Hello again fellow fighters!
As I am sure there are lots of people wondering what the day (Friday) was like so far. It has been really good. I dropped Steve off at work and started collecting my medical images and reports. After about 4 stops I was nearly done. Went home and prepped myself for the day having an opportunity to chat with a good buddy!
I swung by and picked up Steve and we headed off to the Cancer Clinic at RUH. We then struggled to find parking and after about 10 minutes of driving around we found a spot and then journeyed across the chaos of the parking lot to the cancer clinic. When we arrived we were signed in and got a parking pass so we can use the "Cancer Clinic" parking spaces and I started the screening process. I met with a registration nurse and answered some basic questions about who I am, then met with the pharmacy team and went over my medication history. Then it was off for more blood letting. After this I met with one of the nurses who explained what our appointment with our oncologist would entail. All in all it was very friendly and efficient!
We then met with Dr. Sami our oncologist. He was absolutely fantastic! We feel so lucky to have such an experienced and talented team of doc's leading us through this battle! We quite liked Dr. Sami's to the point way of speaking. He was very honest and frank but worded things in a non intimidating way. He was approachable, friendly and knowledgeable. I have been quite worried on this journey that we would be teamed up with a doctor that we did not mesh with. We were discussing today how happy we have been with each doctor we have worked with!
Another neat thing that was provided was a social worker to take notes on what was discussed so that we can focus on the doctor and not have to take notes. This was incredibly helpful! We also had a chance to speak with the social worker to get some information on different resources available to us.
So what was discussed with our oncologist? Everything. I will try to hit the high lights.
Chemo treatments will be starting next Friday. I will have the picc line or the passport put in sometime after my first treatment. I will be doing chemo treatments every 3 weeks for 8 cycles so it will be 24 weeks of chemo. I will most definitely lose my hair, and likely my eyebrows and eye lashes.
Other than that the chemo will make me extremely susceptible to illness so I will have to be very careful to manage my exposure to germs. A common cold can give me pneumonia.
Side effects vary per person so I don't have too many details.
The doc says I can get on horses, probably walk and trot but no canter or jumping. Other than that I have to be careful to not bump or move the picc line.
We're working on ideas for what to wear to the clinic for the first day of chemo treatment; some type of warrior outfit would seem appropriate! Any suggestions?
Left foot'n & right foot'n
Steve & Alyssa
Saturday 29 March 2014
Thursday 27 March 2014
Quick Update
Hello everyone,
It will be a short one, but a brief update is better than no update (that and my mother has been updating faster than I have... sorry team)!
So since Sunday evening:
Shannon and I went to the Fertility clinic and I essentially said I need more information to make an informed decisions. I am now waiting for the oncologist to call the fertility clinic back to answer some questions.
Monday afternoon they called me to go for a CT scan on Tuesday. CT scans are far more pleasant than MRI's and my reaction to the contrast was much more mild.
Wednesday was spent on oral hygiene then hanging out with my buddy Amanda. We also received a call from the Mayo clinic! We are scheduled in to go next week!
Today has been spent organizing the collection of all of my medical imaging and records. Tomorrow Steve and I go to the cancer clinic to meet the oncologist and hopefully receive the interpretation of my last CT scan. Have a great day!
Till next time!
It will be a short one, but a brief update is better than no update (that and my mother has been updating faster than I have... sorry team)!
So since Sunday evening:
Shannon and I went to the Fertility clinic and I essentially said I need more information to make an informed decisions. I am now waiting for the oncologist to call the fertility clinic back to answer some questions.
 |
| Green Goddess Breakfast Sandwiches! |
 |
| Scallops for lunch with Amanda! |
Today has been spent organizing the collection of all of my medical imaging and records. Tomorrow Steve and I go to the cancer clinic to meet the oncologist and hopefully receive the interpretation of my last CT scan. Have a great day!
