6/20 – Debrief with Doctor

So I spoke with my doctor on Thursday. It was a quick 10 minute conversation, but I’m hoping to sit down with them again this week to further discuss and ask more questions.

They spoke with MD Anderson (two doctors) and the consensus is for me to do another round of intravenous chemo for 3 months (2 drugs I haven’t had yet – TBD on the names). The goal will be to shrink down the cancer again and then do surgery to remove it, hopefully this time with clear margins. Then possibly a round of radiation to be sure the site is sterile.

I asked why not surgery again. I mentioned at this point I was fine just taking all the skin they wanted. The quick answer (which we’re going to dig into more) is that they need to be sure they get it all and taking too much skin makes it hard to close, so this is their preferred route. He called that an extreme option and they are still looking for a cure and feel this is the route to it.

The drug’s main side effect is fatigue, no hair loss, and it may impact platelets. I’ll learn more this week. I think he said it’s weekly for 2 weeks in a row, then a break week. No port needed, they can do it through an IV. I can start next Friday and my off week will be for my beach vacation.

So right now the plan:

• Tuesday – meet with Radiologist
• TBD – talk with surgical oncologist and medical oncologist
• Thursday – Chemo training and blood work
• Friday 6/28 – first round of chemo (I may try to switch to Mondays to get this going ASAP)

So now I have more questions answered and research. I learned there is the fine line of “researching” vs. “googling” (which just brings back troubling answers). I also made the mistake of posting to one of the TNBC Facebook groups I’m in – that was a mistake. Lesson learned. I think I’m going to outsource all research to Shawn from here on out.

I have lots of questions and am not thrilled with the fact that there’s still cancer and it’s spreading, so I’m taking solace in the word “cure.” More to come as I learn more…