The surgery was on Tuesday and it went well. They had to take many more lymph nodes than we hoped as two of the first four came back with active cancerous cells (sent to pathology and checked during surgery). But otherwise, the three procedures (port removal; right breast mass removal; lymph node removal with a drain installed) went well.
I’m in a fair amount of pain (even with lots of pain meds) and trying to rest is a little rough. But I never had to stay overnight in the hospital and was able to be released that afternoon and will be at Rick’s recovering till Monday. I was able to finally take a shower and change Friday afternoon, which after three days of wearing the same clothes and a surgical vest was quite the treat. I could hardly contain my excitement for the simple pleasure of a shower. Want to know what we can contain our excitement for? Emptying the drain twice a day. Gross.
The next steps will be meeting with the oncology team on the 1st --we should learn more about the lymph node procedure and a full pathology analysis. I'll also learn about OT/rehab procedures to get my arm/armpit area fully healed, and what we can do to avoid lymphedema. Thankfully, I'll also have the drain removed at that time. Finally, we should have a rough timeline for when radiation will start.
Final fun fact--my fingerprints are disappearing...another crazy side effect from chemo that happens to some people (although they may come back). My brain: CRIME! Has there been a Law & Order episode about this?! There has to have been, right?!
Thanks for all the texts and calls and all the love and support.