Hey guys,
Sorry this is so late; it’s been a long day… Also please bear with me as my mind is just not co-operating and I can’t seem to get words and sentences to go together.
Mom and Brian went to see the oncologist today to get the results from the biopsy. Mom’s lungs are all clear of fluid which is awesome!! It means the talc material is doing its job properlyJ.
What Mom and Brian were told is that it is Breast Cancer and that it has metastasized. Meaning it has spread from its original site to another. There were a bunch of questions asked as far as previous surgical history goes and what the chances were of it being found last year versus this year. The oncologist said it wouldn’t have made a difference if they had found it last year as it had still spread to the lungs and she would still be where she is today-just not as many tumors. Mom asked which of the two original surgeons messed up-when Mom had the mastectomy and then the lymph node removal; she had two different Dr’s perform the surgeries. She was then told that in reality, neither one of them did. Quite often they have a heard time locating the lymph nodes, however, the three they did find happened to have come back negative for Cancer. What we now know is that even though those three were negative, there was still another one there that was positive and was never located.
So what does this all mean right now?
Well they are waiting on one more test to come back before they know for sure what kind of chemo treatment they do. This test is the HER2 test, which tests for growth-promoting protein on the surface of breast cells. This is the Canadian Cancer society’s link to a bunch of breast cancer information, including stuff on HER2 testing:
Sorry this is so late; it’s been a long day… Also please bear with me as my mind is just not co-operating and I can’t seem to get words and sentences to go together.
Mom and Brian went to see the oncologist today to get the results from the biopsy. Mom’s lungs are all clear of fluid which is awesome!! It means the talc material is doing its job properlyJ.
What Mom and Brian were told is that it is Breast Cancer and that it has metastasized. Meaning it has spread from its original site to another. There were a bunch of questions asked as far as previous surgical history goes and what the chances were of it being found last year versus this year. The oncologist said it wouldn’t have made a difference if they had found it last year as it had still spread to the lungs and she would still be where she is today-just not as many tumors. Mom asked which of the two original surgeons messed up-when Mom had the mastectomy and then the lymph node removal; she had two different Dr’s perform the surgeries. She was then told that in reality, neither one of them did. Quite often they have a heard time locating the lymph nodes, however, the three they did find happened to have come back negative for Cancer. What we now know is that even though those three were negative, there was still another one there that was positive and was never located.
So what does this all mean right now?
Well they are waiting on one more test to come back before they know for sure what kind of chemo treatment they do. This test is the HER2 test, which tests for growth-promoting protein on the surface of breast cells. This is the Canadian Cancer society’s link to a bunch of breast cancer information, including stuff on HER2 testing:
http://info.cancer.ca/E/CCE/cceexplorer.asp?tocid=10
The results from the HER2 test should be coming back sometime next week and Mom goes back to see the oncologist on Aug. 21. She also will be going in for some more blood work that morning as well and will be getting all the results then. The oncologist doesn’t want to rush into chemo treatment until they know whether or not Mom is HER positive or Negative-this will help determine whether Mom will be put on a certain type of medication called Herceptin.
On Aug 20 Mom will be going to a 2-hour Chemo Teaching which will, as the name says, teach Mom about Chemo. This will help her to know what all is involved in it and what she can expect rather than going through it completely blind and not knowing what may happen next. If all goes well (or as well as it can) they have a tentative booking for the first chemo treatment, which would be Aug 25.
Mom will be going back to see Dr. Bond on Thursday Aug 14 to get the incision checked-oh and just to clarify this, the incision was 10mm NOT 10cm as Mom told me originally-and to also have the sutures removed from where the chest tube was.
Right now Mom and Brian and the rest of us, are just taking it one day at a time. Time will tell how the rest will play out.
The results from the HER2 test should be coming back sometime next week and Mom goes back to see the oncologist on Aug. 21. She also will be going in for some more blood work that morning as well and will be getting all the results then. The oncologist doesn’t want to rush into chemo treatment until they know whether or not Mom is HER positive or Negative-this will help determine whether Mom will be put on a certain type of medication called Herceptin.
On Aug 20 Mom will be going to a 2-hour Chemo Teaching which will, as the name says, teach Mom about Chemo. This will help her to know what all is involved in it and what she can expect rather than going through it completely blind and not knowing what may happen next. If all goes well (or as well as it can) they have a tentative booking for the first chemo treatment, which would be Aug 25.
Mom will be going back to see Dr. Bond on Thursday Aug 14 to get the incision checked-oh and just to clarify this, the incision was 10mm NOT 10cm as Mom told me originally-and to also have the sutures removed from where the chest tube was.
Right now Mom and Brian and the rest of us, are just taking it one day at a time. Time will tell how the rest will play out.
3 comments:
Meghan- we are sending hugs and prayers to your mum and you and the whole clan . Thanks for keeping us updated so we know how direct our prayers. I put your mum on a prayer chain and will update them after Roni starts the chemo. I am not sure your mum has told you about me but I am a fellow survivor that met your mum on a group site. We share the same birthday and similar blood line and a love for our flowers and of course -cancer. we may never meet but in a sense we are family . God bless you guys
Beck
I am shocked and saddened by what the doctors have found, but I am not without hope for Roni. I was unaware that things like this could happen that they could fail to find a site that was still saying positive for Cancer.
It can still be beaten and I am sending my very best wishes out to you that this will indeed happen.
Daphne
Hey Roni,
Gregory here from work...happy to hear that you will be learning more about the Chemo...my sister wasn't given any information before she started taking it so it was a little scary.
Sending you positive thoughts!
Get well sooon!
Cheers,
Gregory
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