I just received my pathology report from my mastectomy. Dr. Winchester (my brilliant oncology surgeon) sent us the report and explained to me that they found everything that they expected - which is very good! We already knew there were two tumors in my right breast (one was 4.1 cm and the other 2 cm) plus one lymph node. Those were found and successfully removed. He took a cluster of 14 lymph nodes and there was only one additional node with metastaticized (sp) cancer. Yeah! Dr. Winchester said it could have been so much worse. After review by his a committee of colleagues, they determined that I do not require radiation. Big yeah! I'm going to share the report with my local oncologist, Dr. Tsarwhas and my oncologist at M.D. Anderson in Houston, Dr. Theriault, to see if they agree.
We are ecstatic! Makes my pain a little more tolerable. :)
Well - I'm off to take a nap. I'm exhausted!
Love to all,
Jana
Friday, April 24, 2009
Calendar - Part Deux
Many of you have emailed/called to let me know you have had some issues entering information onto the calendar. If you are so inclined, please email our good friend Kara at kbcummin@yahoo.com
She has agreed to enter your requests into the calendar.
Again, I want to thank all of you for helping us out with meals, playdates, etc...It has really made everything so much easier these past few days.
She has agreed to enter your requests into the calendar.
Again, I want to thank all of you for helping us out with meals, playdates, etc...It has really made everything so much easier these past few days.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
This is harder than I thought
Hey all. I haven't been up to writing and actually am not up to it right now. I just feel horrible. I really wasn't prepared for all this pain and discomfort following surgery. I just thought if I believed it wouldn't be so bad, then it wouldn't be. I was hoping it would be a mind over body thing. Well, the body has a mind of its own.
It's been wonderful having friends come by, receiving all the exquisite flower arraingements, the amazing homemade meals, the sweet books, thoughtful gifts, cards, notes and emails. All the attention has been overwhelming. P.J. and I greatly appreciate all the extra help with Georgia and for everyone who is helping her through all this.
Saw my wonderful reconstructive surgeon today, Dr. Howard. He tells me that my body is healing on schedule. My drains will have to stay in for another week - gross and very painful. Will see him again in a week.
For now, I'm enjoying watching daytime tv, indulging in magazines I normally wouldn't read, catching up on movies and lots of sleep. Thank you for keeping up with my journey.
Much love,
Jana
It's been wonderful having friends come by, receiving all the exquisite flower arraingements, the amazing homemade meals, the sweet books, thoughtful gifts, cards, notes and emails. All the attention has been overwhelming. P.J. and I greatly appreciate all the extra help with Georgia and for everyone who is helping her through all this.
Saw my wonderful reconstructive surgeon today, Dr. Howard. He tells me that my body is healing on schedule. My drains will have to stay in for another week - gross and very painful. Will see him again in a week.
For now, I'm enjoying watching daytime tv, indulging in magazines I normally wouldn't read, catching up on movies and lots of sleep. Thank you for keeping up with my journey.
Much love,
Jana
Monday, April 20, 2009
Jana is Home - Calendar
Thank you all for your kind notes so far. We have really enjoyed reading them and they lift Jana's spirits, so keep them coming.
Jana came home on Saturday afternoon and while the staff at the hospital were great (for the most part) - she really wasn't getting much sleep. Set aside the moaning/screaming patient in the room next to her. Set aside the fact that without fail, every time Jana fell asleep, a nurse - or some other Hospital operative - would come in needing something asinine. I really wish they had told us about the construction in the Operating Rooms directly below us. How in the world can they expect her to sleep when there is more drilling and banging going on there than in a third-world cathouse? - not that I'd know what that sounds like.
Now that she's home, many of you have signed up to bring over dinner. We have already enjoyed a couple of them - and they were both fantastic. Thank you.
To make the process of helping us out easier, our good friend Kara has set up a calendar on Google Calendars. Here is the url:
http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=5c40b39uu4gd5v3bhja32d1o9c%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America/Chicago
Unfortunately, I am far too unskilled at this blogging stuff to get it to work as an embedded part of the blog. Therefore, if you have an interest, you will need to either click on the link, or cut and paste it into your browser. Once there, you can see who has signed up for what and click on a date to do you your own thing - should you want to.
If any of you know how I can get it to work, please let me know.
Again, thank you all for your thoughts, emails, prayers, phone calls, et al. They really mean a lot to us both.