 |
| writing thank you cards... I love me some sealing wax! |
Left foot'n & Right foot'n
Steve & Alyssa
Sunday 23 March 2014
Weekend Warriors
Good evening fellow Warriors,
Our apologies for the lengthy delay, it's been a busy few days. To get right down to business, there's good news and less good/other news. First for the good news, we continue to be fast tracked through the system and were discussed at rounds again, this time at the RUH cancer center. For those of you who don't know, rounds is a forum for doctors to discuss interesting and challenging cases among themselves to ensure optimal diagnosis and treatment plans are provided. We have an appointment with our Oncologist Dr. Sami (not to be confused with our Oncologist Surgeon Dr. Groot) this upcoming Friday; we're told there's often a 4-6 week delay in seeing an Oncologist from the time of referral so an 8 day turnaround is phenomenal, needless to say we're very pleased. Once we meet with the Oncologist we'll have a much more definitive plan of attack likely include the specific treatment plan such as drugs and timelines associated.In other words, we are nearly done the reconnaissance and are heading to the war room to draft the battle plans. We see your weakness shadow.... Before treatment can begin we're told we will also be going for a CT scan, yet to be scheduled.
Now for the other news; our mission, should we choose to accept it pertains to future fertility options. Friday we went to the fertility clinic and although we did not know what to expect we heard news we were definitely not expecting. When we had met with our doctor earlier in the week we came out of the meeting understanding that IVF (Invetro) would be covered by the healthcare system due to our circumstances. Unfortunately, this is not the case. So now we are burdened with an existential question in the middle of all the chaos; to harvest or not to harvest. As Alyssa's become rather fond of the farmer outfit idea, we've chosen either way we will be wearing a farmer outfit, it's a matter of whether it's to the IVF clinic or in a couple of years in a more intimate setting ;) There are other options available however none with the same reassurance as IVF. The first and very personal question, do we even want children; if no this would be a simple decision. As the two of us are very much on the fence and have always been, this only further complicates matters. We must make up our mind in the coming days if we are going to forge ahead as our window of opportunity if quickly dissipating and waiting another month for the next opportunity is not an option. At the present time, we're leaning towards "rolling the dice," and opting out of the IVF option.
Although this weekend has been wrought with indecision there have also been some pretty wonderful things. One of which being flowers. We really quite like flowers! And our kitchen table is full of gorgeous blooms. Unfortunately Alyssa did not inherit her fathers green thumb! Thankfully the family biologist came to the flowers aids and Alyssa has yet to destroy them... and the weekend is over in 1 hr and 22 minutes! The other great thing this weekend brought was the wonderful and generous support of our friends! Saturday morning Alyssa escaped for a little while when she went for pedicures with one of her best friends followed by some retail therapy, sushi and a classic movie. You can't go wrong with Roger Rabbit and snuggles with Jack! To clarify, Jack is an adorable kitten who just happens to have matching toe nails with Alyssa now! That cat has great style! Earlier in the week we went and watched a magical winter movie with some magical kids and look who came to visit!! Our very own elf on the shelf!!!! Now that's Christmas magic!
Again, we would like to thank everyone for their generous support.
Left foot'n & right foot'n,
Steve & Alyssa
Our apologies for the lengthy delay, it's been a busy few days. To get right down to business, there's good news and less good/other news. First for the good news, we continue to be fast tracked through the system and were discussed at rounds again, this time at the RUH cancer center. For those of you who don't know, rounds is a forum for doctors to discuss interesting and challenging cases among themselves to ensure optimal diagnosis and treatment plans are provided. We have an appointment with our Oncologist Dr. Sami (not to be confused with our Oncologist Surgeon Dr. Groot) this upcoming Friday; we're told there's often a 4-6 week delay in seeing an Oncologist from the time of referral so an 8 day turnaround is phenomenal, needless to say we're very pleased. Once we meet with the Oncologist we'll have a much more definitive plan of attack likely include the specific treatment plan such as drugs and timelines associated.In other words, we are nearly done the reconnaissance and are heading to the war room to draft the battle plans. We see your weakness shadow.... Before treatment can begin we're told we will also be going for a CT scan, yet to be scheduled.
