Wednesday 21 December:
This was interesting. They get all the different branches who treat you around a table and look at the cases one by one deciding what the best treatment will be for each case. Then they see each person individually and explain what happens next. It's a lot of information to take in and can be a little daunting, but you walk out with a plan.
Firstly I saw the Surgical Representative, who told me that all the biopsy results were back and there was no cancer in the lymph node. WooHoo!!!! Had to grip the sides of the chair to prevent myself doing a little dance :D
Then came the Oncologist who told me that I would be having 4 Chemo treatments over 12 weeks; one every 21 days. Sadly this didn't mean I'll have small doses; it means the opposite! 4 mega-doses which would definitely cause my hair to fall out. She said that each treatment would make me feel worse than the one before so that by the fourth treatment I'd feel really bad. But what the hey? It's the last one;I can handle it :D
The Radiotherapist was next. They've decided that I'll probably require 6 weeks of Radiation and the initial treatment would be part of a 'planning day' and would take about 3 hours. Oddly enough the treatments only take about half an hour. The actual radiation takes about a minute but setting up the machine takes the rest of the time. The 3 hour planning day is setting up the machine and tattooing 4 little black dots on my breast to assist with realignment on subsequent visits.
I always wanted a tattoo..... but I'd hoped for something a little more artistic! :D
After all of that treatment I'll be put on hormone blocking therapy to prevent me producing the girlie-hormones the cancer likes to feed on. Anything that even thinks of having another go will find nothing to live on. Hah! :D
I'll be monitored for 5 years and then my chances of a re-occurence will be about 50% less than the rest of the population. Which is fine with me :D
I came out of the clinic to discover someone had accidentally backed into my car... it's ok, she'd left a note and the insurance company waived the excess because I was parked at the time...
I personally think it was G-d having another poke to see if I would cry - Nice Try!!!
I was able to enjoy Christmas without worrying. Big thanks to the pathology department who worked so hard to get the results out in time for everyone to get through the holidays with a plan in place.
Monday, 23 January 2012
Consultation with the Surgeon
On Tuesday 20 December I went to see the surgeon to get my results. What a relief!! He had taken a wide margin of healthy tissue and there was no cancer near the edge. No more need for surgery! Yay!
The lymph node had been looked at and no cancer cells were visible. Double Yay!!
One note of caution from the Breast Care Nurse; the lymph node is encased in wax and sliced wafer thin. These slices are then subjected to further testing. The tests would be concluded by tomorrow. In other words, exercise cautious optimism...
Combined Breast Clinic tomorrow for results and treatment plan.
The lymph node had been looked at and no cancer cells were visible. Double Yay!!
One note of caution from the Breast Care Nurse; the lymph node is encased in wax and sliced wafer thin. These slices are then subjected to further testing. The tests would be concluded by tomorrow. In other words, exercise cautious optimism...
Combined Breast Clinic tomorrow for results and treatment plan.
Friday, 6 January 2012
Surgery - Wide Angle Excision & Sentinel Node Biopsy...
Friday 16 December 2011
I had to be at the hospital at the crack of dawn, get scans etc so the last thing I wanted was to hassle a friend to come with me.
I know this probably sounds odd, but I just wanted to be on my own and not have to make conversation with someone. I tend to cope best with this stuff if I go quiet.
On that morning I caught the bus to the Mater. Don't get me wrong, it's not some superhuman thing; the bus stop is a 7 minute walk from my house and stops right across the road from the Hospital!
First stop was Admittance then off to QScan for the radioactive stuff. This was actually really interesting.
To find out if the cancer has spread, the doctors need to find the Sentinel Node. Our Lymph system seems to be a network of small glands who work together to move stuff arround our bodies. What I didn't know was that there was a pecking order within this system. Each boob has a Sentinel Node; the boss node. It draws up the fluid from the boob then sends it out to other, lesser nodes who send it off to other areas. Finding the Sentinel Node to see if there are any cancer cells is the most important thing because then the surgeon can see what to do next.
They do this by injecting radioactive material around the tumour then they put you in an ultrasound machine to see which node is glowing. Fortunately my node showed up really quickly, but it can take up to an hour.
Once they get you into surgery, they inject you with blue dye, which also gets drawn up by the node. When they open you up, they're looking for the blue node that beeps when they pass the detector over it!
