Liver resection...need advice please

[jessica]

Hi All~
As my Thanksgiving holiday in paradise (home in Hawaii w/my family) comes to a close, I find myself beginning to get anxious...what with all that lies ahead once I get back to Atlanta...
The day before I left for Hawaii, I had a PET scan that showed that the spot in my liver is acting up again. I've only been off chemo for 8 weeks, after ~6mos of treatment, and here we are again!
I start back on Taxol/Herceptin on Thursday, have a detailed liver CT on Monday & meet w/the surgeon on Wednesday to talk about resection.After a year of watching, my docs feel pretty confident that this really is the only spot, and are offering surgery as a treatment option. That is Good News. I think we're planning the surgery ~Christmas time.
My question to all of you w/experience is, how did you choose your surgeon? I chose my breast surgeon b/c she specialized in breast surgeries, and that was all she does & had been doing for the past 15 years. I'm hoping to find someone comparable to do the resection too. I don't know if I feel comfortable with just any Surgical Onc. I want the person that does liver resections all day long & nothing else! To make matters even more complex, this stinky stubborn spot lies so close to the inferior vena cava, that in order to get clean margins, the surgeon said he'll have to cut out a portion of the IVC out & reconstruct it!
All of this is making my head spin again...I'd appreciate any input or wisdom or sharing of your experiences....
In the mean time, I'm going to try to enjoy my last day here...suspend reality for just a little longer...
Keeping the Faith~
JML