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A Blessing From Cancer
I have been missing from our wonderful board. My life has been turned upside down, but this time with an incredible miracle that started one hour after waking up from my lumpectomy.
When I was diagnosed in 2011, I was told very clearly that my life was about to change. Plans my husband and I had were going to change. My Oncologist was raw and told me the cancer I had was very aggressive, but I had a shot with chemo and Herceptin. The drawback, I had to start chemo immediately as she believed the results of my PET scan would show Stage 4. But luckily I was Stage IIB which gave me the opportunity to have a lumpectomy and that meant I would have just enough time to undergo IVF during my recovery of 10 days before starting chemo. So, I woke up from surgery and HELL began. Nothing says living nightmare like going through IVF with drains hanging out of your chest and Femara being pumped in so the spike in Estrogen doesn't feed the cancer. I was able to freeze 4 embryos and then two days later I started chemo. Fast forward 3 years when the "brace yourself for a possible recurrence" passed. My Oncologist gave me a pat on the back on my 3 year NED anniversary and said, "you made it through one of the hurdles". So I asked if I could try and carry one of the embryos to which I got a big fat NO. So my husband and I did our research and saved every dime. Two years later we found our option with an angel willing to carry our baby. But alas, when we finally went through all the legal crap, financial nightmares and medical obstacles, our 4 embryos turned to one. Only one made it to blast and was transferred with a 13% chance of sticking. But he stuck and grew and grew. And this June our cancer miracle will make his grand appearance.
So I am 5.5 years NED, still have my boo-hoo moments and my OMG has it come back. I went through 2015 in and out of emergency surgeries because of Tamoxifen ending the year with a blood clot again because of Tamoxifen. But 2016 was a glorious beginning of a journey that will explode with the arrival of this little baby. Ladies, if you are diagnosed young, ask about fertility preservation. It worked for us. And so did Gestational Surrogacy. Sending love and light to all my sisters...those here and those that have earned their wings.
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DX 10/2011
PET Scan + MRI 10/2011
Lumpectomy 11/11/11
Stage 2B +++ ER+(10%), PR+(5%), HER2+++(1 positive node, 1 micromets to second node)
AC started 12/2011 ended 1/2012
Taxol + Herceptin weekly for 12 weeks ended 4/2012
30 zaps of radiation done 6/2012
Tamoxifen 6/2012
every 3 weeks of Herceptin for another year.
Metformin Trial 8/12
10/12 MRI- CLEAR
01/13 BRAIN MRI- CLEAR!
01/13 Neck MRI- CLEAR!
FINISHED HERCEPTIN 1/9/2013...Woot Woot
Starting Walter Reed Vaccine Trial 2/13
CT Scans + ultrasound of abdomen CLEAR-5/13
02/2015 through 11/2015 emergency D&Cs for Tamoxifen induced uterine polyps which caused uncontrollable hemorrhaging
12/2015 blood clot to left leg caused by Tamoxifen. No longer taking it. On Xarelto, a blood thinner
12/2015 Ablation to prevent hemorrhaging from potential issues with Tamoxifen residue in my system
1/2016 continuing journey without hormonal therapy. Reevaluating the option of a hysterectomy and oopherectomy.
4/1/2018 2mm stroke. Yes, stroke! No cause ever found but they believe it was a migraine that went bonkers and created a tiny clot. No deficits. I was back to normal with 24hrs. Now on baby aspirin for life.
7/27/2018 hysterectomy and oopherectomy
01/07/2019 Mastectomy and expanders put in
3/22/2019 Vtach, almost died. Cause unknown.
7/22/2019 New perky boobs put in
7/21/2020 Off of all drugs but a baby aspirin because of the stroke in 2018.
www.mychemobag.org
www.facebook.com/mychemobag
8 YEARS NED
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