Now, here is where I misunderstood something my surgeon told me in consultation. I thought he had said they would look at the node under a microscope during the operation and if they needed to take more nodes because there were cancer cells present, they'd take more.
What he meant (but I misunderstood) was that this node goes off to pathology and if there are cancer cells then I'd have to have further surgery to take more nodes.
When I came around, I kept asking how many nodes he'd taken and was getting a bit frustrated with the lack of information!
My overnight stay in the hospital was not great.
Shared wards are never fun. Tip for those of you going into a shared ward? Shut the heck up!!! I had a woman in the bed next to me who'd taken her hearing aid out and she and her husband were yelling at each other to be heard.
A woman in the bed over from me groaned all night because she couldn't cough; it hurt where she'd had her op. So it was, cough, "oh that hurts", cough, "oh that hurts" all blimmin night.
ALRIGHT, WE GET IT!!! CAN WE GET SOME SODDING SLEEP PLEASE???
We're all in the same situation, we've all just had surgery. None of us are feeling so good right now - have some bludy consideration.
The best part was at 4:30am when some moronic nurse WOKE ME UP to give me pain killers. I was sound asleep, and in no pain!!!!! If I could have leapt out of bed to throttle the bitch she would have gone down.
Apart from that I was feeling fine. A bit sore but no pain. They told me I would experience quite a bit of pain once the local anasthetic wore off and sent me home with a script for mega pain killers. Which I never needed. I was waiting for days for the pain to arrive but I was perfecly fine :)
My friend, Pup, collected me and took me home. And then I just had to wait to heal from the surgery.
My boys were in Western Australia doing a labouring job. Their father had arranged a weeks work for them which was great but the timing could have been more fortunate :)
Actually, I think it was probably better they weren't around. I was more than able to take care of myself and didn't need them stressing about me.
I had to be at the hospital at the crack of dawn, get scans etc so the last thing I wanted was to hassle a friend to come with me.
I know this probably sounds odd, but I just wanted to be on my own and not have to make conversation with someone. I tend to cope best with this stuff if I go quiet.
On that morning I caught the bus to the Mater. Don't get me wrong, it's not some superhuman thing; the bus stop is a 7 minute walk from my house and stops right across the road from the Hospital!
First stop was Admittance then off to QScan for the radioactive stuff. This was actually really interesting.
To find out if the cancer has spread, the doctors need to find the Sentinel Node. Our Lymph system seems to be a network of small glands who work together to move stuff arround our bodies. What I didn't know was that there was a pecking order within this system. Each boob has a Sentinel Node; the boss node. It draws up the fluid from the boob then sends it out to other, lesser nodes who send it off to other areas. Finding the Sentinel Node to see if there are any cancer cells is the most important thing because then the surgeon can see what to do next.
They do this by injecting radioactive material around the tumour then they put you in an ultrasound machine to see which node is glowing. Fortunately my node showed up really quickly, but it can take up to an hour.
Once they get you into surgery, they inject you with blue dye, which also gets drawn up by the node. When they open you up, they're looking for the blue node that beeps when they pass the detector over it!
Now, here is where I misunderstood something my surgeon told me in consultation. I thought he had said they would look at the node under a microscope during the operation and if they needed to take more nodes because there were cancer cells present, they'd take more.
What he meant (but I misunderstood) was that this node goes off to pathology and if there are cancer cells then I'd have to have further surgery to take more nodes.
When I came around, I kept asking how many nodes he'd taken and was getting a bit frustrated with the lack of information!
My overnight stay in the hospital was not great.
Shared wards are never fun. Tip for those of you going into a shared ward? Shut the heck up!!! I had a woman in the bed next to me who'd taken her hearing aid out and she and her husband were yelling at each other to be heard.
A woman in the bed over from me groaned all night because she couldn't cough; it hurt where she'd had her op. So it was, cough, "oh that hurts", cough, "oh that hurts" all blimmin night.
ALRIGHT, WE GET IT!!! CAN WE GET SOME SODDING SLEEP PLEASE???
We're all in the same situation, we've all just had surgery. None of us are feeling so good right now - have some bludy consideration.
The best part was at 4:30am when some moronic nurse WOKE ME UP to give me pain killers. I was sound asleep, and in no pain!!!!! If I could have leapt out of bed to throttle the bitch she would have gone down.
