My new hairdo. Photo taken 9/13/2014.
Radiation is Complete!
So, how did my experience go with radiation??? I completed a total of 30 radiation sessions. I was attending radiation everyday Monday-Friday for 6 weeks. We moved my boyfriend's RV down to the Houston area for me to live in. The RV park was immaculate, Lave View RV Resort, and I would highly recommend it to anyone staying in the area.
The first few weeks of radiation were easy, and I didn't have any side effects. My skin was pink, but there were no complaints on my end. By the 4th week, my skin turned beat red, it was obviously warmer to the touch than the rest of my body, and it was starting hurt. By the 5th week, under my entire arm, it looked like a campfire marshmallow, seriously! My skin looked like it had been burned with fire and was peeling off layers after layers. Since my body was trying to repair itself I was also much more fatigued than normal. Needless, to say it was a pretty long Summer for me!
My mom and I at my final radiation on 8/26/2014. I rang the bell to celebrate my final treatment.
It has now been three weeks since I have completed radiation, and my skin is in MUCH better condition!! It is still pretty sensitive, but I am happy with how quickly the peeling phase stopped!
When Does this Journey End?
Now that radiation is complete, I will still go to MD Anderson every third week to receive chemo (Herceptin and Perjeta) until December and for any other doctor appointments. I also started taking Tamoxifen 3 weeks ago, and I will have to take this pill for 10 years. Tamoxifen serves an an estrogen blocker, which is important since my tumor was 10% estrogen positive. In March-ish, I am hoping to have reconstruction surgery on my other breast, in order to match my recently reconstructed one. I will then continue to travel to MD Anderson every third month for 6 years to be closely monitored in case the cancer returns. Hopefully, this does not occur!!!
My Experience at MD Anderson
MD Anderson is by far the best option to choose if there is a debate on where to go to receive cancer treatment. This facility is ranked #1 in the country for a reason, because they are the best! During my 6 weeks of radiation treatment I had the opportunity to meet women that traveled from all over the world to also be treated at this facility, including Tennessee (patient was 23 years old), Kentucky, India, Australia, and the list goes on and on.
Finally, I have had a lot of people questioning my decision on opting to do the lumpectomy along with 6 weeks of radiation versus having a double mastectomy. I would like to share with everyone a story of the first girl I met at MD Anderson that is battling breast cancer and is the same age as me. She informed me and other women at radiation that she was first diagnosed with stage II breast cancer at the age of 29. She opted to have a double mastectomy. Two and a half years later, her cancer returned in her lymph nodes and she is now a stage IV. With that said, I truly do not believe there is a right or a wrong option when choosing between a lumpectomy or a mastectomy. If you are debating between the two I encourage you to throughly research each of these options and weigh in on the pros and cons. This is definitely a personal decision, and everyone else should respect which option you choose.
