A Breakdown of My Appointments Today ~ Melissa

Here is a breakdown of my appointments today. 1st we met with general surgeon Dr. Eddy Jordan. He is quirky and flamboyant and absolutely brilliant. I ADORE him. He did a great job explaining the mastectomy procedure, and allayed a lot of fears. Dr. Eddy will perform mastectomy, sentinel node biopsy, and port-a-cath (implanted IV line for chemotherapy use) placement. If BRCA 1 or 2 (genetic test) are positive, then ovary removal will also take place by the Gynecologist at the time of the mastectomy, which is why we have to wait for surgery! (It would be best if they do not have to remove the ovary so prayers for that would be good-Nicole)
Next we met Dr. Gray, the medical oncologist, He explained the tumor staging process and also informed us that chemotherapy will be a necessity. He also told us that type and duration of chemo will be determined by pathology results after surgery. (Chemo will start after Melissa is done with antibiotics and all of her drain tubes have been removed so it will be a few weeks after surgery.)
Dr. Leslye Ingersoll, the radiation oncologist was the next to join our party. She told us that the decision to do radiation will be based on the results of the lymph node biopsy (performed at surgery). She also ordered a PET scan. 
We next met geneticist, Brent Hafen. We reviewed my family history, which is pretty ugly on my Dad's side. After a crash course in genetics, I headed to the lab for BRCA testing. This was one of those hoops the insurance is making us jump through :)
PET Scan came next. This is basically a CT scan that is done after a radioactive sugar solution has been injected. The idea is that the sugar will "stick" to a tumor so it is visible. Local surgeon Dr. Keith Harmon actually called me while we were still in Utah. He had called down to McKay-Dee to receive results..... NO additional tumors found!! Dr. Harmon said he wanted me to have peace of mind for the weekend. So sweet!
Plastic surgeon, Chris Shale, "worked us in" at 1:45. We left his office at 4:10! He presented many options for reconstruction and basically made our heads spin! No real decisions have been made, but Dr. Shale will be part of the initial surgery. He will place tissue expanders under the pec muscle-YIKES!!
The last person we met with was a physical therapist who is a lymphedema specialist. Lymphedema is basically swelling in the arm caused by lymph fluid backing up. This is due to removal of the lymph nodes under the arm. We talked about ways to prevent this from happening, and she measured my arms for baseline measurements. Now we wait for results of testing to return. Keep the prayers coming! Waiting is the toughest part :) ~Melissa



Melissa and Tyler came by to pick up the boys tonight. It was great to see her smiling and laughing as she explained all of the uncomfortable situations she had been in throughout the day, all about the Doctor's personalities and how much she loved them. I love her sense of humor. I feel like it is a huge blessing with all that she has been through, not only for herself but everyone around her. The waiting has been hard on her, tonight it seemed like knowing most of the plan had helped her feel better about what she has to go through. She is anxious to get started. Please remember to fast for her on Sunday! Thanks ~Nicole