1st Doctor Appointment

I met with my surgical oncologist today and received an overwhelming amount of information. I'll try to summarize what he said...

I still need to do a couple of tests to determine my exact path here and hope to have that all scheduled in the next week or so. I'm having an MRI to confirm that the cancer is limited to 'righty' and that will also help to determine if I can have a lumpectomy or mastectomy. Because I had the same exact kind of cancer as my mom (which is not surprising since 80% of breast cancers is this kind) but there is a chance that I have the BRCA gene (for those unfamiliar, that's the breast cancer & ovarian cancer gene). If I test positively for that, I will probably elect to have a bilateral mastectomy (double mastectomy). Otherwise, I may be eligible for a lumpectomy (depending on what the MRI says). I will have to do chemo no matter if I have a lumpectomy or mastectomy (probably 8 weekly treatments). Radiation will depend on the kind of surgery I have. If I need to do it, it will likely be 6 1/2 weeks of daily treatment.

There's still some unknowns but we're getting closer. The next few tests will help my team of doctors figure out what is right for me. Regardless, I will probably be having surgery in the next 4 weeks. I think that's all I have to report for now.....

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers leading up to this appointment. A special thanks to Jamie for coming along with me.

I'm pooped and I'm going to take a nap now. :) Love to all!