The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong in the broken places.
Ernest Hemingway
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On November 5, 2013 my mother's story of living with cancer began...

Appointments/procedures:
October 30, 2012 - original mammogram
November 5, 2013 - second mammogram
November 7, 2013 - biopsy
November 11, 2013 - results in; appointments with family doctor, surgeon, coordinator, oncologist
November 12, 2013 - second opinion from another oncologist
November 15, 2013 - MRI
November 18, 2013 - meet with surgeon again
November 22, 2013 - meet with oncologist
November 25, 2013 - echocardiogram
November 27, 2013 - port put in
December 3, 2013 - Chemo #1 of 4 (first round)
December 4, 2013 - Neulasta shot
December 13, 2013 - Bloodwork
December 23, 2013 -
Chemo #2 of 4 (second round)
December 24, 2013 - Neulasta shot
[date] - Bloodwork
January 13, 2014 - Chemo #3 (third round)
January 14, 2014 - Neulasta shot
[date] - Bloodwork
February 3, 2014 - Chemo #4 (fourth round)
February 4, 2014 - Neulasta shot
February 5, 2014 - echocardiogram
Next step....surgery....
February 10, 2014 - appointment with surgeon
February 13, 2014 - meet with plastic surgeon
February 20, 2014 - EKG and BMP blood test
February 25, 2014 - SURGERY :o)  yay!  :o( owie
Next step....recovery....
March 3, 2014 - follow-up with surgeons - drains still in (1 week)
March 6, 2014 - appointment with oncologist to discuss next step of treatment - Chemo 1x/every 3 weeks for 3 rounds; drugs proposed are FEC: Fluorouracil (5FU), Epirubicin (Ellence), Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan)
March 11, 2014 - appointment with plastic surgen - drains still in (2 weeks); chemo scheduled for March 13th postponed 1 week
March 18, 2014 - appointment with plastic surgeon - drains STILL in (3 weeks); chemo scheduled for March 20th postponed
March 25, 2014 - DRAINS FINALLY OUT!!! YAY!!
March 26, 2014 - Chemo #1 of 3 (FEC)
April 16, 2014 - Chemo #2 of 3

May 7, 2014 - Chemo #3 of 3 - ALL DONE!! :)


July 18, 2014 - SURGERY - implants







Articles/Documents 

2007 Guidelines for Patients: Breast Cancer

http://www.nch.org/medical-services/breast-center/pdf/acs_breastcancer.pdf

2011 NCCN Guidelines for Patients: Breast Cancer
http://www.nccn.org/patients/guidelines/breast/index.html

Chemotherapy Game-Changer for Stage 4 Cancer
http://www.envita.com/cancer/finally-chemotherapy-game-changer-for-stage-cancer

Healthline article The Effects of Chemotherapy on the Body
http://www.healthline.com/health/cancer/effects-on-body

Chemo beginning December 3, 2013:

Trastuzumab (Herceptin) for the HER2+ protein

Docetaxel (Taxotere); Pertuzumab (Perjeta); and Pegfilgrastim (Neulasta) as the chemo agents (adjuvants?)

Dexamethasone (Decadron), steroid



Frequency: 4 cycles of one infusion every three weeks


Chemo beginning March 26, 2014

Drugs proposed are the combination FEC:

*Fluorouracil (5FU): inhibits cell growth

*Epirubicin (Ellence): stops the enzymes that support cell reproduction; it damages the cell by altering its membranes; and it stops cell reproduction by attaching itself to the cell’s DNA, which then gets tangled up and is unable to replicate itself
 
*Cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan): sticks to the cell’s DNA, like Epirubicin, preventing it from replicating; inhibits DNA replication and initiates cell death

Given for node positive cancer, which is NOT the case here. Huh??



Frequency: 3 cycles of one infusion every three weeks



Information on this combination of drugs is available here:
http://www.healthcentral.com/breast-cancer/c/78/10888/chemo-faqs-fec/

To look up any cancer drug, you can look here:
http://www.cancer.gov/drugdictionary?cdrid=41657

VIDEOS

http://www.doctoroz.com/episode/why-you-should-keep-your-cell-phone-out-your-bra
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