Apart from that I was feeling fine. A bit sore but no pain. They told me I would experience quite a bit of pain once the local anasthetic wore off and sent me home with a script for mega pain killers. Which I never needed. I was waiting for days for the pain to arrive but I was perfecly fine :)
My friend, Pup, collected me and took me home. And then I just had to wait to heal from the surgery.
My boys were in Western Australia doing a labouring job. Their father had arranged a weeks work for them which was great but the timing could have been more fortunate :)
Actually, I think it was probably better they weren't around. I was more than able to take care of myself and didn't need them stressing about me.
Chicks in Pink & Breast Care Nurses
The Mater Hospital in Brisbane has a charity that focusses on supporting this hospital and raises money to pay for those in the Breast Care area. They're called Chicks in Pink and I urge all of you in Brisbane to go buy a pink something from their shop on Stanley Street or go online to support them. Great gear and a fantastic cause.
The breast care nurse I deal with is Carmel. She's a wonderful woman who I met for the first time while she was still jet-lagged from her fabulous trip to New York. I knew I'd get on really well with her because we obviously have similar tastes in holiday destinations :)
She was a font of knowledge and didn't bombard me with it. She understood that I needed the basics at this stage, a contact number and email. She also arranged for some amazing information to be sent to me from the Breast Cancer Network Australia - the My Journey Kit is filled with really good information and comes with a fantastic book that you can keep a sort of diary of appointments, medications, and thoughts in. Brilliantly designed by women who've taken this journey and can lead you along the path.
Also, Berlie give you a free bra for post surgery. I have to say it's not going to get anyone chasing you around the bedroom, but for all that, post surgery it was the most comfortable thing I had to wear.
For those who have a mastectomy it comes ready with an internal pocket for a soft pad to fill your blouse out.
I'm pretty much healed now, but yesterday morning I used the bra to go for my first walk and it was incredibly comfortable. The bras are in the shops, so go have a look if you need something comfy.
Big thanks to Berlie!!!
The breast care nurse I deal with is Carmel. She's a wonderful woman who I met for the first time while she was still jet-lagged from her fabulous trip to New York. I knew I'd get on really well with her because we obviously have similar tastes in holiday destinations :)
She was a font of knowledge and didn't bombard me with it. She understood that I needed the basics at this stage, a contact number and email. She also arranged for some amazing information to be sent to me from the Breast Cancer Network Australia - the My Journey Kit is filled with really good information and comes with a fantastic book that you can keep a sort of diary of appointments, medications, and thoughts in. Brilliantly designed by women who've taken this journey and can lead you along the path.
Also, Berlie give you a free bra for post surgery. I have to say it's not going to get anyone chasing you around the bedroom, but for all that, post surgery it was the most comfortable thing I had to wear.
For those who have a mastectomy it comes ready with an internal pocket for a soft pad to fill your blouse out.
I'm pretty much healed now, but yesterday morning I used the bra to go for my first walk and it was incredibly comfortable. The bras are in the shops, so go have a look if you need something comfy.
Big thanks to Berlie!!!
Consultation with the Surgeon
First and foremost, if you take a friend with you make sure thier level of positivity matches or elevates yours. My friend was focussed on past experiences with two loved one's completely different cancer journeys and it was a bit of a nightmare. I know how much she cares for me, and I'm sorry if this hurts feelings, but if you're 'supporting' a friend please remember they need to be around positivie energy.
The surgeon and his registrar were wonderful guys. They both listened carefully to my decision to have a double mastectomy with full and immediate reconstruction and agreed that I could absolutly do that, or...
I could have a lumpectomy, get rid of the cancer, get through treatment and then revisit the idea of a double mastectomy.
Because the reconstruction surgeons don't do it immediately and if he did the mastectomy and then i had to wait to get reconstruction "the skin would lose elasticity and dry out." Eeewww! Leather Tits!!
Dr Hamza made it very clear he wasn't advising me to do anything, but wanted to present me with my options so I could make up my own mind.
Bless his heart! He was brilliant!!
He then booked me in for surgery on Friday 16 December. No messing about.
The surgeon and his registrar were wonderful guys. They both listened carefully to my decision to have a double mastectomy with full and immediate reconstruction and agreed that I could absolutly do that, or...
