My apologies for the delay in posting an update – life seems to have been very busy, which is a good thing.
Last week I received a very nice letter from the Consultant I saw first back in November last year, who is now semi-retired. He has continued to follow my progress and was very pleased to read my histology results. He said that only about 25-30% of patients who receive chemotherapy up-front like I did get an “all-clear” at the end, so I should feel very secure about the future.
We met with the Consultant Clinical Oncologist and the Breast Cancer Support Nurse in the afternoon of Thursday 20th June. Unfortunately, earlier that day, while applying makeup, I accidentally stabbed my right eye with an eye liner pencil and pierced the white, which immediately bled! I felt pretty stupid about it and I didn’t tell Colin until we got to the hospital for my appointment! It wasn’t sore, just rather alarming.
After seeking general advice about my self-inflicted eye injury(!) I asked about the results from the two scans I’d had the week before.
My MUGA heart scan result was much the same as last time, meaning that there has been little or no adverse effect from the continuing three-weekly Herceptin infusions.
The bone density scan result showed osteopenia of the femur (I already had a pre-condition) and my spine is just slightly into the osteoporosis spectrum. So, no surprises; and there is now a baseline for future monitoring.
You may remember that the bone scan was done because Herceptin treatment can reduce bone density so I am to have infusions of bisphosphonates. These infusions will be at a frequency of once every six months for three years, but they take just fifteen minutes each time. I don’t yet know when that regimen will start.
The Consultant Clinical Oncologist also gave me the first prescription for the Letrazole tablets which I am to take daily for at least five years and maybe for up to ten. He went through the possible side effects (which I mentioned in my last post) but said that I may not get any of them, or if I do they might just settle down given time. I have now been taking the tablets for a week and haven’t noticed anything so far – long may that continue!
So, immediately following the appointment with the Consultant Clinical Oncologist I phoned our local optometrist for a triage appointment. Fortunately I hadn’t done any serious damage to my eye although it was very red and bloody. That was just over a week ago and I am happy to say that with regular use of antiseptic eye drops it has now completely healed and my eye is back to normal. What a silly thing to do!
To celebrate being cancer-free and to mark my birthday (belated, from April) we went to The Ivy the same evening for a lovely meal with Mark and Amy. Red eye and all!
Now back to the subject of this blog… the next stage for me is radiotherapy.
Until about six months ago they used to put permanent marks on the skin to make the machine setup quicker and more accurate – that would have been my first tattoo!. Now they scan the area to build up a 3D map of the body to use each time for targeting the beam. It will just be for my breast; my lymph nodes don’t need this treatment.
I went for the radiotherapy scan on Thursday 27th June. There was a lot of form filling; a detailed description of the radiotherapy treatment to come and finally a CT Scan.
The first of the fifteen radiotherapy sessions will be on Monday 8th July, then it will be every weekday for 3 weeks until 26th July. A “free” return taxi ride from home will be provided for me each day. Not free at all of course, it’s undoubtedly included in the overall treatment cost which our medical insurance company will be paying.
Each daily radiotherapy session will take about thirty minutes in all, but only fifteen minutes for the actual treatment, the rest is getting ready and setting up. Apparently my skin may become red and sore – much like sunburn – and it’s likely I will become more tired, especially towards the end of the three weeks.
I was advised not to use any cosmetic products that contain metallic ingredients, particularly aluminium. Typically these are anti-perspirants and highly pigmented eye shadows and eye-liner – I didn’t even know there was aluminium in them!
After my last radiotherapy session I will see the Consultant Clinical Oncologist again to assess any reactions to the treatment.
So there you have it. It’s almost 4 weeks since my lumpectomy. I still have a blue boob and am a little tender but all the wounds have healed really well and I don’t seem to have any fluid build-up which is for many people quite common. I have generally been feeling pretty well… just a bit of a rash on my face and itchy forearms which is most likely to be a side effect of the Taxol, even though that treatment finished 8 weeks ago. The time seems to have passed so quickly.
I will post again after the end of my radiotherapy treatment, so around the last weekend in July. It seems like summer is here at last, so if you’re in the UK get out and enjoy the wonderful weather!
Thank you again for keeping in touch and for the many cards and lovely messages I have received, they are so much appreciated.