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Karen Schueler - Stage 3B Surviv
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- White Marsh
- United States
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- Survivor Status:
- Survivor (In treatment or post treatment)
- About Me:
- My name is Karen. I was diagnosed when I was 48 years old thanks to my GYN insisting I get my routine mammogram since it had been 3 years since my last one. What everyone thought was a "small" lump turned out to be 3 tumors (3.5 cm, 2cm, .7cm) with 6 positive lymph nodes. Everyone was surprised because no one felt a lump. I have what the doctors call "dense" breast tissue which makes it harder to feel or see a lump.
I opted for a diep-flap mastectomy with immediate reconstruction. Two weeks later I had a port implanted and two weeks after that I was getting my first of six chemo treatments. In exchange for a less treatments I was able to take three chemo agents at one time (adrymicin, cytoxcin and taxotere). The 3d day after each chemo I got a shot of neulasta to help rebuild the white blood cells the chemo destroyed. No one warned me about the severe bone pain from the neulasta. Four weeks after the chemo ended I started the next phase - radiation therapy.
I thought radiation therapy would be a breeze after chemo. I was wrong. It was horrible, but in a different way. Every day for six weeks I was zapped in three different positions. During one they placed a rubber mat called a bolis on my chest to intensify the radiation. I'm fair-skinned as it is, so that just gave me a deeper burn.
Since my cancer is very estrogen positive I now take zolodex (to suppress all estrogen) and arimidex. To counter the bone loss I take calcium and vitamin D supplements. It's been four years and I'm doing swell.
We can live without our breasts. We can live without out hair. But we can not live without hope for a cure.
- Inspirational Quote:
- Wake up with a smile and go after life.
- Joe Knap
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How was your Thanksgiving? We hope you had a wonderful day.
I am ready for the holidays... Lots of company coming... Im on chemo again so im not cooking....im on oral chemo so its not as bad as some other chemos ive had ( 5 other combos ).... this is my 3rd year dealing with bone mets .... Sooo the pain from neulastas shots is how I kinda describe bone mets...ouchie..... Glad to hear you're doing well.... Im due for scans next week, flying out to texas on the 2nd....my dec is going to be insane to say the least ! Getting nervous... bone mets is a PAIN.. *wink*
HAPPY THANKSGIVING !
3b is for local metastisis beyond the nodes. Mine only was like 1mm into the chest wall so they kept it at 3a. I had 4 rounds of adriamycin/cytoxin over 2 months and then 16 rounds of Taxol with 32 rounds of radiation thrown in for fun after that. I now do Tamoxifen daily, Zoledex every 3 months and Zometa every 6 months to ward off bone mets. My daughter was 10 when I was diagnosed. She was featured in the local paper for being such a young "caregiver". It definetly shed a different light on how we relate to each other. Although she has many friends she doesnt like to leave the house if I'm home. Its been a tough road but I wouldnt trade it for anything. I'm glad to be alive especially since it could have so easily gone the other way because I NEVER go to the doctor (and I'm a nurse! LOL). Its refreshing to hit that part in my journey where cancer is not the first thing in my mind each day. Sometimes I can actually go a whole day! How about you? When did you reach that point?
Your story is so similar to mine it was like reading my own! lol (stage3a,5tumors,8 +nodes) I had completly forgotten about the radiation "accelerators"! Mine was a wet washcloth. The best compliment I recieved from someone during radiation was they thought the area above my collarbone that they had irradiated lymph nodes was a hickey! A hickey? At my age? I laughed hard at that one..lol. Its nice to see that you are doing well!
How are you doing? How's the weather in MD? I'm flying in Dec 4 - Dec 9th, I can't wait. I enjoy the cold weather.
Welcome to the site! I'm glad you are doing swell. 3 years for me too!