A New Day

It was fantastic to talk with Mom today.  She is full of sparkle.  Cancer is not something that happened to her.  It is a tool that she has been gifted with to create a tidal wave of positive life change.  This experience will be full of high and low but today I am going to enjoy the high.  Mom is strong, beautiful and couldn't have a better mindset.

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The MRI Mom took on 6/20 has revealed several other malignant tumors in the left breast.  After examining the findings, Dr. Henderson said that they were multifocal and multicentric in nature.  She doesn't feel comfortable doing multiple lumpectomies and suggests a mastectomy in order to be as certain as possible that all the cancerous areas are totally removed.

The really good news is that the MRI also showed that her lymph nodes were not suspicious, however they will still have to be biopsied at the time of surgery.  She has the option of having a mastectomy in conjunction with reconstruction done by a plastic surgeon, or living with a no breast.  Mom thinks the decision is a no brainer -- especially when they told her that the plastic surgeon can make both breasts look similar, even if he has to take a bit from the "good" one and give it a little lift!

 So next step is to have another appointment with Dr. Winnie to discuss the surgery and have an initial appointment with the plastic surgeon, Dr. Movassaghi.  We have both of these scheduled for Tuesday.  It's fantastic news that she will only have to have one surgery since the mastectomy and reconstruction can be done at the same time.

More good news - if the tumors are not too close to the skin or chest wall, she may not have to have radiation and the docs are not sure about chemo.  Mom has already made the decision against chemotherapy.  I fully support her.  At this point, I don't believe that there is reason to deconstruct her body while it is working so hard to heal itself.  It seems so intrinsically counter-intuitive to the healing process.

This is a good summary of some of the things I've been feeling: Questioning Chemotherapy, by Dr. Ralph Moss

Nutrition, mentality, loving surroundings, laughter, a support system and a true belief that the cancer will be eliminated from the body, are the fundamental pillars of healing.  Mom is fully embodying this and running with it.

"Even in the muck and mire of things, something sings"

Speaking of laughter.... The Party Pooper  (Dad, I think you'll enjoy this):