Treatment decisions

"I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds," says the LORD. Jeremiah 30:17

Well I had two great doctor appointments. I met with the radiation oncologist yesterday and the surgeon today-- both gave us lots of insight on the overall disease and treatment options. They gave us peace of mind that my calcifications (they call it a tumor, I like to call it a calcification!) are very small and should be easy to remove with clean margins. The choice I have is lumpectomy followed by radiation OR mastecomy. Recurrence for both is the same.
Because my calcification is small, this is DCIS (non invasive and intermediate stage), I'm young (so they say!) I am choosing lumpectomy/radiation. This choice also saves mastectomy as an option IF I do recur at some point in the future.
The lumpectomy sounds like a pretty simple procedure-- they insert a wire into my biopsy incision which points to the metal marker that they placed inside me when they took the biopsy. That will direct the surgeon to the location where the calcification is. Then he will go in and remove the tissue (I think I am under a light anesthesia). Then they take the tissue to the lab for a quick pathology to make sure they have clear margins. If not, the surgeon takes more...if so, they close me up with some steri-strips and send me home. The whole procedure only takes about an hour. And recovery sounds pretty easy (although I may tell Bryan that I can't cook or clean for at least a month!!).
Then about three weeks later, I would start radiation therapy (5 days a week for 7 weeks!). This should reduce my chance of recurrence-- and that is most important to me! The radiation also sounds pretty much like an x-ray. The treatments will only take about 20 minutes a day. It will take me longer to drive up and back from La Jolla every day. The exciting part is that I will get my first tattoo with the radiation treatment!!! They tattoo marks on your chest for the set-up of the scanner.

Tomorrow (Thursday) I go in for additional testing. Its a new molecular imaging test called a BSGI (Breast Specific Gamma Imaging) test. The doctors don't expect to find anything more, but this test (like an MRI but a bit better for DCIS) will show us if there is anything they aren't seeing in the mammogram. I will have the results Friday.

Now you are all asking WHEN is this all going to happen. Well I don't have a surgery date yet, but I should have one very soon. I suspect it will be around mid-February after we get home from our DisneyWorld vacation. (both doctors gave us the resounding "yes go on vacation"). I will of course let you all know when the surgery will happen. I expect the radiation to take place in March and April. And be cancer free by May!
Thanks to all of you who continue to pray for me and my family. We are seeing the answers to your prayers all the time (e.g. great doctors who are giving us more than we had hoped for in terms of their patience and understanding. Peace in the decision to have the lumpectomy and radiation treatment.) But it isn't over yet! So I ask you to please keep praying for me, Bryan, the kids, and our parents.
I love you all so much.