This chemo infusion was quick and easy. I was in and out of the infusion chair in about 4 hours. Taxol only weeks are very kind to me. I feel pretty good and only slightly fatigued my normal down days (Monday and Tuesday). I have had a lot of water retention from the steroids and that is starting to be cumbersome. Let’s see swollen legs and ankles, plus moon face as they call it (round face), puffy eyes, swollen neck and clavicle area, and the scale ticks up about a pound every week. The side effects from the premeds are worse than the chemo!
I had my meeting with the plastic surgeon, Dr. Clavin on Wednesday. So once again, I found myself naked on a table waiting for a doctor. He was so nice and sat with me for an hour to discuss all my options. I am a good candidate for the Diep Flap reconstruction. This is when they use your stomach tissue and blood supply to reconstruct your breasts after mastectomy. Instead of implants, I would like to do fat grafting. This creates a more natural look and feel to the breasts – plus it’s a liposuction bonus!
After the Dr. Clavin was finished, I had to take before photos. These are not what I would call fun. They have you take off your gown and stand in front of a blue screen - oh but don't worry, they give you a tiny pair of blue mesh thongs to cover up with. They were so helpful in helping me feel unexposed.
Dr. Clavin recommends doing surgery in a 3-step process. The first surgery will be a few weeks after my chemo ends (roughly late August, early September). This is when my surgical oncologist would remove the breasts and cancer, test tissues and nodes to see if the chemo killed the tumors – then tap in the plastic surgeon to place tissue expanders (2-4 hours surgery). The second surgery would take place about 4 months after radiation (April or May) and the plastic surgeon would do the reconstruction phase (about 10 hours of surgery). The third surgery would take place 1-2 months after the second one (June-July) and this is where the plastic surgeon will go back to fine tune his work. He will sculpt the tummy area and excise the skin placements for better aesthetics. If you are considering this surgery or have questions – ask away!
There are several variables at this point when it comes to exact surgery components. I will not know much more until chemo has been completed and my next round of imaging takes place. If you remember we had the missing clip blog post – so that is still looming and needs to be addressed. That may alter surgery, plus how the tumor shrunk too. Also, during the operations things can change, and I need to remember that going into all of this. For example, if the sentinel node biopsy shows positive cancer cells, the doctor must remove more. Then, he will also test the tissue behind the nipple. If that tests positive, then that will be taken too. I must prepare myself for all outcomes.
Setting expectations is dangerous. It can set you up for disappointment. I will go into this next surgery phase optimistic and hopeful, just like the chemotherapy stage. I will be content knowing that the surgeons are highly qualified and will do their best to keep me whole as possible. The purpose of this whole process is to help me live a longer cancer-free life. I will do anything to have more time on this earth with my family. Fighting cancer is one of them.
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