The drink up on my face last night and the heavy lube of Aquafor in my nostrils and around my lips has been a miracle.  My skin is was dry and it was comforting to be able to sleep through the night without the sharp sensation of air drying out and once moist area (gross).  This includes bum, lips, nostril and side of eyes where several tears have been shed.  If it is an area that (can) experiences moisture, I can only assume that the ‘chemicals’ from my first treatment have left a dried acidic trail that tends to be somewhat itchy.

Although I planned to take the day off, I worked from home instead.  I am feeling very good.  I do have some rumbling below the equator and have been looking at the Imodium and Stool Softeners trying to determine which this way is going to go.

By 10:00 I decided to step out and pick up Kelly’s finalized senior pictures; I love them all!  I stopped at Jo-Anns to to get some saddle pad fabrics for Christmas orders as well as some NFL themed fabrics for Christmas presents that we will be making for our Secret Santa picks!

I experienced my first weirdness of neuropathy when I tried to shut the mudroom door.  First I got a blast of electricity in my right hand through to my fingertips and then the tip had a numb yet tingly feeling.  I could only equate it to holding Scout’s ‘safety’ color in my hand while passing through the wire.  Sorry Scout, that zap SUCKS.  Maybe this is not neuropathy and just a weird freak thing that happened.

I had been going through the next couple of days not thinking much about the procedure or the results.  Except when I actaully looked at my boob which looked like it had been hit with a baseball bat.  Lots of bruising resulting from the pushing to get the right tissue for the biopsy.  I felt like a 90 year old lady that get a bruise because the wind blew.  Ah well.

I had just gotten back to my desk after attending a work a baby shower when I saw a missed call from St Francis’ main number on my cell phone.  I listened to the voice mail and it was Deb asking me to give a her call a back.  So I did.  And I got her voicemail.  After a few minutes of telephone tag, we reached each other and she asked me if it was ok to talk.  I was a little nervous but anxious to hear her say that everything was clean.  But that’s not what she said.  She said that the preliminary results had come back and the results were positive for breast cancer.  Invasive Ductal Carcinoma.  I was in a daze.   I listened to everything she was saying but still felt like it wasn’t me sitting in my chair.  She was able to get me a 3 p.m. appointment with Dr. Kim Caprio so we could talk about what this meant and next steps.

I remember hanging up the phone, and Ellen already out of her seat and at my desk giving me a hug.  Of course I started to cry.

Sabine and I met at work and left at around 9:30 for my 10 a.m. biopsy.  Sabine was her usual cheerful self and I was still believing that we are getting this routine matter over with. no.big. deal.  Not a bad attitude to have, I think.   

While getting prepped for the ultrasound, I met Deb McDermott, the nurse who would gather more information and explain the why’s and the hows of what was being done.  But first I decided to tell her my acorn story.  After quite a bit of laughing by all of us, (come on, it is pretty funny), she asked me where the acorn hit.  When I pointed she raised her eyebrows and said, ‘hmm..  one o’clock… that is exactly where we are doing the biopsy.’  She explained that breast tissue can get a bump like that when it is hit or traumatized so it was good to know that this had occurred.

She also mentioned that, again, because of being BRCA2, any abnormality is treated is suspicious.  And where a non risk patient, may be told to wait until their next screening to see if ‘it’ changes in size, high risk patients get checked very closely, including a biopsy on the same day as the ultrasound if the ultrasound reveals anything.

First was the breast check.  Deb was able to feel the lump, which would help to find it on the ultrasound.  Or so it was thought.  When I went to the imaging area, both the PA and Dr. Z had difficulty pinpointing anything on the screen.  Dr. Z called Deb to to the imaging area and after much poking and pointing and staring, a target had been located!

The procedure itself was tolerable.  I was given a local anesthetic and then a pierce, a drill and what sounded like little chopping sounds.  I started smiling and dr. Z said I must be doing alright, since I was smiling.  I told him it sounded like I was in my husband’s workshop.  I think I made the room laugh.

What can I say, we are both nuts.

The crew team had a regatta at the New England Championships in Worcester Massachusetts on Sunday, October 11.  Kelly had taken the bus up with the crew team in the early hours of the morning and Frank and I joined her shortly after in the Hornet.  The day was a beautiful fall day, and we had set up our chairs under a huge oak tree.  I had noticed earlier that the crew kids were having fun palling around and tossing acorns at each other.  Such comradery and friendship that warms my heart.

While lounging in my chair reading my book, an acorn dropped and pelted me hard on the right boob.  It hurt!  First I looked around and thought that maybe the crew kids were tossing acorns at me but that was clearly not the case.  The landing sight hurt a bit but I chalked up to a very big acorn possibly thrown by a very strong squirrel.  Half an hour later, another acorn hit me landing square on the front of my head.  Instantly a bulbous lump appeared and it was very tender to the touch.

I started warning other people sitting under this attacking oak tree to watch for their body parts.  They smiled and laughed and mentioned that not a one had been hit yet.  Hmm.  Strange.

Later that week, as in 3 days later, I had a routine breast MRI, screening.  As a BRCA2 patient, I had a hysterectomy 7 years ago to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer (as my mom has been fighting it for 18 years).  I was told and fully on board, that the breasts could wait until mid 60’s as oophorectomy considerably reduces the risk of breast cancer.  I have these done every 6 months that alternate between mammograms and MRI’s.  2 days later on Friday, while I had taken the day off to explore Kent CT with Sabine, I realized that my GYN Oncologist, Beth Nelson ( a true angel) had been trying to contact me.  When I finally listened to her voice mail later in the evening, it was a calm message saying the breast MRI had a little inconsistency that she would like it double checked with an ultrasound.  And if the ultrasound also seemed to show anything, they would do an immediate biopsy.  I was a little shaken, but not overly concerned, especially because when I called Dr. Nelson on her cell phone, she was very calm and supportive about it.  I mentioned it to Frank and we both seemed ok.  I called my sister too and she reminded me that this is why we get screened so carefully.

By the coming Monday, I had an ultrasound scheduled for 10/26 at St Francis.  So… this was interesting.  a few days before the ultrasound, I received the usual call from St Francis to over medical information prior to any procedure.  One of the questions I was asked was if I had recalled being jerked suddenly in my car, resulting in the seat belt banging my chest or maybe a dog jumping on me and landing on my chest.  So I thought briefly, very briefly, and couldn’t recall anything that could have possibly creating a bump that would result in a shadow on an MRI.  
And then an hour later I remembered the acorn.  I remembered how hard it hit and how much it hurt.  It made me laugh and I called Frank to remind him about the attack of the acorns.  We both laughed and were starting to believe that this may actually be the cause of all the confusion.  Right up to the morning of the biopsy, Frank and I would say, we’re rooting for the acorn!