This post is a big picture summary of all that’s happened since my cancer diagnosis. If you’re interested in all the details subscribe to email updates because I’m planning to post more regularly. The big decision points I’ll probably post to Facebook, otherwise I’m not going to announce every blog post on that platform. [Apologies, I cannot figure out how to add a subscription link into this post. Look for this icon: ]

I’ve done what feels like all the types of imaging that exist in the past month. And we went on a journey from “none of the doctors can feel a lump” which would indicate early stage cancer. To “actually this might be in your liver” which would indicate late stage cancer. Then landed back at “no spread other than one small local lymph node, and since there’s still no palpable lump even the cancer in your breast could be almost entirely in the ducts” – where cancer cells entirely contained within milk ducts would be stage 0 but spread to lymph nodes is more advanced than a localized tumor. So we’ve come full circle back to “we won’t know the stage or treatment plan until after surgery and pathology reports.”

On September 4 I will have surgery. It will be a double mastectomy with all the lymph nodes on the right side removed. I had my pre-op appointment Friday (August 15) and have been declared sufficiently healthy to be cleared for surgery. Now I get two entire weeks off from doctors appointments, which I don’t think has happened in years! (I’d been doing weekly appointments for at least one of: physical therapy, occupational therapy, vestibular therapy, and vision therapy since early 2023. Plus allergy shots every 3 weeks, massage every 4 weeks, and countless appointments with specialists or for testing.)

In the midst of all the cancer testing I moved out of my condo, sold it, rehomed my dog to one of the amazing employees at his daycare, and moved into an apartment that’s 5 minutes away from my parents house. Oh and I also had to coordinate transferring records and prescriptions and finalizing all the documentation for my disability insurance appeal while also doing all the regular paperwork associated with a move. I’m at a bit of a loss for what to do with my (very limited) energy since I haven’t had the choice to do anything but what’s absolutely necessary for what seems like forever. Two weeks to build routines in my new space and prepare for the next change in capacity is both a lot of time and no time at all. I’m planning for writing to be part of my new routine, so watch this space for more posts as I process everything that’s happened and write to organize my thoughts on what comes next.