My Onco Score

 

Went to my plastic surgeon yesterday and I had barely slept the the night before because I was worried about the fluid build up since he had taken my drains out.  Well, when I got there he said everything looked fine and he gave me a fill in each breast of saline solution.   So now I can sleep!!!

 It's kinda amazing no numbing medicine and he just fills each breast.  A little painful but not too bad.    Only painful after on my right side...so of course I needed a pain pill.   It weird how I can feel pain after a fill but I can't fill the needle they use. 

Will they always be as numb as they are now?

Then I went to lunch, Mexican food (my favorite!) and yes,... I broke all rules and had 2 margaritas because my pain pill had not yet kicked in of course.  And because I love margaritas!!!!

After lunch I had an appointment with my Oncologist, was feeling pretty good (not because of the Margaritas) but, because I had a good Onco Score.  A test my surgeon had done a couple weeks prior to this appointment (they use the tissue from your tumor.) 

The Oncotype DX  (www.oncotypeDX.com) is a test they do that depends on the type of treatment you will have based on your score.  They score it 0-100.

 Mine was 18, so I was feeling pretty good about my score!!!  The higher the score the higher the chances for the cancer to come back.

  This test has been available since 2004. 

Its basically for early stage cancer to see if you would benefit from chemotherapy. 
 This test also provides additional information, such as the activity levels of estrogen and progesterone receptors in your tumor.  This test does not mean your cancer will or will not come back, but the higher the score the higher your chances it will. 
 I don't think any doctor can give you a 100% guarantee!!!

So my score was borderline between low risk-intermediate risk.  My doctor said if my score was 1-2 points higher he would definitely put me on chemo.  But, because I am borderline he is recommending chemo four rounds, but not the full 8-10 rounds patients with high risk get.  Then after chemo he wants to put me on tamoxifen for five years which would put me in menopause.  (actually he said the chemo would do that also, so the thought of not having a period anymore can't be such a bad thing!)

 

So based on my score of 18 and the stage cancer I have 1-2, and being Node Negative, Er-Positive and treating my cancer with 5 years of Tamoxifen my recurrence of cancer would be 11%.  Not too bad I thought, but having chemo would also lesson that to less than 7%

So lets just face it NOBODY likes to lose their hair!!!  Not even men!!

You know this is true...there are ugly people, pretty people, and gorgeous people.  Kinda like when you were in high school...we had the nerds, jocks, cowboys, popular people (lots of people fell in that category, funny & gorgeous and some ugly, but they were funny!)  We learned this at an early age in Cinderella and her ugly step-sisters.

I never considered myself popular and I never considered myself nerdy or ugly, so I would say I was in the pretty category (modestly pretty of course!) and wanting to be in the popular crowd!!!! 

 But the one thing I always did love about myself was my hair!!!  If you could say what is the one thing that you love about yourself?  Well, mine...would be my hair!   The older I got and the more I gained weight I could still look in the mirror and say... my hair looks great.  (At least most of the time!)

 Let just be REAL!!!  If I was UGLY I probably would have lost my weight a long time ago!  But, when I looked in the mirror, I would say not too bad, but my HAIR LOOKS GREAT!  So now losing my hair means I really have to face the real me in the mirror and that is something I am not looking forward to doing!!!

SO NOW THAT I WON"T HAVE MY HAIR, I WILL REALLY HAVE TO LOOK IN THE MIRROR!!!!!!!!

Susie