Now for the other news; our mission, should we choose to accept it pertains to future fertility options. Friday we went to the fertility clinic and although we did not know what to expect we heard news we were definitely not expecting. When we had met with our doctor earlier in the week we came out of the meeting understanding that IVF (Invetro) would be covered by the healthcare system due to our circumstances. Unfortunately, this is not the case. So now we are burdened with an existential question in the middle of all the chaos; to harvest or not to harvest. As Alyssa's become rather fond of the farmer outfit idea, we've chosen either way we will be wearing a farmer outfit, it's a matter of whether it's to the IVF clinic or in a couple of years in a more intimate setting ;) There are other options available however none with the same reassurance as IVF. The first and very personal question, do we even want children; if no this would be a simple decision. As the two of us are very much on the fence and have always been, this only further complicates matters. We must make up our mind in the coming days if we are going to forge ahead as our window of opportunity if quickly dissipating and waiting another month for the next opportunity is not an option. At the present time, we're leaning towards "rolling the dice," and opting out of the IVF option.
Again, we would like to thank everyone for their generous support.
Left foot'n & right foot'n,
Steve & Alyssa
Thursday 20 March 2014
A Call to Arms
Good Morning everyone!
I forgot to mention earlier. Big shout out to Jeff, you are correct and thanks for being the first to post! We really appreciate you guys!!!
Well, I've got some good news! I went in for my MRI on Tuesday and we were called with the results today. The MRI did not show anything new. Which means we have caught this in the early stages! Unfortunately we won't have an "official" stage until after my surgery which is after my first round of chemo, so we won't know for 3-6 months. However, the ball is starting to roll! Our Dr's have been amazing getting me to the front of the line on everything! It feels like they have been moving mountains for us!
So the official status:
Cancer Diagnosis: invasive ductal carcinoma (early stages ~1-2)
Treatment Status: waiting to meet Oncologist to develop/start treatment
Fertility: meeting specialist on Friday (wow! how fast is that! The referral was sent on Monday!)
Second Opinion: preliminary information has been sent to the Mayo Clinic in Minneapolis to receive a second opinion. We are waiting to hear back from them. Should hear back by mid next week.
So that is the update. You don't need to read any further if you don't want, as the rest is the mushy stuff :)
This past week has been unbelievable. I don't mean that in the sense that it's been the best week of my life. Let's be realistic, this has been a pretty tough week. I mean it in the sense that I would not believe it if someone had told me that this week would be what it has been (sorry I really can't come up with a word for this). The response to this news has been overwhelming. Since creating this blog on Monday there have been over 1,000 visits and that is just the tip of the iceberg!
Friday through Monday consisted of getting our feet underneath us after the rug was ripped out so unceremoniously from under us. But Monday was really the official declaration of war! Many people have been quite concerned that this "hasn't hit me" or that I'm not dealing with it. Well allow me to assuage your fears! I am well aware of what is going on, and I am MAD! I like to think of myself as an upbeat pragmatist which is likely why I have yet to burst into tears about this. However my irish roots have tipped the scales and I'm ready for war! So now I guess I'm an upbeat angry pragmatist. Interesting. The only two overwhelming emotions I have felt have been anger and gratitude. The rest have all come and gone in the regular flood of feelings that are to be expected in a time like this. However the general mental state has risen and fallen between angry and gracious. But let me tell you what an interesting emotional ride it's been shifting from overwhelming gratitude to overwhelming anger. Wow! Luckily my husband has been along for the journey and has been an amazing stabilizer!
Monday. Monday was the day we started to plan. Anyone that knows me, knows I like to have a plan. So Monday was a good day from that perspective as we are starting to put some structure to this process.
I knew that this was going to be a battle and I knew (as everyone kept telling me) that I wasn't in this alone. But in all honesty I really didn't know. I've always been a bit of a lone wolf when it came to dealing with major issues in my life so even opening the doors to allow the very closest of family friends (really another set of parents) to join me in the doctors office was a challenge. However it was the best decision we've made. And thus the call to arms began.
When you are all built up in your lovely castle of life it's easy to feel so very secure in the way things are going. The sun was shinning on our life our banners snapping joyously in the wind. And now my way of life has been threatened. A shadow is blocking my sun. Well I'm not the kind of princess that takes kindly to "my process" being interrupted. Hence the call to arms. In a very short amount of time my family and close friends were rallied beside me and the research began. I have been blessed with a very educated group of experts to help me filter through information, and advise me. Hell, I even have my own navy. They are sailing the west indies while searching for answers :)
The call to arms began with just a few people and as the news spreads there has been a massive influx of encouragement, love and support. My "halls" have been filled with supportive and outraged people. And we are ready for battle! The support has come in many forms, a huge thank you to everyone who has offered financial assistance in regards to the possible trips to the mayo clinic. It has put tears in my eyes many times this week. The support and love and encouragement has really been overwhelming. Facebook messages, text messages, phone calls etc. I feel that I have been encased in a circle of solid protective love!
