Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Doctor Visits Galore!

I had another appointment today with the breast surgeon. It was initially scheduled as a check-up for the site of the biopsy last week. My husband and Mom went with me to talk to the doctor, so we grilled him for a good little while! He was very informative, yet scared the living daylights out of me. He said that depending on the results of the MRI, (which I'm having tomorrow morning and will have results on Thursday evening) and results of genetic testing, (which I'm having on Thursday, and will have the results in 2 weeks) I will have to decide on a course of treatment. The MRI will be able to tell if there are any additional masses on either side that can't be detected by ultrasound or mammogram, or if the lymph nodes are abnormally enlarged, which would mean it's likely spread. The genetic testing will determine if I have the breast cancer gene, and if I do, there is a 50% chance I will get it again, and to be safe, I should have a double mastectomy. We discussed this part last week, however, the part he didn't mention before is that if I am gene positive for breast cancer, I should also consider having my ovaries removed because it's tied in closely with ovarian cancer as well. Are you kidding me? So, that was a shock, and I'm still digesting that. Then he says that no matter what, I will probably need Chemotherapy because I'm so young and will want to make sure there are no cancer cells remaining. I agree that I certainly only want to go through this once, but I was really praying I wouldn't have to do Chemo at all. Don't get me wrong, I'm not resigned to that, I've still got to talk to the Oncologist, and there are tests that have to come back, but I'll admit that whole thing was a blow. Oh, we also found out that since the tumor is an estrogen receptor (which means it's fed by the estrogen my body is naturally producing) I will need to take a medication to block that, but will probably also be put on a medication to put my body into a "mock menopause" to calm down the normal 29 year old female hormone productions/cycles. Um, wow!
Needless to say, this was a lot to digest, and I've had a day filled with mixed emotions. Tomorrow is an MRI which I'm scared about because I'm claustrophobic (did I spell that right?) and will have to lie still in a tight space for over an hour...panic is rising as I'm typing.
I just need to know what I'm up against, so I can do this, hopefully this won't have to happen often. I have another appt. scheduled in 2 weeks to figure out which surgery I'm having and get it scheduled. Hopefully whichever surgery we decide on will get this out of me already and we can start the rest of the battle, whatever that will entail, in about 3 weeks.
Sorry for the L-O-N-G story, just trying to get it all in :)

5 comments:

Tanya Smith said...

Scott & I will be praying for you and your through this time of need Stacie.Thanks for posting
Tanya

Team Bickers said...

Gosh, I have to say that you are such a strong women. I love your jokingly phrases as you write about a horrific thing that is happening in your life at this time. It takes a very strong person to be able to lighten up in their own horrors. We are praying daily for you, Stacie, and wishing you all the best. Love the blog updates and will add you to my bloggers list. Good luck and well wishes for a healthy recovery. Give the hubby and kiddo a hug from us, too!

A Crushed Soul said...

Hey girl! I just wanted to let you know what an inspiration you are. Your attitude during this is incredible! Please know that you have so many people praying for you, including Jason and I. God is in control! He is going to take care of you and your family! Please let us know if there is anything that we can do for you guys. I love your blog. You inspired me to start one as well.

JProffitt said...

Praying like crazy for you, Stacie!

Stacie said...

Thank you so much for the encouragement! I'll definietly need it as we continue with this process. It's the scariest, most devastating thing I've ever imagined, but things could always be worse! I'm just praying that my strong-willed nature was given to me for this battle at this time in my life. As a friend recently told me, I'm not being victimized by God, He's just refining me.