As you know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
My beautiful 34 year old daughter was diagnosed with breast cancer this summer. She found a lump which one doctor wasn't concerned about. Her regular OB-GYN recommended a biopsy which showed precancerous cells. Because there is no family history of breast cancer, the doctors thought that when they removed the lump that it would be benign. It wasn't. She underwent a second surgery to see if the cancer had spread to the lymph nodes and to try to get clear margins around where the lump was removed. Fortunately, the lymph nodes were clear but the doctors didn't get clear margins. She was given the choice of another re-excision to try to get clear margins or a bilateral mastectomy. She chose the bilateral mastectomy because of the type of cancer it was. It is a cancer that can be very invasive but we were fortunate that it hadn't spread to other parts of her body. We are four weeks post-op and she is doing really well and has returned to work. She meets with the medical oncologist this week regarding follow-up treatment. The cancer is Her2 positive so she may need to have a 90 minute drip of Herceptin once a week for the next year. Not as bad as chemo but evidently will really tire her. I am glad that she is living with me and that I am able to help her through this. I have been really busy taking care of my grandchildren -a three year old and a seven year old in addition to working. Our friends have been a blessing and many angels have helped us through this. We will be doing two cancer walks - one in April in Naples and a 39 mile walk in Colorado the end of June. (Yikes - 39 miles - I definitely will be training for that one!)So, breast cancer has no age limits. Seventy percent of the women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history. Don't ignore any lumps and have regular check-ups and mammograms. It is important.
This has been an interesting journey.
Linda