No one want's to go to war alone and I am so indebted to so many people already! A big thanks to John and Max who have been spending an immense amount of time pulling information for me. And a big thanks to "the Bobcat" you know who you are. And I am sure you would like your privacy respected so I shall call you the Bobcat! My husband, The Bobcat, John, and my brother have created my own little "personal guard" and have been investigating this beast since Monday. In addition I have to say I am blessed to have such a wide variety of experts(truly, leaders of their fields) rallying behind me and even if it is not your area of expertise you have all been a valuable source of information, reference and support!
I forgot to mention earlier. Big shout out to Jeff, you are correct and thanks for being the first to post! We really appreciate you guys!!!
Well, I've got some good news! I went in for my MRI on Tuesday and we were called with the results today. The MRI did not show anything new. Which means we have caught this in the early stages! Unfortunately we won't have an "official" stage until after my surgery which is after my first round of chemo, so we won't know for 3-6 months. However, the ball is starting to roll! Our Dr's have been amazing getting me to the front of the line on everything! It feels like they have been moving mountains for us!
So the official status:
Cancer Diagnosis: invasive ductal carcinoma (early stages ~1-2)
Treatment Status: waiting to meet Oncologist to develop/start treatment
Fertility: meeting specialist on Friday (wow! how fast is that! The referral was sent on Monday!)
Second Opinion: preliminary information has been sent to the Mayo Clinic in Minneapolis to receive a second opinion. We are waiting to hear back from them. Should hear back by mid next week.
So that is the update. You don't need to read any further if you don't want, as the rest is the mushy stuff :)
 |
| the first time I saw this painting I fell in love with it and it has come to mind many times through out this week. |
Friday through Monday consisted of getting our feet underneath us after the rug was ripped out so unceremoniously from under us. But Monday was really the official declaration of war! Many people have been quite concerned that this "hasn't hit me" or that I'm not dealing with it. Well allow me to assuage your fears! I am well aware of what is going on, and I am MAD! I like to think of myself as an upbeat pragmatist which is likely why I have yet to burst into tears about this. However my irish roots have tipped the scales and I'm ready for war! So now I guess I'm an upbeat angry pragmatist. Interesting. The only two overwhelming emotions I have felt have been anger and gratitude. The rest have all come and gone in the regular flood of feelings that are to be expected in a time like this. However the general mental state has risen and fallen between angry and gracious. But let me tell you what an interesting emotional ride it's been shifting from overwhelming gratitude to overwhelming anger. Wow! Luckily my husband has been along for the journey and has been an amazing stabilizer!
Monday. Monday was the day we started to plan. Anyone that knows me, knows I like to have a plan. So Monday was a good day from that perspective as we are starting to put some structure to this process.
I knew that this was going to be a battle and I knew (as everyone kept telling me) that I wasn't in this alone. But in all honesty I really didn't know. I've always been a bit of a lone wolf when it came to dealing with major issues in my life so even opening the doors to allow the very closest of family friends (really another set of parents) to join me in the doctors office was a challenge. However it was the best decision we've made. And thus the call to arms began.
When you are all built up in your lovely castle of life it's easy to feel so very secure in the way things are going. The sun was shinning on our life our banners snapping joyously in the wind. And now my way of life has been threatened. A shadow is blocking my sun. Well I'm not the kind of princess that takes kindly to "my process" being interrupted. Hence the call to arms. In a very short amount of time my family and close friends were rallied beside me and the research began. I have been blessed with a very educated group of experts to help me filter through information, and advise me. Hell, I even have my own navy. They are sailing the west indies while searching for answers :)
The call to arms began with just a few people and as the news spreads there has been a massive influx of encouragement, love and support. My "halls" have been filled with supportive and outraged people. And we are ready for battle! The support has come in many forms, a huge thank you to everyone who has offered financial assistance in regards to the possible trips to the mayo clinic. It has put tears in my eyes many times this week. The support and love and encouragement has really been overwhelming. Facebook messages, text messages, phone calls etc. I feel that I have been encased in a circle of solid protective love!
