groups I've joined. 

I had a big wobble yesterday and am still feeling somewhat sorry for myself, but I'll stop sulking soon and tackle these next steps with the same strength that got me through all the tests, my diagnosis and two surgeries. And while on the subject of strength, I would like to try and build up to running again as soon as I'm able to, so please invite me out for walks. I'd appreciate some prodding to get me out walking, as I probably won't feel like it, but doing exercise will help me during chemotherapy - a lot. 

 

I wanted to say a huge thanks to all of you lovely people who have supported me with kind words and messages,visits, cards and gifts, and of course - my Hairy Affair wig and complimentary therapy fundraising. I will be wig shopping soon, so watch this space!

Much love,

Sarah xxx

Ps. Here's the link to my article in the Daily Mail that sums up my story so far - just incase you didn't see it plastered all over Facebook. ;-)