Since it is inevitable that I will loose my hair, I decided that it might be good if I shocked myself and others with a very short haircut before it all falls out. It also should make the whole messy thing of loosing hair a bit easier. So, I took the plunge and cut it really short. Many of you are curious to see what that looks like, so I am including a before and after picture with this post. Let me know what you think.
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Now |
bald (coming soon) |
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Thanks for the many thoughts and prayers. Today is a beautiful day filled with sunshine and warm air. How can anyone get down when nature helps so much to bring us up. Take care all! - S&S
A week or so ago Scott and I went to Seattle for a second opinion on my Cancer. While there we decided to have a bit of fun and take in a Seattle Mariners game. Here is what I thought…
Mariners tickets (lower level behind home plate!)….. $50.00
Program….. $4
Sweatshirt and really cute hat….. $50.00
Chilli cheese dogs and Ice cold Beer….. $16.00
Having a great time with your husband at a baseball game……Priceless!
We did have a great time. The sun was shining (believe it or not) until the 6th inning then it started to rain. When that happened, we got to see how the closeable roof worked (cool!). It was also a special kids recognition day, so there were lots of events to keep us entertained between exciting plays. Usually baseball games are a bit boring, but this one was quite a good time. Maybe it was the need to have some fun, maybe it was a different perspective on life. Who knows, but fun was had by all…. Priceless!
S&S
We have not written much here lately because big changes have been happening in our lives. Most of you have probably either heard through the grape vine or from Scott or I over the phone or email. Life has thrown us a bit of a curve ball, but we are determined to win this series.
About a month ago, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. It was a significant shock to say the least. But in true fashion for both Scott and I we started right away connecting with our network and determining the best course of action for beating it. So, for those who are trying to keep up with the fast pace of our decisions and the results as well as those for who this may be a shock, here is a summary of the last month or so.
After I was diagnosed via a mamaograpm, ultrasound and then a biopsy, I was told that I had cancer. It is a fairly common type of cancer Adenocarcinoma. In addition it is a ductal variety which is invasive. The total version would be Invasive (infiltrating) Ductal Carcinoma. A good place to learn more about this if you are interested is the American Cancer Society web site.
After the shock settled we decided to go to a Breast Cancer Center associated with the University of Washington and The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle for a second opinion and a plan of attack. Here is what they said…
The verdict from Seattle is not pretty, but it is workable. The tumor is large and aggressive. It is what they call a triple negative and is also attaching (pulling on) to the chest muscle. These are both bad things. So, it has preliminarily been staged at IIIA. They are not sure about how the nodes are affected, but are concerned about the aggressiveness, the size (over 5 cm consider a T3), the triple negative and the involvement with the chest muscle.
Here is how ACS describes Stage IIIA -
Stage IIIA: T0-2, N2, M0 / T3, N1-2, M0: The tumor is smaller than 5 cm in diameter and has spread to 4 to 9 axillary lymph nodes; or it is found through imaging studies or clinical exam to have spread to internal mammary nodes; or the tumor is larger than 5 cm and has spread to 1 to 9 axillary nodes, or to internal mammary nodes. In all cases, the cancer hasn’t spread to distant sites.
They plan to start with neoadjuvant therapy in the form of chemotherapy in an attempt to stop the growth, make it let go of the muscle and hopefully shrink the tumor. However, they still feel that they should take the whole breast even if the lump disappears completely. This treatment will take 4 to 6 months.
After chemo, then we wait one month for me to get stronger and do surgery. This would be a modified radical mastectomy (via ACS again)
which involves removing the entire breast and some of the axillary (underarm) lymph nodes.
They may also need to remove some of the chest muscle.
This is the most common surgery for women with breast cancer who are having the whole breast removed.
They feel they need to do a mastectomy for the same reasons that it is stage IIIA. They will take 2/3 of the lymph nodes under my arm. Although they could do sentinel node testing, they would not be sure that the nodes were not originally cancerous due to the long period of chemotherapy before surgery. The Oncologist was very uncomfortable with the sentinel node process due to this.
The surgeon suggested that we wait for reconstructive surgery until after radiation. So, after surgery, more chemo may be required or I could get lucky and only require radiation. Either way, radiation will take some time as well. It looks like it will be at least a year before I am well again. After about a 6 month wait for recovery from radiation, I can undergo reconstructive plastic surgery.
The good news is it looks like I can get most all of this done in Fairbanks. The Chemo and the radiation treatments can all be done locally. So, I only need to travel for the surgeries. This will help in many ways!
Today was the first day of Chemotherapy. They said I may be sick tonight, but so far, all I have is a headache and some flu type aches. On Friday they will put in a Shunt so that they will not have to prick me so much each week. This is an out patient surgery being done by some one who the Oncologist described as looking like a cowboy and the nurse said he reminds her of Curly in City Slickers 
Scott and I will try to keep everyone updated on our progress, but keep us in your prayers and thoughts. I swear I can feel the positive vibes from all over the country. We will be thinking of all our family and friends quite a bit in the near future, so do not be surprised if we track you down sometime soon.
Take care and Take care of yourself!
S&S
I was hood winkled into participating in the Fairbanks relay for life with the women from Scott’s office. So, I need to get some sponsors! Let me know if you are interested in donating to the cause. Here is where you can get more information
Fairbanks Relay for Life
Here is where you can donate to support my participation:
Donate for Shauna’s Participation. If this does not work, you can search for a participant to donate to.
In addition…
The committee is working behind the scenes making plans for a Grand Slam of a Relay this year. One example is a contest between the teams - who can get donations from the most states. If your Aunt Mary from Iowa sent you a donation, be sure and tell your Team Captain that you got a donation from Iowa. We are keeping a chart and logging all the states that folks tell us about. The team with the most states gets two large pizzas delivered to their campsite on Friday night of Relay. It would be something if one team actually got all 50 states.
It would be neat to see how many states Scott and I can touch Let us know if you donate!