PET Scan Results, Chemo Start Date, and Treatment Plans

Hey y'all, 

I'm just gonna come right out and say it: The PET scan was CLEAR!!!!  My doctor actually called us that afternoon to give me the good news.  You may be asking, "What does this mean?" Well, it means that, as far as they can tell, the cancer has not metastasized to any other organ.  That is great news.  So we feel like we know what we are dealing with and we will continue with the treatment that my oncologist has laid out for my breast cancer. We were SO relieved to hear this news.  We were honestly preparing ourselves for the worst because we did not feel prepared when we found out the news last time that my cancer was invasive in the first place. But now we can just be thankful and our hearts can rest a little bit.

The other news is that I start chemo this Thursday, September 18th. More info below.

Below are some of the questions that people may be have...

Where will you get your treatment? We decided on the Cleveland Clinic.  It is an amazing facility with amazing resources and it is only an hour and a half from where we live.  We are so thankful that one of the top cancer treating facilities is so close to us. We believe that I would have received excellent care at AGH in Pittsburgh as well, but Cleveland is a little bit easier logistically since my parents are near. 

What will your treatment look like? There are 5 main treatments for breast cancer: surgery, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, radiation therapy, and hormone therapy. And I will be getting all of them!  They are basically throwing everything they have at this cancer. The idea is that the surgery got out the whole cancerous mass.  However, there may be cancerous microorganisms floating through my body.  The chemo and other therapies are designed to kill any microorganisms, to prevent any from coming back. As for all the treatments, I already has my surgery, so that is done.  Over the next 5 months I will be getting chemotherapy and targeted therapy (16 rounds of chemotherapy in total). The first 4 rounds of chemo will be every other week.  The last 12 rounds of chemo will be weekly.  My plan is to have my chemo on Fridays so that I can recover on the weekends and return to work on Mondays. The targeted therapy is an IV drug that is similar to chemotherapy.  It is called Herceptin and will attack a special feature of my breast cancer called HER2. This drug has been called a 'miracle drug' by some because it is so effective at attacking that protein of the cancer cells.  We were actually very thankful to find out that I was HER2+ because that meant that I could take this drug! I will get the Herceptin with my chemo for the last 12 rounds, and then I will get it every 3 weeks for up to 1 year (until next November-ish). After my chemo is done, I will do a month of radiation therapy everyday.  From what I understand, the radiation is directed at my chest wall for just a few minutes every day, and it is designed to kill any lingering cancer cells in the chest wall. After I am done with radiation, then I will start the hormone therapy.  Hormone therapy will be a pill that I will take every day for 5-10 years. Another feature of my cancer is that it is estrogen+ and progesterone+, so it feeds on estrogen or progesterone.  The idea behind the hormone therapy is that it will block the estrogen in my body in order to prevent recurrence. These treatments will not be easy, but we are thankful to be at a place where we are now working on the solution.

How did the fertility treatments go?  They went great!  It was a lot of work to go through the process of freezing embryos, but we are not complaining because it was really important to us.  We are still floored by the fact that a foundation would pay the $12,000 for us.  We are beyond thankful.  After many appointments and nightly injections into my abdomen, we had the retrieval last Friday, the 12th. It was a relatively simple procedure for me (I mean, after a double mastectomy my standards have adjusted) and I had no pain afterward. They called to let us know that they were able to fertilize 12 eggs successfully and will be freezing the embryos for us to use at a later time. They usually shoot for about 10 good eggs, so 12 sounded good to us.  Plus, kids are cheaper by the dozen, aren't they?

In other news, I talked with my awesome boss today and we have planned for me to return to work part-time next Tuesday, September 23rd.  She has been very understanding and is willing to be flexible with my schedule as I go through chemotherapy these next few months.  Pray that blessings are heaped on her :)

Other than that, we are just preparing for me to start chemo on Thursday.  We are curious how I will react since chemo is so individualized.  We will let you know how everything goes once we lift our heads above water again! For now, here are some pictures from my past week...

