Today marks my last treatment with Taxol, and my final chemo! After 20 weeks and 16 chemo dates (spa days as Andy and I lovingly called them), I am ready and grateful for that stage of treatment to be behind me. I was joking today that you know it is time for you to be done with chemo when you don't have to tell the people at the check in counter your name anymore because they know you, and all the nurses know you by name and how many pets you have, and where you like to vacation, and what your master's project is... Overall, I was was very impressed with the entire team at the Cancer Care Center, never had a bad experience with the staff there (which is pretty impressive if you think about how much time I spent there, 16 x 3-4hrs average each time). I will be forever grateful for their professionalism and compassion when caring for me and my family.
Last week we met with my breast surgeon, and I was referred to a plastic surgeon who I will be meeting with tomorrow. I have decided for sure to go ahead with a bilateral mastectomy. With my genetic mutation, I am greater risk of having breast cancer again in my lifetime so I want to minimize risk as best I can. Once I make a decision about what type of reconstruction, if any, I will be having, then I can schedule surgery (my surgeon is hoping for mid to late August). Tomorrow will help narrow down my reconstruction choices, but at this point I am pretty scared about all the additional surgeries reconstruction entails. I am having these deep philosophical debates in my head, and sometimes out loud, about what do breasts really mean to me as a woman and how will I feel when they are gone. I'll have to let you know how that works out because I haven't come to a conclusion just yet.
Next week Tuesday I will have an MRI scan to see how the tumor responded to chemo, hoping for a complete response because neither I, nor my surgeon could feel any remaining tumor in my breast as of last week. Fingers crossed!
Back to schoolwork now as I wait for my hair to decide its ok to start growing back.