Chapter 2 – Fred Flintstone – etiquette class, more tests, small surgery and away we go The Why – There is little benefit to writing another book as much of the experience will be the same. I will chronicle anything that is different from the first experience on these Facebook posts so those interested will have a sense of what the process is for this cancers annihilation. If you have not yet read my book, I encourage you to consider it. It is not a boo-hoo, why-me, OMG-I-am-gonna-die self-absorbed chronicle. It is a helpful, humorous, information packed book of the experience that has provided help to over 6,000 buyers to date. I am not John Grisham, but there is value in the words I have shared. Here we go…with the new stuff - on an entirely new cancer diagnosis - in the only breast that I have left. Our Love of these kids - Some of you may be aware that our Family Foundation supports three institutions. One of them is Mercy Home for Boys & Girls. I had planned to meet a group of 16 girls and counselors from the girl’s home at Capri Ristorante for a class on etiquette that was to start 1.5 hours after an important dentist’s appt. I had an infected tooth that needed to be under control before surgery the following week to insert the port for chemo. I had hoped that antibiotics or some magic dental potion would eliminate the problem. I should have known better. It had to be pulled. Back molar. I couldn’t use Novocain as the etiquette class would have quickly become a Saturday Night Live comedy sketch with the first tip on etiquette being – do not get Novocain before hosting a dinner party! Cue the drool… The doctor and I looked each other squarely in the eye, full well knowing we had no options. The tooth had to come out. And it was important that it came out well before surgery so that the infection would subside and healing could occur. I was running out of time. Decision - pull it. I hunkered down in the chair and he went at it with the dental pliers or whatever it is they use and after a few cracks, twists, scrapes and up and down suction-like pain; it was out. Pretty much instant relief; after the initial shock of it all. Here is the cool thing; Dr Simos refused to charge me. Laughingly, we joked that he didn’t have a chargeable code for what he did. Fred Flintstone extractions were never considered when building the infrastructure of their billing system. Go figure! By the way, the etiquette class went well and no one ever knew a thing. I hope. I can be a great actress when it does not involve cancer. The What – Wednesday’s medical trip involved an echocardiogram to be sure there is no heart abnormality and a breast MRI with a radioactive contrast injection to be sure nothing else is going on with lefty. Everything is looking good at this point. The last needle stick I needed to get past, which had to go into a vein, occurred one day later. This last stick was to have provided me with a la-la-land like experience for surgery to insert the port. For the next three years all blood draws, chemo, anesthesia for surgeries – whatever, will be administered through this port and my tiny, wiggly, always hiding, deep diving veins will be of little consequence. (I am Happy - like a room without a roof!) I must have been too scared to allow myself to go under and the la-la-land experience, well, wasn’t. I continued talking to the doctor for most of the first half of surgery and he answered my questions for a while and allowed me to select the music. He even sang a bit. That was nice. But, at one point I think he became less than thrilled that I was still awake. He asked me if I ever text and drive. I answered honestly, that I have, but don’t make it a habit. His response, “Well, it’s kind of like that now. I need to concentrate.” Uh, sorry…silence ensued. The first local injections were in the base of my neck on the lower right side, where they begin the process by threading the catheter into a large vein, and pushing it in until it rests just above your heart. The local injections sting and burn just like at the dentist, but once they take effect you are numb. Any discomfort comes from the pushing sensation in your neck and you can feel pressure in the side of your throat, but its not painful, just uncomfortable and strange. The team kept me informed about what they were doing throughout. When they finished with the neck part, the doctor gave me several more numbing injections in my chest for the actual port placement part of this procedure. A few more stings and burns, but it was tolerable. In this part of the procedure, they make an incision in your chest for the port which is about the size of a quarter, placing it under the skin below your collarbone, and then they make a tunnel for the catheter sticking out of your neck, push it under the skin down to the port, and connect the two. There is a fair amount of pulling, pushing and tugging in this part of the process but it wasnt painful - again, just strange and uncomfortable. It doesnt last long, and then they begin to stitch you up. The sub dermal layers are stitched with dissolving stitches and the top layer is glued with steri-strips placed over the incisions. There is one tegaderm dressing over a small gauze pad at the base of your neck, and another on your chest below your collarbone. The idea of having a catheter winding into my heart still freaks me out. It could slip out at any time in the next few years and we’d have to begin again. File that under, we’ll see. A Silver Lining – This is a loving nod to my friend Dr. Sandy Goldberg who has a Foundation called, A Silver Lining. My Silver Lining is this…I am grateful that I do not have a third boob! The Next Step – Chemo begins Wednesday. I can almost feel my hair follicles cracking off as I write this update. But, that is not possible; at least not this early. It is simply a memory reflection and won’t occur for a few more weeks, but, I am ready for it. I know what to expect. I won’t be as surprised this time when shit happens and shit will happen. I have all of you. I am blessed. Love and hugs… The next update will be after something different or significant occurs that has not already been chronicled in the book. I hope you stay tuned. I can promise you a humorous take on a not-so-funny-matter.
Posted on: Sun, 27 Apr 2014 17:12:04 +0000
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