Surgeon #1 + My Kindle Prize

On Friday I saw my first surgeon-Dr Stasko in Cumberland. On balance the visit was pretty uneventful.

He recommends a lumpectomy with radiation to follow--the need for chemo will be determined by the biopsy of the sentinel lymph node (which happens during the lumpectomy surgery). This sentinel lymph node procedure is a newer strategy that avoids a big armpit incision to remove all the armpit nodes if the first one is clear. If there's a sign of spread in the 1st node, they all come out later in the surgery. My MRI on Wednesday showed normal-looking nodes--they may not be normal upon biopsy examination, but so far it's positive.

So, at least in Cumberland, I would have a lumpectomy and be home same day unless I need the bigger lymph node removal. Then it's a one-night stay. The surgery would be at Braddock Hospital, aka Sacred Heart.

I'm going to the Johns Hopkins Breast Cancer Center next Thursday to see Dr. Julie Lange for a consultation. Her bio says she brought the sentinel node procedure to JHU--I guess that means she's a pretty heavy hitter.

I am leaning toward having surgery in Baltimore and oncology in Cumberland as my friend Shelly did, but I'll make my final decision after next week.

My brain is full, but I'm feeling okay. I bought myself a Kindle yesterday (the electronic wireless book gadget from Amazon). I figure I'll be spending many hours in waiting rooms and treatment rooms over the next few months, so I'll always have good reading. Dr Kim had one in the consultation room at the radiology office the other day, and he showed the details of the Kindle after showing me the details of my breast--WEIRD. He's a pretty serious fellow, but the Kindle-talk made him smile!

Final thought--I ran into one of our patients on the street in Cumberland last night at Friday After Five. She mentioned having a challenging week (although she was laughing and had a big smile), and I noticed the visible gauze under her armpit. I said, "Do you mind if I ask--did you just have surgery for breast cancer?" and she said yes. She hugged me and spent the next few minutes offering to help me when I said I'm newly diagnosed.....

The message: it's all around us--surgeries, money troubles, aging parents, troubled children. People are leading lives of quiet desperation, as Mr. Thoreau said. But optimism, perseverence and humor are also there in the face of daunting odds.

I admire her spirit to help me in the midst of her own troubles. I will try to keep my eyes open and to do the same.