Today I met Dr. Laura Peterson who is a breast surgeon. She showed me my mammogram images, ultrasound and examined me. Based on these things and the size of the mass she diagnosed Stage 1 cancer. Which is a miracle. Great is HIS faithfulness. Many things were discussed in our meeting. I will have genetic testing done, and most likely an MRI (using dye) to search for any more spots on either side. We are also waiting on the final lab results from the biopsy. All of this to give us a better picture for treatment and type of surgery needed to be done. So the next step is to get authorization for the MRI and then schedule that. To be continued...
Here's what I know God is good Surgery is required to remove the mass and some lymph nodes. These will be tested for cancer to see if it has spread. Tea has healing powers (I mean it) Here's what I don't know surgery date or what other treatments I will need after that Here's what I learned So here's the thing. Dr. Peterson showed me my mammogram images today. You could not see the tumor on the images. I will say that again. She could not see the mass in the mammogram. So I learned there are different types of breast tissue. I have extremely high density. The ultrasound showed the mass fairly obviously. However, ultrasounds are not usually given during screenings. Yikes. So she commended me for finding it...I felt like I should have gotten a prize or something. But I guess living is a prize (insert winking emoji). I am thankful for: All of your prayers, messages, emails and encouragements. A favorite from today was..."God didn't keep Daniel from the lion's den; he met him in it..." (By Tony Evans) Praises Meeting with Dr. Peterson today was very productive, she is smart but a real, lovely person who anyone could talk to Stage 1 as of now with no appearance of spread to the lymph nodes Somewhere a long time ago I got it in my head that I should do self exams in the shower every month Prayer Requests Decisions that need to be made regarding MRI, and possibility of more tests before surgery. Prayers for peace in the waiting. Pray for joy and sleep What I am Reading The Broken Way by Ann Voscamp *tissue disclaimer* What You Can Do For Me So many of you have asked, what you can do or how can I help? At the moment your prayers are sustaining me, but other than that not really much. I am going to write things in this section that you can do for others. Mike and I have felt this immediate connection to those who are suffering and no one else knows. So for now, if you want to do something for me...tell someone in your life "thank you", or "I'm sorry" this week. What Makes today "normal" Allie had a speech festival tonight in which her and her class recited dinosaur poems...she rocked her stegosaurus poem! My laptop died...BOO Shout Out I'd like to give a shout out to Shannon Hughes and my KCC MOMtime mamas, who prayed over me, gave me pink tulips and beautiful card, and even committed to fasting for me. Thank you. Aloha As we were leaving the office today, Dr. Peterson was on her way to lunch. We stopped as said, "we just want to thank you again for everything." To which she replied, "Sure we'll get you sorted out." There you have it folks...she's going to sort me out. Much aloha~ Nikki
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When Allie found out mommy was sick, she talked told Mike "I wanna make Mommy breakfast in bed. She drew up a menu and wrote some heartfelt thoughts on it.
I wish I had one of those aerial maps of the globe, with little lights that would turn on every time I saw someone pray for me. I will see places like Singapore Philippines England Mexico Hawaii Los Angeles San Diego Texas Tennessee Georgia Louisiana would all light up. Plus the ones I don't know about. The last 3 days have been very difficult. Trying to process my diagnosis of breast cancer. However, I don't know if I've ever felt the Holy Spirit more and or seen specific prayer requests answered so quickly. Mike and I will use this blog to update you on
Here's what Happened (rather quickly) January 1 Mike surprised me in California returning from a 4 month deployment January 3 My niece Lucy was born one day before we all left to come back to Hawaii Jan 7 found lump during shower January 11 met with my OB/GYN Dr. Clark who assumed it was a cyst but "still wanted pictures." January 20th mammogram and ultrasound January 26th biopsy January 27th diagnosis Jan 31 at 11:30 meet surgeon Dr. Peterson I guess you could say this month has been full of emotions... Here's what I know God is good Surgery is required to remove the mass and most likely some lymph nodes to see if it has spread I am 35 and have no family history of breast cancer Children are a gift Lu La Roe leggings are amazing Here's what I don't know 1,345,767 other things surgery date or what stage it is I am thankful for: All of your prayers and messages...I can literally feel their impact My husband and my kids My family, my husband's family, my best friends, my church family here in Hawaii My OBGYN Dr. Clark who has offered to be my hub of information and director of sorts Praises I switched my insurance in the summer to be able to see civilian Drs, and met Dr. Clark then, if I had still been in the military medical system I would probably be still waiting for a mammogram today. Mike's current job is "low key" which in the Navy is a bit rare. He has a very flexible schedule and work hours for the next few months. Prayer Requests The "what if" war going on in my head is very real. I am constantly fighting it. Pray for protection over this. Pray for our Dr. visit tomorrow with the surgeon, that we get more answers, and peace with whatever answers we get. Pray for joy and sleep Allie Girl Many of you have asked about Allie and if she knows. Yes, she knows but we didn't use the word cancer. Last week I told her I had a bump and the doctor was going to take pictures to see if it has "green germs" in it. She has a favorite book about the body in which white blood cells gobble up green monster germs. So then Friday I told her that my bump was green and that the doctor was going to have to take it out. To which she replied, "Yea, sometimes you have to cut yourself on purpose mom." Our conversation last night: A: "Mom why do bad guys steal money?" Me: "Well they probably want to buy things with it." A:"What do they want to buy?" Me: "Well I dunno, I think sometimes people think having a lot of money is going to make them happy. What is the only thing that can make you happy?" A: "Having Jesus in my heart" (insert mom happy dance) Me: "That's right like mommy has the green bump and I don't like it, but Jesus is in my heart so he will give me joy when I need it." A: "Oh, so just like if I had to eat stinky blue cheese? I realllyyyy don't like stinky cheese..." Me: "Yes Allie girl, just like that." Aloha We want to thank all of you for the support you have shown in just 3 days. We will try and update as often as we can. Please don't hesitate to reach out to us individually, but know this blog will be the main source of information. Much aloha~ Nikki |
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