Leaving on a jet plane...

...but I will return on December 23rd.

So excited to just relax now that all of the Christmas shopping, wrapping, gathering, carding, & baking are done. For the next five days I plan to just enjoy the plentiful sunshine.

It's gonna be awesome!

Bunco GNO

Friday was an awesome day.

After spending the afternoon hanging out with my high school BFF Lisa

(we power shopped and went to see Black Swan-so awesome!),

I met 4 of my Bunco friends for dinner at On the Border.

Unfortunately, 3 members of our group couldn't make it, but we had a great time all the same. We got there early enough to enjoy happy hour (yeah Maragritas!) and had a few hours of laughs and conversation.

Judy & I wearing our crowns. Aren't we divine?

Kirstie, Brenda & Karen

Judy loves to dangle things from her glasses :)

Kirstie, Brenda & Karen again

The whole lot of us.

Kirstie brought Christmas crackers for everyone; only Brenda & I knew what they were. They are an Brittish tradition (Kirstie's Brittish), so it was really fun to share it with all of us. At least 4 people asked us what we were celebrating and where did we get the crowns. We were the talk of the restaurant.

I had some big fun girls!

follow up

Oncologist.

Kind of a scary word.

And I have to meet with two of them!

I will be meeting with the medical oncologist on December 29th

and the radiation oncologist on January 3rd.

There is no rush, and I have so many things to take care of before we leave for Florida next week. I didn't want one more thing thrown in the mix.

Now that I've had a few days to process the information, the diagnosis isn't so bad. There are far worse things to have happen than DCIS, and from everything I have read, almost totally curable. My gyn called the other day while I wasn't at home and spoke to Bart for a bit. She had the same diagnosis 15 years ago and has come out of it with no further problems.

So while the diagnosis is 'cancer', I don't really call it 'cancer'. That word gives it too much power. And I want to be the one with all the power.

Remember to get your mammograms!

Ductal Carcinoma in Situ

Well, the news isn't what I'd hoped for, but it's not worst-case scenario either.

In my right breast, I have DCIS, ductal carcinoma in situ. The earliest form of breast cancer. It's not life threatening, but can develop into cancer if left untreated.

From the Mayo Clinic: Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) is considered the earliest form of breast cancer. In DCIS, abnormal cells multiply and form a growth within a milk duct of your breast. DCIS is noninvasive, meaning it hasn't spread out of the milk duct to invade other parts of the breast.

My type is classified as cribriform, or low grade. I can't tell from the report if my margins are good or not good enough.

I will meet with an oncologist, a radiologist & my surgeon to determine my course of treatment. It may be radiation. It may be tamoxifen. It may be more surgery, up to and including mastectomy. I will most likely need radiation on my left breast as well, although the phyllodes tumor and the DCIS are completely different diagnoses. It seems really weird to me that two completely different but distructive things are going on in my body at the same time.

I am a little freaked out. I mean, the news isn't good but not the worst either. Almost 100% of treated DCIS cases are cured. Good odds! I guess what's freaking me out is the constant thought in the back of my mind as to whether it will come back. I want to treat it and be done with it. I don't want it lingering around to torment me.

Onto the next round!

Hello, December v.10

I know I say this every month, but seriously...how is it December already??

I think I am going to do a December daily album starting tomorrow. I have the main album ready to fill; I just need to take the time. I figured this would be a good year to commit to it as we have so much going on this month. It's exciting and a little daunting. I have to have all my Christmas stuff done before we leave on the 17th for Florida. I have made some headway, but nothing is done. The decorating, the cards, the shopping. The baking. Ack. Now I just want to crawl under the blankets until then!

I am feeling pretty good. No pain; the incisions are healing nicely and I have been resuming normal activity. Still haven't gotten the pathology reports, but I do see the doctor on Monday. I don't have time to be worried!

More tomorrow...