I could have a lumpectomy, get rid of the cancer, get through treatment and then revisit the idea of a double mastectomy.
Because the reconstruction surgeons don't do it immediately and if he did the mastectomy and then i had to wait to get reconstruction "the skin would lose elasticity and dry out." Eeewww! Leather Tits!!
Dr Hamza made it very clear he wasn't advising me to do anything, but wanted to present me with my options so I could make up my own mind.
Bless his heart! He was brilliant!!
He then booked me in for surgery on Friday 16 December. No messing about.
Diagnosis...
Thursday 31 November 2011
Not surprisingly the diagnosis was breast cancer. Invasive ductil cancer. It starts in the milk duct then 'invades' the tissue around the duct. Fortunately it's the most common cancer found in the breast - excellent! This is one time in our lives when we want to be as common as possible :)
Dr Hanna had spoken to the Breast Care Nurse who had assured her that my lack of medical insurance wouldn't change my care in anyway. Medicare would cover all my expenses and Mater would see me as quickly as if I had top insurance.
Australia is a wonderful, wonderful country and I am so blessed that I live here in Brisbane!!!
The two of them had already booked me in to see the Breast Surgeon, Dr Hamza, for the following Tuesday. All I had to do was take it a step at a time and not focus on the negative. Until someone tells me something I would refuse to speculate about anything.
Although I did go online and decide I wanted a double mastectomy with full reconstruction immediately..... :)
Not surprisingly the diagnosis was breast cancer. Invasive ductil cancer. It starts in the milk duct then 'invades' the tissue around the duct. Fortunately it's the most common cancer found in the breast - excellent! This is one time in our lives when we want to be as common as possible :)
Dr Hanna had spoken to the Breast Care Nurse who had assured her that my lack of medical insurance wouldn't change my care in anyway. Medicare would cover all my expenses and Mater would see me as quickly as if I had top insurance.
Australia is a wonderful, wonderful country and I am so blessed that I live here in Brisbane!!!
The two of them had already booked me in to see the Breast Surgeon, Dr Hamza, for the following Tuesday. All I had to do was take it a step at a time and not focus on the negative. Until someone tells me something I would refuse to speculate about anything.
Although I did go online and decide I wanted a double mastectomy with full reconstruction immediately..... :)
Mammogram...
Wednesday 30 November 2011
Mammograms are not fun. First of all you have to wear these gowns that open down the front and go sit in a room with ancient womens's magazines. For the price you pay for these things would it kill them to include a facial or a foot rub??
So we had the initial mammogram, then the 'lets just have a look from a different angle mammogram. Double ouch.
Then it was off to the Ultrasound room where a lovely lass squirted me from ribcage to neck with warm gel and gave me a thorough exam then excused herself to get the doctor, who came in with the absolue worst 'bedside expression' on her face that I have ever seen in my life.
Perhaps it's her usual expression but someone needs to video her so she can see "What Not To Look Like When Things Don't Look Good!!" Hand to G-d, she looked like someone was holding a gun to her temple.
She explained that the lump "Didn't look good," and that she wanted to do a biopsy. Even with local anasthetic, this didn't tickle!!! The needle biopsy of the lymph node that looked a bit dodgy was ok, but the 3 bites out of the tumour were right up there on the "Crikey!" meter.
I mentioned that I had a 5pm appointment with Dr Hanna for my results (that I expected to take away with me) but wondered if I should postpone and go see her when the biopsy results were back. This doctor's response... "go to see your GP, she'll need to get the ball rolling on this as soon as possible."
OoooKaaay! This sounded like it could get bad fairly fast.
I kept it together until I got in the lift then I started weeping. Not an "Oh my G-d, I'm going to die!!" sort of thing, more of a "How am I going to go through this, work and pay my mortgage?" sort of thing.
I remember sitting in my car thinking there was no point in praying that it would go away. G-d didn't put the tumour there, so instead of begging for the unreasonable I found myself praying for strength and for Angels to stand beside me for support to get me through whatever came next.
Then I went off to see Dr Hanna.
I remember my face was cold and prickly with what I suppose it was the onset of shock. I also remember getting a bit miffed at the idea that shock would rob me of my ability to think clearly so I mentally shoved hard against it and it just melted away! Excellent :)
My fear was financial. I had a job that paid the bills but no medical insurance. How was I going to cope?
