Post-Op

This will be a short post just so everyone can get word. Mom's surgery went great on Thursday. They made it home about noon today and she was able to go to TJ's High School Graduation. Her pain is being pretty well controlled with the block they put in and the pain pills she was given. The preliminary results (95% accuracy) show that her lymph nodes were negative for cancer. This is such a huge relief for all of us, especially Mom. The final pathology will come back in a few days and then we will know for sure what the nodes are or aren't doing.

I know this is not a normal post from me...sorry. For many reasons this has been a LONG week. I will get back to my regular posting form next time. Thank you for all of your support, well wishes and prayers. They mean more than you know. 

Keep calm and fight on

-Meg

Surgery Scheduled

Mom did have her appointment with her Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Hsoai (pronounced shout without the t).  After several days, we finally got word on a surgery date.  She will be having a Mastectomy of her right breast on Thursday, May 30.  This will be Mom's first major surgery in quite a long time.  As such, she is a little nervous, but everyone has been reassuring her that everything will be fine.  As a health care professional she knows that chances are slim that things would go wrong, but I think your perception changes when it is you they are working on.  So, please keep Mom in your prayers, especially on Thursday.

Here is a run-down of what will be happening on Thursday and post surgery.  Her surgery is scheduled at 1:00 and we have been told it will last approximately 3 hours.  Dr. Goulet (her surgeon) will spend about 2 hours removing the breast tissue and Dr. Hsoai will spend about an hour working to prep her for reconstruction (this part is done in 2 surgeries).  She will spend the night in the hospital and will hopefully be released Friday by late morning.  They won't be able to keep her much longer than that because her oldest grandson, TJ, is graduating from Greencastle High School on Friday night.  She has said several times that she will be there, no matter what.  Dad, Monica, Maria and I will be with her on Thursday.  Michelle will be there in spirit and will be home shortly after her surgery.  I have also had word that 2 of Mom's sisters, Sharon & Mary, are planning to coming over for the surgery on Thursday.  Though Mom may not think she needs it, all of the support will be good for her.

During surgery they will take some of her lymph nodes and do what is called a sentinel node biopsy.  We won't know the results of the biopsy for several days after surgery.  These results are what will determine her course of treatment beyond the mastectomy.  We are obviously hoping for the nodes to come back negative.  If they come back positive, treatment options could include radiation and/or chemotherapy. 

The doctors think that her recovery should go well.  She will be off work for at least a month, if not a little longer depending on how her recovery does go.  Michelle and the kids will be coming home on June 6 and staying through June 15.  I'm sure this will help keep Mom's spirits up.  For those of you who may not know, Michelle is moving with her family to Madrid, Spain in August for Tony's work.  They will hopefully only be there for 3 years and then back home (to Wisconsin).  Any extra time Mom gets to spend with between now and August is a bonus.

The second phase of her reconstruction will take place 4-6 months after her initial surgery.  Dr. Hsoai will do a second surgery to complete the reconstruction and symmetry.  We don't have a lot of detail about this yet.  I'm sure more information will be coming dependent on the success of the mastectomy.

A friend of ours recently traveled to Rome and picked up a rosary for Mom from the Vatican.  It was an amazing gift and very beautiful.  Those of you who know Mom well know that she is devout in her faith.  I know that she will be praying and saying a few rosaries.  Catholic or not, whatever you believe and whoever you pray to, please lift her up in your thoughts and prayers.  Our family appreciates all of the support you've given us in the last month and continue to give.  What an amazing group of people to have around her during this difficult time.

"God speaks in the silence of the heart.  Listening is the beginning of prayer."
-Mother Teresa

Keep Calm & Fight On
-Meg

Oncology Update

Mom had her appointment with her oncologist, Dr. Bolla, on Wednesday.  He supported everything we have heard so far.  Currently all of her doctors are very positive about her prognosis and feel like surgery may be the "cure" for her.  When she has her mastectomy (no date yet) they will take some of the nodes to test.  If the nodes come back positive she will most likely have to undergo some type of chemotherapy.  If the nodes come back negative (which it seems like the doctors feel likely) then she would not have to do any chemo or radiation.  The one thing she would have to do would be to take an oral pill referred to as an AI (http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/hormonal/aromatase_inhibitors).  So, all in all we feel we received good news from Dr. Bolla.

She will meet with her plastic surgeon on Tuesday morning to discuss her reconstruction (which will be done at the time of the mastectomy) so we will have more news to share and hopefully we will soon have a date for surgery.  Please continue to keep Mom in your prayers.  She is, understandably, having difficulty sleeping.  I think when we finally get a timeline to surgery and recovery that might help, but we'll see.

"If you're lost and alone
Or you're sinking like a stone
Carry on
May your past be the sound
Of your feet upon the ground
Carry on"
-Lyrics from the song Carry On by Fun.

Keep Calm & Fight On
-Meg