Jana came home on Saturday afternoon and while the staff at the hospital were great (for the most part) - she really wasn't getting much sleep. Set aside the moaning/screaming patient in the room next to her. Set aside the fact that without fail, every time Jana fell asleep, a nurse - or some other Hospital operative - would come in needing something asinine. I really wish they had told us about the construction in the Operating Rooms directly below us. How in the world can they expect her to sleep when there is more drilling and banging going on there than in a third-world cathouse? - not that I'd know what that sounds like.
Now that she's home, many of you have signed up to bring over dinner. We have already enjoyed a couple of them - and they were both fantastic. Thank you.
To make the process of helping us out easier, our good friend Kara has set up a calendar on Google Calendars. Here is the url:
http://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=5c40b39uu4gd5v3bhja32d1o9c%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America/Chicago
Unfortunately, I am far too unskilled at this blogging stuff to get it to work as an embedded part of the blog. Therefore, if you have an interest, you will need to either click on the link, or cut and paste it into your browser. Once there, you can see who has signed up for what and click on a date to do you your own thing - should you want to.
If any of you know how I can get it to work, please let me know.
Again, thank you all for your thoughts, emails, prayers, phone calls, et al. They really mean a lot to us both.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Compression Socks and Great Docs
WTF?!?!?!
Who invented these things? I'd rather debate the merits of wearing tights with my 7 year old daughter than try to wrestle them on to my wife before surgery. Saying they're tight is like saying water is wet. How in the world can they be helpful if Jana wakes up every 5 minutes because they fall off of her toes?
On a happier note - we just can't say enough good things about Jana's surgeons. Doctors Winchester(oncology) and Howard(reconstruction) are absolutely fantastic. They kept me informed throughout the day as to their progress and, most importantly, put Jana at ease before and immediately following the procedure. They have both gone to great lengths to make sure that both of us have been as comfortable as possible throughout this ordeal.
Thank you both.
Who invented these things? I'd rather debate the merits of wearing tights with my 7 year old daughter than try to wrestle them on to my wife before surgery. Saying they're tight is like saying water is wet. How in the world can they be helpful if Jana wakes up every 5 minutes because they fall off of her toes?
On a happier note - we just can't say enough good things about Jana's surgeons. Doctors Winchester(oncology) and Howard(reconstruction) are absolutely fantastic. They kept me informed throughout the day as to their progress and, most importantly, put Jana at ease before and immediately following the procedure. They have both gone to great lengths to make sure that both of us have been as comfortable as possible throughout this ordeal.
Thank you both.
Bye Bye Boobs
It's official - the girls are gone. I just met with the surgeon who said everything went well. Right now, Jana is still in surgery with the plastic surgeon. She will be there for about an hour or so and then into recovery for another hour. I'll get to see her after they move her to her room.
So far, so good.
So far, so good.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
The Big Day
Hello y'all. Tomorrow is the big day. Everything is in order ... Georgia and her schedule are taken care of; Duke is cared for; my house is semi-ready for guests; my doctors have all called me today to check in; my friends and family have all called, emailed or stopped in to wish me well; P.J. is great; my bag is packed. Now, I just have to get myself mentally ready. Today I had so much adrenaline that I ran around my house all day unpacking boxes and moving things from the attic and putting them away. I won't be able to do anything like that when for a few weeks, so I wanted to get as much accomplished as I could.
Right now, I'm exhausted. Just put Georgia to bed at my inlaws. P.J. and GoGo are up there now reassuring her that I will be fine and trying to convince her she needs her sleep. Georgia is having difficulty at bedtime. For the past week, she has asked me to put her to bed and wants to talk about breast cancer and every aspect of my surgery and chemo. Tonight she told me she wants to shave her head when I lose my hair. Of course, I will not let her; however, I know she is capable of anything. I pray that she doesn't find my razor and shave it herself. At least I have about a month before I can begin chemo and begin that chapter. Yesterday during her Brownie meeting, Georgia told her friends that I was going to lose my hair soon and that I wanted to get a Hannah Montana wig. Some of them did not know what to say - others just said "cool."
Tomorrow, my surgery will last about 3 hours and P.J. will send a message out on this blog as soon as he is able. I've asked him to log into my Facebook and do the same. I expect him to be with me as soon as I get out of Intensive Care, so please don't call him. He will call as many people as he can when he can.
Thank you to Kara and my dear book club for organizing a week of meals and calendar for others to sign-up. Thank you for all the encouraging e-mails, phone calls and cards, too. I'm going to be fine and am eternally grateful for all your support.
