today i had my first follow-up appointment with dr. rost since my treatment ended one month ago. i was dreading going back through those hospital doors again, but instead, it felt completely familiar and it was great to see brandon and pauline and some of the nurses again, and of course to see dr. rost, who has completely won my heart. i did have a catch in my throat while in the waiting room and watching patients who were going through treatment, who were bald, who had that look on their face that i know so well, like being in the belly of a never-ending whirlwind of emotions.
dr. rost and i talked about how and where to check for recurrence; about the pros and cons of genetic testing (i've decided against it); about the pros and cons of an oopherectomy because of increased chance of ovarian cancer (i'm 99% sure i want the oopherectomy, but will meet with my GYN next month to discuss it); and talked about what we've been doing this summer. i'm so grateful for dr. rost. it makes all the difference in the world to have a doctor i trust and enjoy.
right after our meeting, i went to the lab for bloodwork - complete blood panel and tumor markers - 8 vials of blood (unnerving). will get the results on wednesday.
i'll be going back to dr. rost and the lab every two months.
this last month since treatment was been WONDERFUL: a long visit with my oldest son, many get-togethers with my youngest son and molly, a vacation at caddo lake in texas with scott, a visit with my mom and her beau in dallas, weekend trips to davis, some road trips around reno, lunches with friends, enjoying delicious summer vegetables and farmers' markets, taking umpteen rolls of holga film and polaroid film, having fun with a fisheye lens on my digital canon G9. my hair is growing back and i'm going to keep it super short.
i've decided to take one week a month and have as much fun as possible for the rest of my life! next month i'm spending a week at the ocean in pacifica and san francisco. it will be nice to be "home" again--back at the beach and ocean where i lived for 8 years, back to the wooden boat harbor, photographing my surfer buddies again!
in 70 days, i'll be in PARIS! i'm hoping my oldest son can join me for a two-week visit, where i'll be seeing french friends and walking for hours and hours every day, taking lots of photos with a new modified holga (holga with polaroid back) from my dear friend randy smith at holgamods.com, who recently named a holga after me. it's called the Lattimore - unmodified because i like a simple camera where all i have to think about is composition and light (and also because i keep forgetting if the pin goes in or out on my other holgas and it drives me nuts).
in the works this fall and winter are vacations with scott and/or my sons and molly to yosemite, mexico, NYC, los angeles, death valley, and paris again in 2010 for at least a month. it feels good to be dreaming in french again.
the cancer experience feels far behind me, but not a day goes by that i don't think about all the friends i made during that time and how grateful i am to all of you for your support and kindness.
tell me about your summer!
xoxoxox
10 comments:
can't wait to see you in Paris!!! I'll definitely try to make it there even if it's just for a day!
Its so great to hear your positive story, one which all of us cancer patients are aching for. I finish my chemo on 10th Sept followed by radiotherapy and a year of herceptin. However, when I finish radio, that is when I consider my treatment over! I can lose weight, get fit and get living again. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with us. Look forward to your blogs about Paris!
Wow....look at all your hair. I am glad that you are doing so well, making plans, living life happily. I have already had my first follow-up. We are not doing much testing. Here in Germany at least, they don't do a lot of "searching" for reoccurence, unless I'd start to develop symptoms. I'm ok with that. I am wishing you all the best for an amazing summer and a wonderful trip to Europe. Let me know when you're in Paris. We will probably move to Luxembourg soon, and from there it would only be a 2 hour train ride to Paris on the TGV (or however you spell it).
Hugs from Germany,
Alex
chere magali - je serai si heureuse de te voir!! xoxo
dear sara, i think you're so fortunate to be able to take herceptin. i'm so glad for you. and also happy that you are nearing the end of chemo! for me, radiation was really easy and i hope it is for you too. xoxo
dear alex, i think a majority of docs in the U.S. do PET scans and CAT scans once a year to look for recurrence, but my UCSF oncologist recommends against that, so i've decided not to. but i think it's very common in the U.S. to do bloodwork every few months to see if levels are increasing that might warrant a closer look. i feel reassured by that, since i'm anxious about recurrence because my birthmother and her mother both had mets very soon after breast cancer treatment and died of bone cancer. dr. rost reassured me yesterday, though, saying that my mother's BC had spread (i was told she waited a year for treament because she had no insurance--very sad) and mine had not. so the blood tests every few months will hopefully make me less of a worrier. :) let's stay in touch about meeting in paris! my e-mail is deborah.lattimore@gmail.com. xoxo
i'd love to see you in paris!!
You clearly have one big, courageous heart. Have a fabulous time on all your planned get-aways. They sound wonderful.
you look great, love the fuzzy hair! I am so glad to hear how well everything is going with you. I just finished #5 of 6 chemos, I can't wait to be done!!!
I am so glad to hear that you're living a full life again. You don't know what to expect at the end of treatment until you start living again. What a wonderful feeling. Happy summer and wishing you a wonderful trip to Paris. Wish I could hide myself in your suitcase ;)
xoxo hope you had fun in Texas, despite the heat:) G
I love your plan to take one week off a month for fun. Be well,
Jo-Ann (www.ooops.typepad.com)
I'm so glad to hear that you're feeling fine and having such fun! I really enjoyed your cado photos.
I'm in progress with Herceptin until the end of Jan 2010 and taking Arimidex for the next 5 years. Reconstruction happening in October. Four months out from the chemo. It's all good.
Meanwhile I'm, spending happy time with family and friends and channeling Annie Lennox.
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