 |
| Support has come in so many different ways. Thank you! |
 |
| This speaks for itself! |
Things are moving very quickly, and I am ready for battle. I have my own "special forces" unit full of a variety of very knowledgeable people. I am also blessed to have had a super hero group of doctors who have been doing an amazing job of making things happen for me. For Dr. Misfeldt who got me into an ultrasound immediately and then ensured I had my biopsy done before travelling to the BVI's. For Dr. Kenny who has done both of my biopsy's and has been an amazing support and contact, keeping us updated and informed on what was happening. And Dr. Groot for getting all of my appointments and tests done at what seams to be mach speed and being so supportive and understanding of this journey!
So in sentiment that has been literally expressed a multitude of times this week by many close friends and an apology for the profanity I sign off in determined gratitude!
 |
| so does this one! |
Left Foot'n & Right Foot'n
Steve & Alyssa
Monday 17 March 2014
Pieces of the Puzzle
Hello everyone!
As many of you know we had another doctor's appointment this morning.
I will try to fill in as much information as I can think of!
First of all we would like to thank John and Maxine for coming along and being our "other parents" today. Your experience, knowledge and most importantly your support were appreciated in ways we cannot express.
As previously stated we were first told about this on Friday morning. It was sort of like getting a really ugly 1,000 piece puzzle box with a mystery for a final picture. Where do you begin? Well, left foot, right foot.... let's start by finding all of the corner/edge pieces and putting them together to start building the structure of this journey and we can worry about the middle pieces later.
Our weekend was very much like this. We just started finding pieces of information and found how they fit with our story and today we were able to snap lots of the edges into place.
So, what pieces do we have...
Well we don't have all of the information as we are waiting for some more test results to come in and of course we need to wait for the MRI results before the doctors can finalize a treatment plan. That said they think it is likely a stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma but there is nothing definitive in that as all the information has not been gathered yet.
That said Dr. Groot (our surgeon) was amazing enough to sit down with us on Friday and give us a brief update of what some treatment options are. Although in honesty it wasn't a brief meeting at all and it was amazing that he spent so much time with us even though he wasn't seeing patients that day! Anyways he met with us Friday so that we would have time to think about it and formulate an opinion of what route we want to take.
Truth be told it's an incredibly overwhelming decision to make,as obviously we are not medical doctors! However we had the support of a very knowledgeable doctor who explained the whole thing to us, probably repeating himself 4 or 5 times after all our questions and helped us reach a decision that was right for us. In the end we know we will be doing "the whole meal deal" and it's a matter of when's and how's. We chose a treatment course called neo adjuvant. Which means that we are going to start with chemo therapy first, then do a surgery and then more chemo/radiation etc.
Now, some of you are probably thinking... what about her baby making parts..... great question! Steve was pretty worried himself! We will be going to a fertility clinic to get my eggs harvested and to discuss the best ways to protect fertility during treatment. This is being done on "urgent" status so that it does not delay treatment too much. For those of you who may have speculated... yes, I have decided I will be wearing my most cliche farming outfit I can muster.We have to find humor where we can in these situations. Harvest has always been my favorite time on the farm... hopefully this won't ruin it for me, lol!
Now for the other good news. I get to keep my hair for about another month which is great as it gives me time to say goodbye to it and come to terms that it may never be quite the same. Even more good news that we are most excited about, we can a)continue to live with our animals without putting them in harms way
and b) be out in the sun as much as I like so that I can lay in my newly renovated back yard and read books ALL day in the sun, be at the barn and be out on the water (my happy places). These two things really help us start envisioning some of the middle pieces and what the picture might look like, and we know this will be immensely important in keeping up our positive energy!
Steve and I would also like to thank everyone for their immense support! It has been amazing the outpouring of love and support from a lot of people since we started sharing this journey with everyone. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Your love and support are greatly appreciated!
Left foot'n & right foot'n
Alyssa & Steve
As many of you know we had another doctor's appointment this morning.
I will try to fill in as much information as I can think of!
First of all we would like to thank John and Maxine for coming along and being our "other parents" today. Your experience, knowledge and most importantly your support were appreciated in ways we cannot express.