Dr Hanna was great, she explained that my Superannuation fund has an income protection insurance and apparently the government (say what you like about them, but I bless them to the skies!!) will assist with any shortfall. Phew! Pressure lifting.
Mammograms are not fun. First of all you have to wear these gowns that open down the front and go sit in a room with ancient womens's magazines. For the price you pay for these things would it kill them to include a facial or a foot rub??
So we had the initial mammogram, then the 'lets just have a look from a different angle mammogram. Double ouch.
Then it was off to the Ultrasound room where a lovely lass squirted me from ribcage to neck with warm gel and gave me a thorough exam then excused herself to get the doctor, who came in with the absolue worst 'bedside expression' on her face that I have ever seen in my life.
Perhaps it's her usual expression but someone needs to video her so she can see "What Not To Look Like When Things Don't Look Good!!" Hand to G-d, she looked like someone was holding a gun to her temple.
She explained that the lump "Didn't look good," and that she wanted to do a biopsy. Even with local anasthetic, this didn't tickle!!! The needle biopsy of the lymph node that looked a bit dodgy was ok, but the 3 bites out of the tumour were right up there on the "Crikey!" meter.
I mentioned that I had a 5pm appointment with Dr Hanna for my results (that I expected to take away with me) but wondered if I should postpone and go see her when the biopsy results were back. This doctor's response... "go to see your GP, she'll need to get the ball rolling on this as soon as possible."
OoooKaaay! This sounded like it could get bad fairly fast.
I kept it together until I got in the lift then I started weeping. Not an "Oh my G-d, I'm going to die!!" sort of thing, more of a "How am I going to go through this, work and pay my mortgage?" sort of thing.
I remember sitting in my car thinking there was no point in praying that it would go away. G-d didn't put the tumour there, so instead of begging for the unreasonable I found myself praying for strength and for Angels to stand beside me for support to get me through whatever came next.
Then I went off to see Dr Hanna.
I remember my face was cold and prickly with what I suppose it was the onset of shock. I also remember getting a bit miffed at the idea that shock would rob me of my ability to think clearly so I mentally shoved hard against it and it just melted away! Excellent :)
My fear was financial. I had a job that paid the bills but no medical insurance. How was I going to cope?
Dr Hanna was great, she explained that my Superannuation fund has an income protection insurance and apparently the government (say what you like about them, but I bless them to the skies!!) will assist with any shortfall. Phew! Pressure lifting.
Discovery...
18 November 2011
It was a fairly warm evening and I'd had a busy day at work. I did what I always do and headed straight to my bedroom to change.
As I took off my bra I felt an 'itchy ouch' and thought, "how did I get a mozzie bite through my dress and my bra?" My hand automatically went to my breast to feel the lump, but my skin was smooth. I pushed in and felt a lump.
This is where you would normally panic I suppose, but I just felt a bit curious. Also, it was Friday night and my option was to wait until the following week or pay megabucks to see a doctor on a Saturday - if I could get in.
I've been peri-menopausal for about 6 years so I flashed back over the last couple of weeks. I'd had a break-out along my jawline, been bad tempered and feeling a bit off and I've had cysts in my boobs for years. Self diagnosis? Probably a bit of hormonal rampaging and this'll turn out to be nothing.
I had a Rostered Day Off the following Friday and was so busy at work that I decided to leave it until then.
I made the appointment and went to see my doc first thing in the morning on Friday 25 November.
Dr Hanna examined me and sent me off with a form to book myself in for a Mamogram and Ultrasound.
I had the choice of two locations, one local and one in the city at the Mater. The local one couldn't see me until 8 December but the one at the Mater had 'Emergency Appointments' and could see me on 30 November.
Remember that people!!! Ask for an 'Emergency Appointment' if it's not a routine check-up!!!
Then I went off to the Crafts and Collectables fair with my friend Sonia and bought some lovely things :)
It was a fairly warm evening and I'd had a busy day at work. I did what I always do and headed straight to my bedroom to change.
As I took off my bra I felt an 'itchy ouch' and thought, "how did I get a mozzie bite through my dress and my bra?" My hand automatically went to my breast to feel the lump, but my skin was smooth. I pushed in and felt a lump.
This is where you would normally panic I suppose, but I just felt a bit curious. Also, it was Friday night and my option was to wait until the following week or pay megabucks to see a doctor on a Saturday - if I could get in.
