Follow-up Appointments

The morning of July 23 was certainly busy.  My follow-up appointment with the plastic surgeon was 8:30 am.  He announced that the tissue sent to pathology came back clear. All Right!  The swelling has gone down some and he was pleased with the work he had done.  He left the room and the nurse proceeded to remove the surgery tape with tweezers and small shears, and snip the long pieces of stitches.  I left there feeling a little tender and raw.

No more appointments for the plastic surgeon! Yay!

I made my way to work and then had to leave again for my follow-up appointment with my oncologist.  It has been awhile since being there and I walked into the place to see much change ... reconstruction.... the place had more room and organization.  Doc was also impressed with the breast reduction. 

"No more leaning to the left!" she said. Funny Doc! 

We discussed my current state of being as she recorded it on the computer system.  I saw my history of the last 18 months and we had a good chat. The smile on her face was enough for me!

I can remember her saying,

 "You will be able to fire me in 5 years". 

My next appointment isn't until November 2013. Nice!

I feel like I have come out of the depths of hell and am now renewed as my healing continues with each new day.

May peace be with you ~

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Back to Work!

Tomorrow is my first day back to work since June 28.  Getting butterflies in my tummy, which seems to happen after being off for awhile.  Never know what I'm going to face when I get there (kinda hard to describe).  But, I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be!

This month makes 1 year since my radiation treatments ended. I think that is long enough to make a decision. Most of the bleeding/seeping has stopped, and the bruising is slowly clearing up.  Still looks like Frankenstein! I don't regret the procedure, even though sometimes it feels like someone hit me with a baseball bat (too graphic?)

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Saturday, we had a wonderful get together with extended family from my father's side.  It was great to see everyone again....it seems once a year now.  There is also an emptiness in our hearts for the ones that have moved far away and for the ones who are now in spirit.  The world keeps turning and we keep getting older. 

It reminds me of one of my favorite songs that I have posted before. It makes you think about your own legacy.

Nichole Nordeman - Legacy 

My sister and I are developing a website.  Christie is the brains of the operation and my husband is working on logo ideas.  We hope that it will be helpful and hopeful to breast cancer patients.  It is a need to "give back" and to help others going through the brutal journey.  So....stayed tuned!

Christie's green thumb

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Reconstruction - Post Surgery

Hello all! Day 1 of post surgery.  Yes, there is pain - plus, taking antibiotics as instructed.

Last night, I was curious (who wouldn't be) and decided to peel away the bandages to see my ta-ta.  Lots of blood on the gauze and I can see where the cuts were made. Still have the marker drawing on my chest (tic-tac-toe anybody?)

I get to shower after 3:00 today!

So, as I was exploring, I found an electrode on my hip from the EKG.....and I was worried they would leave something "inside" me during surgery! hahaha, I was lucky!

Electrode laying on the lid of my laptop

Amazingly, I didn't go to bed when I got home until after midnight.  I woke up a lot too because I couldn't get comfortable. 

I don't regret doing this, not for vanity reasons, but for comfort.  They don't make bras that come in 2 different cup sizes.  (although that would be an interesting manufacturing business)  Doc says the breast will start to look "normal" in 3 months or so. 

My follow-up appointment is July 9th. 

 

 

Have a Safe & Happy 4th of July America!

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Safer Breast Implant for Women...Research Continuing

New Hope for Breast Cancer Patients that opt for reconstruction thanks to Akron researcher. Watch Video

 

Posted: 03/27/2012

• By: Alicia Scicolone, newsnet5.com

AKRON, Ohio - A University of Akron researcher, who watched a loved one die from cancer, took charge of the deadly disease in her mind.
She couldn't stop thinking of how to beat it, so no one has to go through what she watched her family suffer from.

After years of working closely with big name cancer experts across the country, she is now developing a safer breast implant for women who opt for reconstruction after a breast cancer diagnosis.

During the process of reconstruction following mastectomy, a new kind of implant could actually fight infection, scarring and even cancer.


Dr. Judit Puskas from the University of Akron has designed a new material to help prepare the breast for reconstruction. What's different about this procedure is the implant will have a polymer coating on it that could actually help destroy cancer cells. She also envisions having the option of adding more or taking away the medication depending on the needs of the patient.

Dr. Puskas said, "Normally, they have the dosage per kilogram of body weight, so this is how they dose the cancer drug. You can add less drugs and it's right there at the vicinity of the cancer cells so it will be more effective."
She also said she feels that can possibly be done through a simple shot. But that is still in the working phase of this ground-breaking medical development in breast cancer.

This coating that will be embedded in the breast implant will help fight infection and inflammation, but Dr. Puskas said that's not all. "The implant will also directly target and destroy cancer cells all around the original cancer site, like a bullet."

Board Certified Plastic Surgeon for the Akron Plastic Surgeon's and Summa Health System, Dr. John Pedersen, said there is a real need for this new implant.

Dr. Pendersen said, "You can almost liken this to a smart implant where the implant is actually tailored beyond what we have now as a static instrument for reconstruction or augmentation. It's something that will actually treat and see cancer. There's not always 100-percent assurance necessarily of every bit of every cell of cancer gone. This allows that to be detected and treated."
Tuesday, this discovery and idea was highly recognized.

Dr. Judit Puskas received international recognition from GE Healthcare as one of five of the most exciting and innovative ideas in the battle against breast cancer.

The “GE Healthymagination Cancer Challenge” will provide initial funding, mentorship and incubation in order to try to bring Dr. Puskas’ discoveries to market. She’s also eligible to receive more funding in the coming months.
So far, tests being done in the lab are showing great promise. Especially because right now, chemotherapy can only go through the body, and try to destroy the cancer cells, it can't go to the direct target which in this case is the breast and tissue around it.

Dr. Puskas hopes to see a prototype of the implant on the market in the next few years, and the final product completed in the next 10 years.
UA holds the patent application on this process of delivering drugs through the new implant.

Copyright 2012 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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