wet sock

So hi guys and gals, i guess unlike some of you im pretty much hurtling towards 50, it saddens me that there is so many of us diagnosed with breast cancer especially under 50. Firstly quick recap, i have been on here before  but  post on the other forum, i was diagnosed when i was 46 last year on the 20th October 2020, a date that will be forever inprinted in my brain. was quite blase about checking my breasts ill  be honest, but something last year around october time told me hell better start, it was like my body was telling me to do it, as it already knew something was not right, my mum used to say always trust your gut.... 

Anyway in the shower and felt a small pea sized lump on my right side, just below my armpit at the 10'oclock position, did'nt hurt and had no other symptoms, had been feeling tired for a few months prior to this, but put this down to work etc. Anyway my GP surgery was very good at getting me in to be seen, regardless of the pandemic, and subsequently was fast tracked to the breast clinic.  So initial consultation consultant telling me nothing to worry about, probably fatty tissue etc but will have mammograms done and ultrasound, he was more sure it was nothing, which lulled me into a false sense of security really, abeit for a brief period. 

Anyway after having my bits squashed and placed into some pretty tricky positions, mammograms came back with nothing on them, however did highlight that i had dense breast tissue therefore, i then had the ultrasound, so laid there on the couch thinking this is what it was like when i had my children however this time i was here for a totally different reason, much more different, no baby to be seen on this picture. 

I know when she went quiet and moved over the same area for the 100th time that something was not quite right, so me being me asked outright, is there something there? im afraid so she said quite matter of factly, you have a lesion, i asked is it cancer, she said most probable, oh right i said, so what do we do now, she informed me that i had come early so that was lucky, and that she was glad that i had........ anything else she said i never heard really. 

So fast forward to diagnosis DCIS which was invasive, 32mm tumour, with sentinel node and mammary node cancer involvement, i subsequently had a lumpectomy wide excision, and just for the hell of it had to have full axilliary node clearance, which thankfully the 14 nodes that they took out did not have cancer in them so 2/16 were only positive. 

They subsequently went in the same scar to do the clearance which was quite good, and the surgeon has made a cracking job at it being rather tidy. 

Sorry my sense of humour is how i handle things, ive said before cancer is like being slapped in the face with a wet sock a dirty wet sock at that. 

So now im having 3 rounds of EC chemotherapy and 3 rounds of Docetaxol chemotherapy, five sessions of condensed radiotherapy and probably ten years of Tamoxifan. just finished round 2 of EC, and must admit, its hard, lost my hair at day 17 after first round of EC, but shaved the rest of, now i look like a warrior or as my grandaughter says, drink more coffee Nanna your hair will grow back. 

Im probably ranting, but i feel for so many younger women diagnosed with this, ive had my kids, had them quite young, so don''t have all the extra things to worry about, getting cancer sucks, being young and getting cancer sucks, hell being any age with cancer sucks, i never smoked, exercised, tried to eat healthy, looked after myself, and whack hit with the cancer ticket. I'm not angry, what im angry about is so many health professionals not all might i add, dismissing younger womens concerns in relation to their breasts, and lumps etc, this definitley needs to change, im quite passionate about this. 

So thats just about where i am at the  moment, all i can say is take each day one day at a time, try and get out and walk exercise whatever variety, i have found this invaluable at the moment, and it does help with the treatment, rest when your body says rest, and do what you need to do to get you through this. 

Feel free to chat about anything anytime, im not always on but will try and reply, good luck to all you lovely ladies and gents, because breast cancer does not discriminate, sending hugs to each and everyone of you all. xxxxx