My Journey with Triple Positive Breast Cancer

  My bedside table is ready to roll! In less than 10 hours, my hubby and I will be driving to the Cross Cancer Institute for my operation which is scheduled for 8:30 am. It’s a surreal feeling. This afternoon I had my injection for my Sentinel Biopsy which will be done during my surgery tomorrow. My eldest came along, though I drove, as my seatbelt and I are not always compatible these days. (No worries, I still wear one, it’s just that driving allows the angle of the seatbelt to move freely without causing me any pain.) I will admit to having a bit of apprehension since Google mentioned phrases such as “the injection of a radioactive tracer…is acutely painful” and “If you're awake during the procedure, this injection can be painful.” Well, it turns out that Google is a drama queen. (See? Googling medical stuff is less than helpful!) I didn’t feel a thing until an hour later! You receive two injections: the first is just the freezing, and the second is the actual injection of Tec...

  One of my goals in writing this blog is to help others understand what a cancer patient may be going through. Except that every person's journey is different. I have yet to come across anyone with my exact type of breast cancer (Triple Positive) and that's just the beginning of the differences. So I thought I'd write up a few of the conversations I've been having with myself in Q&A format. (Yes, I talk to myself. I used to call them "parent-teacher interviews" when I was homeschooling, now I just call them "opportunities where I'm seeking expert advice." 😊) As always, the disclaimer is that these are MY thoughts, from MY brain and, as such, are best read with a side of salt.  How are you feeling?  Well, I mean, I've been better!  But curiously, I've also been worse. My overall sense of "wellness" varies from day to day, depending on a variety of factors, including hormones. (Sigh. Sadly, having cancer does not cancel out ...

  So...anyone feel like joining me in a closet purge, landscaping binge, or painting frenzy? Looks like I have a bit of time on my hands, as my surgery has been rescheduled for June 29th, two weeks from today, rather than June 17th, two days from today. The response of my two youngest children was rather hilarious - "Oh no, what's she going to "nest" now!" No worries, I have plans...😊 The good news is, that I do not have Von Willebrand's. ( We received the results of the test on the way to our appointment this morning; phew!)  I do have some kind of bleeding disorder, which has yet to be determined, but it's not going to interfere with my  surgery...probably...hopefully. 😬  The bad news is that  Dr. Olson is not convinced that operating at this time is the best path forward. My hematoma is still rather large and would probably interfere with his ability to see the margins of what he wants to excise. (Pro-tip: do not look up "excising margins"...

  Pillows in my home, conspiring to keep me from extended grouchiness. I was grouchy yesterday, as in, "Mama needs to go into Time Out" kind of grouchy. On June 2, 2022, I donated blood at the Strathcona Community Hospital...okay, okay, so I actually had blood drawn for tests, but after 10 vials  😱 I couldn't believe that  they didn't even offer me a cookie!  So when the hematologist told us that he needed more blood drawn yesterday, I was less than impressed. Good thing I don't believe in vampires, or I might be getting suspicious... I'm not entirely sure where the notion originates, but I think I can hear my mother's voice telling me to "count my blessings" whenever I was feeling grouchy as a child.  Of course, that was incredibly helpful and I immediately began listing off the many wonderful things in my life as I skipped along my way, beaming with joy and gratitude...or not. 😬 Being told to count my blessings seemed to have an antithetical ...

    Rollercoaster at Legoland in Germany, September 2009.       (Donovan and Marigan are so little!)  Life with a cancer  patient is kinda' like this.   Many, many, many moons ago, I think I was probably around 12, I read an article in the Reader's Digest that stuck with me. It was written by a woman who described the reactions of people around her when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her insights stuck with me (35+ years later!) and helped me shape my own responses when bad news is shared with me. However, I've come to realize that just like every individual's journey is different, so is their desired response when sharing bad news. So this is my list of do's and don'ts, to be taken with  about a 1/4 teaspoon salt. 😊 My favourite response was from a family member who shrugged and said, "I don't have the words to say how sorry I am that you're going through this; just know that we're praying for you."  I get that. I can ...

This post shares information regarding MY cancer and MY journey. I've always believed that everyone's personal health choices are exactly that - personal. In sharing my own choices, I am not passing judgment on anyone else's decisions, merely laying out my own personal plan. This post also contains a lot of medical information that will probably not mean a lot to most people.  I will certainly not be hurt if you stop reading here. (Besides, I won't know, will I? 😊 Go on now, I said you could stop!) I may need to up my hat game... 💇 Wednesday, June 1, 2022  was TP-day. We met with our surgeon to go over our treatment plan. (TP = treatment plan; what did you think I was referring to?? 😉)   His name is Dr. Dave Olson and he has a 5-star Google rating. I admit I was skeptical; a surgeon with a 5-star rating? I get the hype now; he’s amazing!  His manner is reassuring, he’s not condescending, and he answers all your questions before you even have the opportunity t...

No, I'm not superstitious. Well, I do have a lucky jersey, but that's different; that's hockey. (Go Oilers!) Friday the 13th, 2022, just happens to be the day life threw me a curveball. I was scheduled for a screening (that means just regular/ routine) mammogram and breast ultrasound. (Yes, you'll hear that word a lot. Leave now if you're squeamish or missish!) The mammogram was first and the tech was lovely and we chatted about our respective families as she manhandled me through the awkward experience. (Pro tip: mammograms are NOT painful. Unless you're a total wimp. That's not a valid excuse to put off getting one!) I had a bit of a wait before being called into the ultrasound room, and I immediately knew something was "off" as the tech introduced herself and promptly said, "We take a lot of pictures; don't be alarmed."  (I imagine the mammogram tech discussed her findings with the ultrasound tech so she knew what to look for.) Now...