As previously stated we were first told about this on Friday morning. It was sort of like getting a really ugly 1,000 piece puzzle box with a mystery for a final picture. Where do you begin? Well, left foot, right foot.... let's start by finding all of the corner/edge pieces and putting them together to start building the structure of this journey and we can worry about the middle pieces later.
Our weekend was very much like this. We just started finding pieces of information and found how they fit with our story and today we were able to snap lots of the edges into place.
So, what pieces do we have...
Well we don't have all of the information as we are waiting for some more test results to come in and of course we need to wait for the MRI results before the doctors can finalize a treatment plan. That said they think it is likely a stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma but there is nothing definitive in that as all the information has not been gathered yet.
That said Dr. Groot (our surgeon) was amazing enough to sit down with us on Friday and give us a brief update of what some treatment options are. Although in honesty it wasn't a brief meeting at all and it was amazing that he spent so much time with us even though he wasn't seeing patients that day! Anyways he met with us Friday so that we would have time to think about it and formulate an opinion of what route we want to take.
Truth be told it's an incredibly overwhelming decision to make,as obviously we are not medical doctors! However we had the support of a very knowledgeable doctor who explained the whole thing to us, probably repeating himself 4 or 5 times after all our questions and helped us reach a decision that was right for us. In the end we know we will be doing "the whole meal deal" and it's a matter of when's and how's. We chose a treatment course called neo adjuvant. Which means that we are going to start with chemo therapy first, then do a surgery and then more chemo/radiation etc.
Now, some of you are probably thinking... what about her baby making parts..... great question! Steve was pretty worried himself! We will be going to a fertility clinic to get my eggs harvested and to discuss the best ways to protect fertility during treatment. This is being done on "urgent" status so that it does not delay treatment too much. For those of you who may have speculated... yes, I have decided I will be wearing my most cliche farming outfit I can muster.We have to find humor where we can in these situations. Harvest has always been my favorite time on the farm... hopefully this won't ruin it for me, lol!
Now for the other good news. I get to keep my hair for about another month which is great as it gives me time to say goodbye to it and come to terms that it may never be quite the same. Even more good news that we are most excited about, we can a)continue to live with our animals without putting them in harms way
and b) be out in the sun as much as I like so that I can lay in my newly renovated back yard and read books ALL day in the sun, be at the barn and be out on the water (my happy places). These two things really help us start envisioning some of the middle pieces and what the picture might look like, and we know this will be immensely important in keeping up our positive energy!
Left foot'n & right foot'n
Alyssa & Steve
Sunday 16 March 2014
Welcome!
Welcome to our blog! Steve and I will be taking turns writing on this to help document our journey through our diagnosis.
I say our diagnosis as we are attacking this as a team and everything is together :)
This blog will be updated with info and updates throughout all of the treatments.
First things first, we were officially told on Friday March 13th that we are fighting breast cancer (specifically Invasive Ductal Carcinoma - stage yet TBD). On Monday we will be meeting for more information.
We decided right away that we did not want this to be a secret because, well who are we kidding, its going to be really obvious! And we have always believed in being open about things so that nothing is left to whispers and speculation. Most importantly we want people to know so that we can have every ones support and we can help share information with you guys as quickly as possible!
For those of you who know us quite well you know that I (Alyssa) can be pretty blunt and I don't beat around the bush too much. So feel free to ask any questions either in person or on here, please don't feel awkward!
Some of you may be wondering what is with the goofy title."left foot, right foot". This has for a long time been one of Alyssa's favorite life statements that Steve has also adopted. It simply means one foot in front of the other, keep moving forward! It's in the baby steps that we can walk a mile. It's likely going to be used daily for the next while.
As our journey begins/continues, we anticipate there will be many valuable life lessons learned. Often these are the things you hear, read or even tell others but often have trouble truly comprehending; particularly the part where it comes to the ability to put it into practice.The first and so far most important lesson we've learnt was from our dear friends John and Maxine. In Steve's interpretation, plan for the future, learn from the past and most importantly live in and appreciate every moment in the moment.
And for a final piece of inspiration from one of our favorite movies; "Everything will be alright in the end... if its not all right, then it is not yet the end..." So to get the conversation rolling.... who knows what movie this is from?
Left foot'n & right foot'n,
Steve & Alyssa
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