Good bad news

Some news is easier to share than others.  When I was expecting My Girl it took five months or so before I finally told many people I was pregnant.  By that time it was becoming fairly obvious.  This news is a bit more difficult. 

A couple weeks ago I went in for a routine mammogram.  After all I am all of 40 years old.  People say that at 40 everything starts to fall apart.  I didn't believe it until it started to happen.  Extra migraines this summer, shingles, and now this.  The mammogram showed some calcifications.  It looked like salt spilled over a couple areas of the image.  So I had a biopsy.  I spent a miserable weekend waiting for the results, imagining the worst, and then thinking that it was probably nothing.  I was even wondering if I could cut my hair and have a wig made from it.  The results were good bad news.  I have ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), a very early stage of non-invasive cancer.  One doctor referred to it as a pre-cancer, abnormal cells that have not invaded the surrounding tissue.  It's been difficult to tell people because of all of the emotional baggage associated with the term cancer.  (This NY Times article was particularly timely.)  Regardless of what it is called the treatment is the same.  I will be having surgery, a lumpectomy,  to remove the offending tissues followed a few weeks later by 3-6 weeks of radiation treatments.  No chemotherapy will be needed so no need for the extreme haircut and wig, thank goodness.  Since the biopsy samples were positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors the anti-hormone medication, tamoxifan, was recommended after all of that.  I'm not looking forward to that one.  It has some significant side effects.  This treatment plan could change depending on what the pathology report says about the tissue removed during surgery.  The biopsy was just a little sliver.  What they saw there wasn't so bad, but it isn't necessarily the same all over.  Other parts could potentially show something else, not so good bad news.  I met with the radiologist, medical oncologist, and surgeon this week in one big long appointment.  It was very informative and helpful, but also a dose of reality.  I can't ignore it.  The surgery will be scheduled next week and happen sometime in December.

With all of this I'm usually doing OK.  I try not to dwell on it too much.  Life goes on.  However, if you are the praying type I'd appreciate any extras you could spare, if not send your happy healing thoughts my way.  Thanks.