bumpintheboob – Bump In The Boob

January 21, 2020January 23, 2020

Another bump in the boob

I had just visited my oncologist for my three-monthly check-up when I found a small lump in my right breast. It was in the exact same spot I had found my original lump that led to the initial diagnosis of breast cancer.

December 15, 2019January 23, 2020

Colonoscopy

The genetic testing I did when I was first diagnosed with breast cancer put me at a slightly increased risk of colon cancer so my oncologist recommended I get a colonoscopy.

November 18, 2019January 23, 2020

Hysterectomy and Anastrozole

One of the reasons my reconstructive surgery took a long time, was because we actually did two surgeries in one.

The plastic surgeon would manage the reconstruction using the DIEP flap process and my gynecologist oncologist would perform a total hysterectomy.

August 22, 2019January 23, 2020

Potions and lotions

Radiation can be pretty hard on your skin. After about ten sessions you will start to notice your skin changing.

In my case, it started with lots of little dots, that looked like moles. My skin started to gradually darken, it looked like I had been sunbathing, I got a tan. It would progressively get darker and darker.

June 30, 2019January 23, 2020

Boldly Bald

After meeting with my medical oncologist, it was clear that I was going to get chemotherapy. One of the side effects of the AC chemo is that you will lose your hair.

I had long, thick, curly hair and I have had a life-long love-hate relationship with my hair. I tried short hair, straighten it, leave it curly. Most of the time I had my hair in a messy bun. At the time of my diagnosis my hair was pretty long, probably hitting the middle of my back.

May 23, 2019January 23, 2020

High on Steroids

Steroids, they are the necessary drug during chemotherapy, but boy did they give me a hard time.

From the very first chemo session, they gave me a headache-like feeling mainly in my forehead and behind my eyes. A feeling I can still recall a little over a year since my last chemo session.

May 16, 2019January 23, 2020

Meeting the Red Devil

I really didn’t know what to expect from chemotherapy. I had seen some images of people getting chemo but had never been to the infusion area of the hospital until my first round.

I choose to have my sessions on Friday afternoon. Mainly, out of practicality to not have the chemo interfere with work too much and the advantage of going straight into the weekend after infusion so I could recover. I had arranged to also have the Monday following chemo off, if I needed extra time.

March 13, 2019March 12, 2019

Diagnosed, now what?

I have a bump in the boob and it is cancer. I know nothing about breast cancer. I don’t have a family history of breast cancer. Now what?

February 12, 2019February 28, 2019

Biopsy

The process of the biopsy is quite uncomfortable. You are lying on the table in a dark room and the ultrasound technician, with the use of a wand, projects the right spot on the screen for the doctor to go in with a pretty wide needle to first aspirate a piece of the identified tissue and then insert what they call a marker. A small metal piece, in my case the letter U and one in the shape of a traffic light. The marker is left at the place where they removed a piece of tissue. They do this so, if it’s cancer, the surgeon will know exactly where to locate it.

February 1, 2019February 28, 2019

A bump in the boob

I have always had large breast, and when I say large, I mean the XL size in breast 36G. They started growing when I was about 12 years old and it felt like every year, they would be a little larger.