Changes - written middle of August, saved in Drafts by mistake :(

I think this is my last "unpublished" blog post.  I saved it in drafts and I just saw it tonight.  I really didn't have the hang of this when I started, and I guess I was a little distracted :)   I wrote this in August, 2 weeks after my cancer diagnosis.

Wow.   Talk about changes!  Two weeks ago I was a healthy, happy woman trying to pull the most out of the last few weeks of summer.   I know, technically, summer doesn't end until sometime in September.  But, for me, it ends at the end of August.  I love summer.   I love the heat.   I love golfing in the heat.   I love swimming in the heat.  I just love summer.

Now, two weeks later I am facing a battle that could take my life.   I have no plans of letting it win.  I plan to fight this thing like I have never fought before.  I will be journaling my fight here.   I will be posting other things here, but I really think that recording my feelings during this fight will be helpful.   Hopefully, it will be helpful to other women facing the same battle.  Or anyone facing a life threatening illness.  You can't just sit back and feel sorry for yourself and say "why me?"    I asked that.  I eat healthy, I don't smoke, I haven't drank much in my lifetime, I exercise every day.   How could this happen to me and WHY?   Well, why NOT me?   Cancer doesn't discriminate.  It just happens.

I am scared, but I also have peace.   God has given me the tools to fight this.  My healthy physical condition will help me so much as I face a very rough treatment schedule.  I will continue to eat healthy, drink my Shakelogy (with my Oncologist's blessing), and I will continue to exercise.   I will listen to my body.  If it is telling me to stay in bed that day, I will.  If it is telling me I can go for a walk, I will.  I know that it will be beneficial to me physically and mentally to MOVE.  It will release those endorphins that I will desperately need.

I promise I will talk about other things besides cancer here on my blog.   There is so much more to me than that.  It doesn't define me and it will NOT beat me.

PET Scan Results!

This morning I got my PET Scan results, and they couldn't have been better!  There were no new cancerous areas visible on the scan.  The original tumor in my breast is no longer visible on the scan!  As for my lymph nodes, they have shrunk dramatically.  One that was 3.6 X 2.4 cm is now 2.6 X 1.6 cm   The metabolic activity in the axillary lymph node previously was 14.9   It is now 2.5  (under 3 is good)!

As for that pesky node in my sternum, it has shrunk also.  It was previously 2.2 X 1.2 X 0.7 cm.  Now it is 1.3 X 1.2 X 0.4 cm.   The metabolic activity previously was 15.7 (very high) and it is now 1.1   That is amazing!

This means the chemotherapy is working.  The cancer that I have, triple negative breast cancer, is very aggressive and my Oncologist said many people don't respond to the chemotherapy, so I am fortunate that mine does respond.  Even though the tumor in the breast is no longer visible,  I will still need a total radical mastectomy on the right side.  I'm okay with that.  I will have reconstructive surgery at the same time as the mastectomy. 

After surgery I will have about a month of recovery time and then I will start radiation - 7 weeks at 5X a week.

I feel very blessed to have so many people praying for me and sending me well wishes, they are all greatly appreciated!