45. In Remission??

Apologies that all my posts since my treatment seem to be quite negative, but since it all finished I just feel very out of sorts.

The biggest frustration has been the lack of communication from the Oncology Team around the end of my treatment and my outcome.

I had my final call with a stand in Oncologist the other week and all she spoke about was my Radiotherapy treatment and any side effects. There wasn't any talk of what next. I actually had to ask the question, "Is that it, am I now in remission?"

Her explanation was, after surgery I had clean margins and no signs of any cancer in the Lymphnodes so they were happy everything was ok after then. The extra 4 cycles of chemo and radiotherapy were just a boost/top-up to ensure any small bits left were killed off and hopefully stop it coming back.

They may have told me that back after my surgery but with everything going on, I may not have taken it all in.

So what is being in remission;

Remission means that the signs and symptoms of your cancer are reduced. Remission can be partial or complete. In a complete remission, all signs and symptoms of cancer have disappeared. If you remain in complete remission for 5 years or more, some doctors may say that you are cured.

Its not like you see in some of the Cancer Research advert where they get the all clear and see the final scans. Well not for me anyway. I have to wait a year after surgery for my next mammogram and that will show how clear it is. Which is 7 months away.

I hate waiting!

Anyway, so I am now classed as being in remission!

So lets me get onto some positive stuff!

Dan and I had a weekend away in North Wales to watch some drifting, we had a lovely time away and managed to stay dry most the weekend!

My hair is also growing back quite nicely! I actually popped into the hairdressers the other day to get a trim! Well just around my ears and the back of my neck!

One thing I did forget to mention, is after the holiday, my boob, nipple and under my arm had started hurting. It was that bad that wearing a bra was very uncomfortable. I was in quite a bit of pain that was also making me very emotional.

I rang the Macmillan helpline to just have a chat as im still waiting on my counselling referral. After a chat with a guy about my emotions he passed me through to a trained nurse to discuss my pain. She advised me to speak to the Breast Care team, so I rang them after the call.

Straight away the Breast Care Nurse said she would book me in the following day for a check up.

I went to the hospital, had a good old chat about things and then she examined me. She said I had slight Lymphedema.

Lymphedema is the build-up of fluid in soft body tissues when the lymph system is damaged or blocked. The lymph system is a network of lymph vessels, tissues, and organs that carry lymph throughout the body. Lymphedema occurs when lymph is not able to flow through the body the way that it should.

This is caused due to having one of my lymphnodes removed so it makes any fluid harder to drain away.

She gave me some exercises to do along with some massage techniques to help get it moving again. I was also advised to wear a tight fitting bra as compression helps with the drainage.

After a few days of doing this it has got a bit better. However, ive been a terrible patient and haven't carried it on everyday....so I must do it!

Later in the month I have a nice spa day coming up with a friend, then a 30th Birthday Party at the start of December. I'm also getting back into 4x4ing at the start of next year which im really looking forward to, just gotta hope my car holds out!

Well thats it for now. Life is tough and people are going through battles you may not see, so remember to be kind x