My surgery went well

Good news …. My surgery is over and it went well. Of course I have nothing to compare my recovery to…. but everyone at the hospital said I was doing great. I only had to stay one night. 

         I am home now and have friends and family helping me. I am in pain, but managing it with the pain medicine they gave me. The hardest part for me is to REMEMBER to NOT LIFT things. I just do it automatically without thinking and then when I am mid air holding it and my body yells PAIN.
Then I remember “Oh shoot, not supposed to lift. “ Simple things like a gallon of milk or my 7 lb. cat. So my family suggested I put a sling on my arm to help remind me.

         VERY GOOD NEWS, my lymph nodes are clear. I received the call today 

(Nov. 8, Thursday) about my lymph nodes and cancer staging. 

All the prayers from everyone were answered. Thank you!!!

         We were ecstatic about the news. My Doctor said I am Stage 2A cancer which is better than 3 or 4. The staging scale is 0 to 4, 4 being the worst. Below is a chart showing different stages if you are interested. 

         My next step is …..Doctor appointments where they tell me what treatments will follow. For tonight I am happy…and relieved and tired. I will write more later. 

Thank you to all our friends and family who have been praying and calling and texting. 

To determine the stage of breast cancer, various tests are done to pinpoint the cancel. They use a bone scan, a CT scan, and if they need it a lymph node biopsy. Your doctor will decide which test he needs depending on the size of the cancer found.

STAGE 0 – When abnormal cells are in the lining of a breast duct, but have not invaded nearby breast tissue, or spread outside of the duct. These cells are not yet cancerous but have been known to turn into invasive breast cancer if not treated.

STAGE I – An early stage of invasive breast cancer. Cancer cells have opened the breast duct and moved beyond to invade breast tissue, but has not yet spread to the breast. No more than 2 centimeters (3/4 of an inch) across.

STAGE II – This stage has four different possibilities which average out to the tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (3/4 to 2”) across and spread to the lymph nodes under the arm OR over 5 centimeters or over 2” but NOT in the lymph nodes.

STAGE III – Is locally advanced cancer. It is divided into A, B, & C
A – Over 5 centimeters and has spread to underarm lymph nodes
B – A tumor of any size that has grown into the chest wall and may have spread to underarm lymph nodes
C – Inflammatory breast cancer – very rare and the breast will appear red and swollen.

STAGE IV – Distant Metastatic cancer, it has spread to other parts of the body, such as the bones or liver.