The Biopsy and the Results
Thursday, Sept 1: Today is the day for the biopsy. I am having an ultrasound guided needle biopsy. They used the ultrasound to locate the middle of the mass and took 2 samples. They numb everything up pretty well so it did not hurt. It bruised up pretty bad afterward though. I told the surgeon that I wanted the results asap over the phone instead of waiting for the office visit.
Friday, Sept. 2: Well, I asked for the news asap and I got it asap. It is Invasive lobular carcinoma, about 1 cm in size. This type of cancer only accounts for about 10% of breast cancers. Most are ductal cancers. The treatment is the same though. Getting the diagnosis confirmed really didn't devastate me or anything. I think I was already prepared for it, as I said I had a bad feeling from the beginning. The surgeon said that there was some good news--Two bad things that you can have: perineal invasion (cancer around nerve or group of nerves) and angiolymphatic invasion (tumor cells in blood vessels or lymphatic vessel spaces) is not seen on mine. Absence of these is a favorable prognostic sign. So the next move is to see the surgeon again and schedule surgery.
Thursday, Sept. 8: Robert and I meet with Dr. Barber and discuss treatment. I will have a lumpectomy on Sept. 21. I go in at 7:00am and I will have a needle loc and dye injected for a sentinal node biopsy. With the needle loc they put a small wire into the middle of the tumor. They do it to tumors that are small so the surgeon knows where the middle is. The sentinal node biopsy is something that is new in the past couple of years. Instead of going in and taking a bunch of lymph nodes, now they inject dye into the breast, put you under a scan to see the dye drain to the lymph node. During surgery, the surgeon inject more dye and they take out only that one node that the dye drains to. They send that to the pathologist and if there is no cancer in that one then they don't take out anymore. If it does have cancer then they will take out others. I am nervous because I have not had surgery before. So I go shopping for cute surgery clothes. I found a "longewear" outfit from Dockers that has a zip up jacket that is perfect for the surgery.
Friday, Sept. 2: Well, I asked for the news asap and I got it asap. It is Invasive lobular carcinoma, about 1 cm in size. This type of cancer only accounts for about 10% of breast cancers. Most are ductal cancers. The treatment is the same though. Getting the diagnosis confirmed really didn't devastate me or anything. I think I was already prepared for it, as I said I had a bad feeling from the beginning. The surgeon said that there was some good news--Two bad things that you can have: perineal invasion (cancer around nerve or group of nerves) and angiolymphatic invasion (tumor cells in blood vessels or lymphatic vessel spaces) is not seen on mine. Absence of these is a favorable prognostic sign. So the next move is to see the surgeon again and schedule surgery.
Thursday, Sept. 8: Robert and I meet with Dr. Barber and discuss treatment. I will have a lumpectomy on Sept. 21. I go in at 7:00am and I will have a needle loc and dye injected for a sentinal node biopsy. With the needle loc they put a small wire into the middle of the tumor. They do it to tumors that are small so the surgeon knows where the middle is. The sentinal node biopsy is something that is new in the past couple of years. Instead of going in and taking a bunch of lymph nodes, now they inject dye into the breast, put you under a scan to see the dye drain to the lymph node. During surgery, the surgeon inject more dye and they take out only that one node that the dye drains to. They send that to the pathologist and if there is no cancer in that one then they don't take out anymore. If it does have cancer then they will take out others. I am nervous because I have not had surgery before. So I go shopping for cute surgery clothes. I found a "longewear" outfit from Dockers that has a zip up jacket that is perfect for the surgery.
posted by Meredith @ 10:00 AM
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