2nd Mastectomy, 2nd time lucky.......RESULT

Those of you who read my post's will already know about my cancelled operation see post NHS no beds...

I finally have another appointment on the 27th of November as a day patient so I will be going home on the same day (apparently this is the new norm with mastectomy operations) got everything crossed to get this operation out of my way this year. New surgeon is fantastic so all is good on that front.

UPDATE

6 days out of surgery YAY it happened this time. Turns out that going home was a good move although I had to go back into hospital on the Friday for a drain check/removal, they were going to replace the bottle however, I told them next week I have a CT Scan, an echo heart scan, Herceptin injection not all on the same day, they decided to take the drain out to save me another visit to the hospital. Thank god for that!!!

Feeling very sore as one would expect and not sure about the wound its a bit gunky but I have Herceptin tomorrow so shall show the nurses see what they think.

Other than that its wonderful to feel flat chested no sinister lumps and bumps no lady humps to worry about. Looking forward to a boob free life. No tears so far I don't miss them or it! Looking forward to a few months down the line when this will be a distant memory.

No Beds NHS

Wow, didn't expect that. Turned up at my appointment for operation on the 12th I had to get a lift with my other half who couldn't take any time off work so I was at the hospital bright and early, waited 3 hours before my appointment time, at 11 oclock I walked into the ward and they started to do the usual, admin form filing in, gave me surgical tights and got me changed into a gown then out of the blue a lady turned up and asked to speak to me in private where she revealed that my operation had been cancelled that day as there wasn't any beds available. I have heard that this happens but why didn't they contact me the day before???? urgh........... back to the drawing board. I was then stranded at the hospital feeling knackered and starting to develop a migraine, talked my partner into picking me up and taking me home so got home about 3ish......what a long, waste of time day that was.

2nd Mastectomy

Some people will know that I have always wanted the left hand breast removed. From the very beginning when I was first dx I wanted to have both off but the surgeon wouldn't perform it saying and I quote "I never remove a healthy breast" however I argued that with secondaries as well I wasn't living with a healthy breast but rather a ticking time bomb. Not only was it a cancer bomb waiting to erupt but also it had grown from a size 32 to 42 in a very short time making it stupidly large, also I can't wear a bra as when they took the bad boob they also took a lot of lymph nodes out down the side of my body where your bra strap sits this causes a lot of pain when I wear a bra hence not being able to wear a bra making me feel out of balance, looking out of balance, carrying extra weight on that side and a boob that is feeling the force of gravity altogether a right pain in the tit! Seriously though, I have been suffering with the odd weird pain in that breast and of course worry like mad that its something more sinister.

So finally after a lot of pushing on my part the powers that be have agreed that to remove it wouldn't be such a strange idea and are now offering me surgery dates of the 12th of September, I only got informed of this on Friday 31st August, so got this weekend to discuss and go over everything with my long suffering partner. Who agrees it should go.

Weekend over and decision is made. Pre-op this Thursday and operation next Wednesday.

Feeling a little anxious but I know it makes sense and thank god for the NHS I can have the operation and with any luck will live a little longer.

Wish me luck.

Getting the balance back

Its been a while since I last posted and I am happy to report, all is ok on the cancer front and I am adjusting to life without the ovaries. Hot flushes are still an unfortunate part of my life and I do hate them BUT winter is coming and the weather is cooler so life becomes less hot and bothered.

Last week I had a appointment with my new oncologist Dr G. is amazing I really get on with her and 

its been a long time since I actually spoke with a full fledged Onc. as my previous Onc. sadly died of liver cancer however, I always seemed to be dealt with by registrars. I've complained a lot of times about feeling out of balance, my size 32 chest has grown to a size 42 on the remaining breast and its a pain, not only is it massive and heavy its exasperated by the fact I can't wear a bra, I've tried every bra known to mankind and none of them are supportive and pain free. My problem is I had a lot of lymph nodes out and due to the fact that I was skinny (size 8 back then) the nodes were in with all the muscle which my surgeon had to dissect, it took him ages and he had to cut through muscle, my armpit area and my torso on the right hand side are badly scarred and so whenever I wear a bra no matter what type it digs into my scar tissue and ends up feeling very painful, so much so that I have to take the bra off after only half an hour! So this leaves me not wearing a bra most of the time and feeling very out of balance, Dr G. could see how out of balance I was carrying myself and suggested that she would refer me to a breast surgeon who could perform a mastectomy of the left hand side breast as a life enhancing operation. Fantastic! So I am now waiting for an appointment to see a breast surgeon and whilst they have a policy of not operating on a healthy breast they might when they realise how out of balance I carry myself and the ramifications of this on my body and life. Considering they perform breast enlargement on the NHS I think this isn't a big ask, considering what I've got and what I've been through. Dr G did explain that it wouldn't be this year as its not an emergency which is fine by me, I'd rather have it next year anyway. So fingers crossed this will happen and I will be rid of the massive boob that blights my life.

The lovely lymph nurse....

I suspected that the pain in my arm and trunk was more than normal mastectomy site mending itself pain and my oncologist referred me to a Lymphedema Nurse called Vikki. I felt a bit strange about going for this appointment because I was dreading the possible prospect of having to wear a compression sleeve and also the nurse is based in our local hospice. I have too say I was pleasantly surprised, the hospice was so calm and blissful a huge manor house converted, very friendly offering you tea and coffee in a comfortable waiting area with big armchairs, I don't really know what I was expecting to find but it certainly was not something as comforting as it proved to be and I no longer have 'the fear' as regards to a hospice.

As for lymphedema I do have it but very mild and early stages which is mainly in my trunk on the side, the pains I was experiencing turned out to be nothing to do with lymphedema but everything to do with my nerves knitting themselves back together (its been a year since my mastectomy). Vikki measured both of my arms and told me that my right arm (which is the affected limb) is 2% larger than my left, although my right arm is my dominant arm anyway so it would always be slightly larger, needless to say I am hugely relieved that all the exercises are paying off and keeping the dam lymphedema at bay.  We had a great chat and I found her to be so sympathetic and understanding.

During the consultation she said would I like to be referred to a Bowen Technique practitioner, I have heard of this complementary treatment and wanted to try it out anyway so was pleased to find that its free of charge on the NHS if your referred by your lymph nurse and a series of appointments have been made. My first appointment was on Friday and was very interesting, a series of light touch movements all over my body and it really did seem to work wonders, aligning and correcting my spine whilst attempting to deal with my side effects ie: migraines/hot flushes/neck and back pain. I will keep you all posted on how I progress with these treatments but I already feel something inside me has clicked and am looking forward to my next session which will be next week.