The Next Steps

3

This week is the beginning of the next steps for me.  I posted a few weeks ago that my PET scan had come back clear – it shows no cancer activity in my tissue.  But that’s not the end of the journey.  I still have surgery & more treatments for the next several months.  I know that this is as foreign to many of you as it once was to me, so here are some of the details, the why of it all and what I’m facing in the coming days/weeks/months.

Surgery: scheduled for Thursday October 2nd at 10am

I’ll be having surgery to remove the tissue that was once a lump of cancer in my left breast.  Early on the doctors placed a small metal clip in the middle of the tumor so that they could find it if it ended up being too small to find.  Well, it’s too small to find 🙂  They (the doctors) also want to remove several lymph nodes.  I’m going to have a conversation about this part of the surgery with my doctor because I’m not sure that this is the best option yet as it could cause future problems.

Chemo (well, sort of): every 21 days until May 2015

I’m done with the Chemo we all know and hate, but I will be taking Herceptin every 21 days until May of 2015.  It’s not chemotherapy, but a targeted medicine that blocks a protein on the surface of some cancer cells.  My cancer is HER2-positive and this drug will block any cells still in my blood from growing out of control again.  It’s still done at the Chemo center, and while there are side effects, it’s nothing close to the rollercoaster that Chemo was.

Radiation (maybe): 5 weeks of daily treatments

Everyone says ‘just do it’, but did you know that it burns part of your lung and maybe even damages your heart when you’re treating the left breast?  In case you missed that earlier, my cancer was in my left breast.  So, I’m not sure…I’m still doing research and deciding on this step.

 

So, there you have it.  Please continue to pray for me as I continue this journey.

-Tamika

 

AUTHOR

2 Comments

  1. Lesly Garber Gemelli LE | September 30, 2014 at 4:46 pm
     

    I have known you since you were about 9 years old. I am so proud of the strong woman you have become. Lots of love, prayers and support to you and your family. ♡♡♡

    Reply
  2. Donna Johnson | October 1, 2014 at 4:10 am
     

    I love how brave you are – how proactive you have been – how sharing your journey will prove to be an inspiration to others!

    Reply

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