Just When You Think You're Out

- 3 minutes read - 549 words

They Pull You Back In

This week I got to meet with both my surgeon and oncologist. I received the results from the second surgery, and the good news is that we have clean margins this time, so no more surgery. So that second surgery that I really, really didn’t want to have, was really, really important for me to have.

The less good news is that the lump of cancer cells in there was bigger than they thought.

That means we’re not out of the woods on needing chemotherapy yet.

Because the tumor is bigger than originally thought, there’s a possibility that some of the cancer cells have gotten into my bloodstream and are looking for a new neighborhood to settle into. We don’t want that.

Genetic Testing For the Win

They are going to genetically test the tissue that they removed and see what its Oncotype DX score is.

The Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test analyzes the activity of 21 genes that can influence how likely a cancer is to grow and respond to treatment.

Looking at these 21 genes can provide specific information on:

  • the likelihood that the breast cancer will return
  • whether you’re likely to benefit from chemotherapy to treat early-stage invasive breast cancer

So, the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test is both a prognostic test, since it provides more information about how likely (or unlikely) the breast cancer is to come back, and a predictive test, since it predicts the likelihood of benefit from chemotherapy or radiation therapy treatment. Studies have shown that Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score Test is useful for both purposes.

breastcancer.org How Does the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrance Work

We’re hoping for a low score here. Like golf. Or cross-country.

If it’s high, then we’re going to have to look at chemotherapy once every 3 weeks for 4 rounds. I’m told that if I get chemo, I’ll lose my hair and will be tired, but won’t be puky.

My no puke streak is at 30+ years

There will be radiation regardless. That’s the only thing we know for certain today.

I will know which way we’re going in 2-3 weeks. Treatment will start then.

We’ve Been Here Before

We’re back to waiting for a test result to see what the next step is. Obviously, one way would be easier than the other. But none of it is certain to guarantee I’ll live another 20-30 years. My father had stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma - almost certainly fatal at the time - and he lived 20 years after that. I could have a few squirrely cancer cells take up residence someplace and have a low Oncotype score and bam! So who knows?

As Byron Katie says, “there’s my business, your business, and God’s business.” I’ve found that guidance greatly simplifies my life. Wish I learned it earlier, but experiencing and learning is what life is about. We don’t get it all right the first time, or the 40th. But we can keep trying, and we know for certain that life will keep giving us opportunities.

Every day, I ask to be loving and kind so that I can be, “a hole in the flute the Christ’s breath moves through - listen to this music! (Hafiz)”

And that’s all I want.