I've been peri-menopausal for about 6 years so I flashed back over the last couple of weeks. I'd had a break-out along my jawline, been bad tempered and feeling a bit off and I've had cysts in my boobs for years. Self diagnosis? Probably a bit of hormonal rampaging and this'll turn out to be nothing.
I had a Rostered Day Off the following Friday and was so busy at work that I decided to leave it until then.
I made the appointment and went to see my doc first thing in the morning on Friday 25 November.
Dr Hanna examined me and sent me off with a form to book myself in for a Mamogram and Ultrasound.
I had the choice of two locations, one local and one in the city at the Mater. The local one couldn't see me until 8 December but the one at the Mater had 'Emergency Appointments' and could see me on 30 November.
Remember that people!!! Ask for an 'Emergency Appointment' if it's not a routine check-up!!!
Then I went off to the Crafts and Collectables fair with my friend Sonia and bought some lovely things :)
Welcome!
Thanks for stopping by to read about my little journey down the rabbit hole.
My name is Kayt Deans and the last 5 years of my life have been a bit 'challenging'. This culminated at the end of 2011 with a breast cancer diagnosis!
Let's take a swift glance back in time...
After almost 21 years of a wondeful marriage to an honourable man, I discovered neither of those statements were true. My wonderful marriage shattered at my feet and I joined the ranks of those women who really had no clue her husband was cheating on her.
It took some time but when my head cleared I decided to show my sons that just because people knock us to our knees, it's our decision to stay down there or get up and move forward.
I re-educated myself with the latest office technology and I got myself a full-time job; I had a five year plan which, with a considerable amount of luck, I managed to achieve in 2 years.
It turns out I had this strength inside me that I had never really noticed before, and I liked it a lot!
Don't get me wrong, this time was fraught with a huge amount of stress and I had so many sleepless, tear filled nights. This was a very, very scary time for me.
It took 5 years to get through the divorce & settlement and was eventually finalised in October 2011. I could finally say that I was in charge of myself, my life and the wellbeing of the boys! WooHoo!!
So here I am, on my own feet, a fully fledged adult paying my own mortgage on a house in my own name; managing to pay the bills and eat at the same time. Wow!
G-d is an absolute Piss Taker!!!
Now, I am not a religious person but I do have a great faith in G-d and believe that there is a reason for everything that happens in my life.
The Great Journey to a Better Understanding blah, blah, blah.
I love G-d and know that I am loved in return. This does not, in any way, cause me to drop my head in shame when I tell you that I know, beyond a shadow of doubt that...
G-d is an absolute Piss Taker!!!
Which is where my story really begins...
My name is Kayt Deans and the last 5 years of my life have been a bit 'challenging'. This culminated at the end of 2011 with a breast cancer diagnosis!
Let's take a swift glance back in time...
After almost 21 years of a wondeful marriage to an honourable man, I discovered neither of those statements were true. My wonderful marriage shattered at my feet and I joined the ranks of those women who really had no clue her husband was cheating on her.
It took some time but when my head cleared I decided to show my sons that just because people knock us to our knees, it's our decision to stay down there or get up and move forward.
I re-educated myself with the latest office technology and I got myself a full-time job; I had a five year plan which, with a considerable amount of luck, I managed to achieve in 2 years.
It turns out I had this strength inside me that I had never really noticed before, and I liked it a lot!
Don't get me wrong, this time was fraught with a huge amount of stress and I had so many sleepless, tear filled nights. This was a very, very scary time for me.
It took 5 years to get through the divorce & settlement and was eventually finalised in October 2011. I could finally say that I was in charge of myself, my life and the wellbeing of the boys! WooHoo!!
So here I am, on my own feet, a fully fledged adult paying my own mortgage on a house in my own name; managing to pay the bills and eat at the same time. Wow!
G-d is an absolute Piss Taker!!!
Now, I am not a religious person but I do have a great faith in G-d and believe that there is a reason for everything that happens in my life.
The Great Journey to a Better Understanding blah, blah, blah.
I love G-d and know that I am loved in return. This does not, in any way, cause me to drop my head in shame when I tell you that I know, beyond a shadow of doubt that...
G-d is an absolute Piss Taker!!!
Which is where my story really begins...
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