My sister Eliz came to hang out and watch movies for a day :)

Natalie, my mom, and I had a blast trying on wigs over the weekend. I did find one that I liked, but we found this one to be particularly hilarious. Don't I look like Kat from 'Garth and Kat' of SNL? I could not stop laughing. (In case you have misunderstood, this is NOT the one that I chose.)

katie

Fertility, PET scans, and the Edinboro Sky

Here is an update on a few things:

1. We have decided to go with Dr. Halle Moore at the Cleveland Clinic as my oncologist.  We feel really good about the care that I will get at the Cleveland Clinic and that I will get from her.  When we met with her she was kind, relatable, decisive and brilliant.  All of the things one could want in an oncologist!  She set out a treatment schedule of chemotherapy (over next 5 months), targeted therapy (for a year starting in November), radiation therapy (everyday for a month once chemo is done), and hormone therapy (a pill that I will take everyday for the next 5-10 years).  Basically, they are throwing everything that they have at this cancer.  My doctors feel confident in the treatments that they have, and so do we.  We also know that I have youth, general health, support, a sense of Peace, and a positive attitude on my side! At this point, on this day, we feel hopeful that the treatment will take care of it and I will be starting to feel healthy again by next spring/summer.  My hope and plan is to work during the treatments as long as my job is able to continue being flexible with me and give me almost every Friday off.  I would like to work because I love my job and I want to maintain a sense of normalcy.

2. We are going through fertility treatments right now! We are doing the first half of IVF to retrieve eggs and then freeze embryos for a few years until my doctor says that I am healthy enough to carry a child. Right now, it is a little crazy with going to Cleveland for appointments every other day and Craig giving me fertility shots in my abdomen every night, but we are SO thankful for this opportunity, for this modern medicine, and for the Partnership Foundation that is covering the cost for us. The minor surgery for retrieval will most likely be happening next weekend, which is exciting!

3. Also, I have a PET scan tomorrow (Tuesday).  Please pray for us tomorrow because this PET scan is supposed to tell us if the cancer has spread to anywhere else in my body.  We are obviously praying that it has not, and we would appreciate if you would pray that with us.  Also, please pray for our hearts if we find out that it has. It is certainly not a death sentence, but it does make things more complicated, and I am not sure how much more bad news our little hearts can handle at this time.

4. Chemo is set to start at the end of this month, so pray that I will continue to heal physically so that I can be as strong as possible going into the chemo.

5. Lastly, here are a couple glimpses into my life the past few days:

Our dear friends, Sarah and Chris came to visit.  These are the things that we did: went to the Edinboro Highland Games, watched Seinfeld, and road-tripped to Cleveland for a doctors appointment! This was taken at Edinboro Lake.

A view from my walk this morning.  Can I just say that the sky in Edinboro is beautiful?!

I'm Hanging In There

For those of you that are wondering: I'm hanging in there.

Each day is different. Most hours are different.  Some minutes are different. I go up, I go down, most of the time I am a little bit above the middle, so that's good.

Here are some things that are consistently true of my life these days:

1. Each day I feel a little bit better and I am able to do more.  Some milestones in the last few days have been: sitting up in bed by myself, reaching up to turn on a lamp by myself, and putting in my own ponytail!

2. Cancer is overwhelming.  Like, really overwhelming.  But there are pieces of Light in the midst of this messiness and I am looking for those.  I have found them in unexpected kindnesses, people I love, and belly laughs. I have also found them in soft jammies, deep naps, and nature.

Soft jammies and time in nature (at Edinboro Lake).

Notes from loved ones.

3. My short term memory is terrible.  Could be the drugs.  Could be that it is overwhelming to have cancer.  But I do know that I have to set reminders for everything, I often forget what I am doing if I am interrupted in the middle of something, and I wonder if this is what it is a little bit what it is like to have ADHD.

4. People are nicer to you if they know that you have cancer.  And people don't expect a lot of you if they know you have cancer AND that you just had surgery.  I use that to my advantage.  For instance, you are reading this post and forgiving me for the fact that it is so choppy... because I have cancer.  Thanks.

5. I cannot predict how I will feel or what I will be doing at any given time. Sudden mood changes: one minute I am happy, the next minute I am annoyed.  Sudden physical changes: one minute I am exhausted, the next minute I am ready to walk to the kitchen. Sudden life changes: one minute I am free to chat with a friend, the next minute something comes up and I cannot handle any phone calls.  Sorry friends. Thanks for understanding.  I have cancer.

6. Lastly, I have good people around me. Here are some of the people below that have been able to be physically present. (Not pictured is Daddy-o Tom Robb, who came to oncologist appointments to help us sort through all of the details. Thanks, Dad!)

My mom took care of me for the first week on the days that Craig had to work.  Natalie came to help too!

This stud is a Professional Husband. I love him.

This is Grace.  She is my friend.  She came to take care of me for Week 2! She rules.