Just my luck

While I was finishing radiation, I read the book "Before I Go" by Colleen Oakley. It prompted me to perform a very thorough self breast exam on 3/11. Being that I am a medical freak show, I found a small lump.

On 3/24, I had an U/S and mammogram at my local hospital. The results came back as an irregular 9mm solid mass with spiculated margins, BI-RADS category 5. I had the imaging sent to my cancer care team in Seattle and am waiting on their evaluation, but it seems that a core needle biopsy to diagnose the lesion is pretty much a given. Again, I play the waiting game.

All done

I finished radiation yesterday! Still no major side effects. Leg is slightly weak though... and mildly red. I would call it a huge success! Here I am ringing the gong:

After rads

I met w/ my surgeon this morning. We discussed what comes next, including pre-op, surgery, post-op, and future follow-ups.

Pre-op: Tuesday, April 14th
Paperwork, knee MRI, chest CT

Surgery: Friday, April 24th
The objective is to remove the tissue surrounding my previous excision where the margins tested positive. This, combined with the radiation therapy, is the best way to keep the cancer from ever growing back or reappearing somewhere else in my body. I'll spend the night in the hospital and my leg will be in a brace for a few weeks. This is because radiation can slow wound healing, so they don't want me bending my knee for awhile. I'll also have a drain tube.

Post-op: Tentatively Tuesday, May 12th
Hopefully this is when I will lose the stitches, drain and brace... but it depends on my healing progress.

Follow-ups:
Years 1-3 -- Physical exam & scan every 3 months (alternating chest CT & xray)
Years 4-5 -- Physical exam & scan every 6 months
Years 6-10 -- Annual physical exam & scan
I hope to combine my melanoma follow-ups with this schedule.

Only 3 more rads. Still no major side effects. Back to LB in about a week...