All my love,
Jana
Right now, I'm exhausted. Just put Georgia to bed at my inlaws. P.J. and GoGo are up there now reassuring her that I will be fine and trying to convince her she needs her sleep. Georgia is having difficulty at bedtime. For the past week, she has asked me to put her to bed and wants to talk about breast cancer and every aspect of my surgery and chemo. Tonight she told me she wants to shave her head when I lose my hair. Of course, I will not let her; however, I know she is capable of anything. I pray that she doesn't find my razor and shave it herself. At least I have about a month before I can begin chemo and begin that chapter. Yesterday during her Brownie meeting, Georgia told her friends that I was going to lose my hair soon and that I wanted to get a Hannah Montana wig. Some of them did not know what to say - others just said "cool."
Tomorrow, my surgery will last about 3 hours and P.J. will send a message out on this blog as soon as he is able. I've asked him to log into my Facebook and do the same. I expect him to be with me as soon as I get out of Intensive Care, so please don't call him. He will call as many people as he can when he can.
Thank you to Kara and my dear book club for organizing a week of meals and calendar for others to sign-up. Thank you for all the encouraging e-mails, phone calls and cards, too. I'm going to be fine and am eternally grateful for all your support.
All my love,
Jana
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Hey y'all! Am finally sitting down to write something for this blog. Haven't had a computer to write from and didn't want to write this from my iPhone. Since we moved back into our house last weekend, we haven't been able to get our home computer to work. I left it in the basement and its full of construction debris. Not smart. Will have to get a new one or figure something out.
We are thrilled to be back home. It's all fresh and new. Even though we've lived there for nearly 6 years, it feels like a new home. It's especially nice to sleep in our bed again - which will make me more comfortable when I'm recuperating from surgery in a few days. Thanks to my mom, my mother-in-law and all their sweet helpers for helping us back into our house.
We still have construction workers around working on our small problems inside and beginning to redo the backyard. Once the backyard is done and the fence is back up, our dog (Duke) can come home. He's enjoying an extended stay at his grandparents, Jane and Tom. Can't wait until the workers are gone and we can enjoy the fruits of our (their) labor.
This Thursday is the big day for my mastectomy. I'll be at Evanston Hospital with surgery scheduled at 8:30 a.m. I expect to be there until Saturday.
Georgia will be staying with P.J.'s parents from Wednesday to Sunday. They cancelled a long-planned trip with friends to Napa and a very special dinner at the French Laundry to be here for us at this time. We are grateful to have their constant help.
When I'm home next week, I expect to do a lot of sleeping and won't feel up for lots of visitors. I'll probably lay low and stay home until my drains are out in about 10 days. Please email me/P.J. if you want to come by or drop off a meal (hint, hint!). I will contact some of you directly for help with Georgia. We want to keep things as normal as possible for her.
I am extremely grateful to my family and friends for all their love, support and prayers in the past few weeks. It has made this journey more bearable.
P.J. will update this so that you can stay informed of my progress.
All my love,
Jana
We are thrilled to be back home. It's all fresh and new. Even though we've lived there for nearly 6 years, it feels like a new home. It's especially nice to sleep in our bed again - which will make me more comfortable when I'm recuperating from surgery in a few days. Thanks to my mom, my mother-in-law and all their sweet helpers for helping us back into our house.
We still have construction workers around working on our small problems inside and beginning to redo the backyard. Once the backyard is done and the fence is back up, our dog (Duke) can come home. He's enjoying an extended stay at his grandparents, Jane and Tom. Can't wait until the workers are gone and we can enjoy the fruits of our (their) labor.
This Thursday is the big day for my mastectomy. I'll be at Evanston Hospital with surgery scheduled at 8:30 a.m. I expect to be there until Saturday.
Georgia will be staying with P.J.'s parents from Wednesday to Sunday. They cancelled a long-planned trip with friends to Napa and a very special dinner at the French Laundry to be here for us at this time. We are grateful to have their constant help.
When I'm home next week, I expect to do a lot of sleeping and won't feel up for lots of visitors. I'll probably lay low and stay home until my drains are out in about 10 days. Please email me/P.J. if you want to come by or drop off a meal (hint, hint!). I will contact some of you directly for help with Georgia. We want to keep things as normal as possible for her.
I am extremely grateful to my family and friends for all their love, support and prayers in the past few weeks. It has made this journey more bearable.
P.J. will update this so that you can stay informed of my progress.
All my love,
Jana
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