Canserversary and other "birthdays"
Hi everyone -
Just wanted to post about a little celebration we had on Sat. night. A good friend just had a major birthday and my hubby will be having the same one very soon. Friend's wife just passed her 10th year since surgery for her breast cancer.
We thought it was a good occasion to dress up and have a good meal together to mark these joyous occasions.
Kathy was the first person (besides my great aunt's daughter, who was an older lady then) I ever knew to have breast cancer. Kathy was then barely 40 years old, working, with 3 children at home. She did her "whole 9 yards" of treatment and took her tamoxafin for 5 years. Walking is something she has been very serious about and she is in great shape.
Seeing her come through her battle and out the other side gave me courage and a real life role model when I got my diagnosis shortly after she got back a full head of hair and a sparkle in her eyes. I saw that she was "herself" again and I would be too.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening!
__________________
"When I hear music, I fear no danger. I am invulnerable. I see no foe. I am related to the earliest times, and to the latest." H.D. Thoreau
Live in the moment.
MY STORY SO FAR ~~~~
Found suspicious lump 9/2000
Lumpectomy, then node dissection and port placement
Stage IIB, 8 pos nodes of 18, Grade 3, ER & PR -
Adriamycin 12 weekly, taxotere 4 rounds
36 rads - very little burning
3 mos after rads liver full of tumors, Stage IV Jan 2002, one spot on sternum
Weekly Taxol, Navelbine, Herceptin for 27 rounds to NED!
2003 & 2004 no active disease - 3 weekly Herceptin + Zometa
Jan 2005 two mets to brain - Gamma Knife on Jan 18
All clear until treated cerebellum spot showing activity on Jan 2006 brain MRI & brain PET
Brain surgery on Feb 9, 2006 - no cancer, 100% radiation necrosis - tumor was still dying
Continue as NED while on Herceptin & quarterly Zometa
Fall-2006 - off Zometa - watching one small brain spot (scar?)
2007 - spot/scar in brain stable - finished anticoagulation therapy for clot along my port-a-catheter - 3 angioplasties to unblock vena cava
2008 - Brain and body still NED! Port removed and scans in Dec.
Dec 2008 - stop Herceptin - Vaccine Trial at U of W begun in Oct. of 2011
STILL NED everywhere in Feb 2014 - on wing & prayer
7/14 - Started twice yearly Zometa for my bones
Jan. 2015 checkup still shows NED
2015 Neuropathy in feet - otherwise all OK - still NED.
Same news for 2016 and all of 2017.
Nov of 2017 - had small skin cancer removed from my face. Will have Zometa end of Jan. 2018.
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