Early survivorship for me is very much intertwined with starting my life in the DC area. I expected to hit the ground running with my new job, in my new city, with my best friend by my side and my boyfriend hopefully joining at some point. That’s not quite how it played out though. IContinue reading “I survived… but now what?”
Category Archives: Breast Cancer
Leaving cancer behind and moving to DC!
My last radiation treatment was Wednesday, April 12th and my job interview in Silver Spring was on April 18th. I had very short hair and was burned from radiation but I decided to jump at the opportunity to get my life going again immediately after treatment ended. I decided to apply for this job, whichContinue reading “Leaving cancer behind and moving to DC!”
Dating during cancer treatment
Prior to the start of treatment, I was lucky enough to go on one last trip with my mom, to Greece. We planned to meet there during my school break in Rwanda but since cancer threw us a curveball, we had to rearrange some things and leave from the US together instead. The timing workedContinue reading “Dating during cancer treatment”
Helpful products during breast cancer
I wanted to share a few things that helped me personally during my cancer treatment. For Chemo Fuzzy socks with grippers Blanket Eye mask For Hot Flashes Ice packs/trusty bag of frozen peas Icy cool towel or something similar Oscillating fan For Nausea/Vomiting Angel Mints Peppermint Tea Queasy Drops/Pops Anything ginger (unfortunately, I hate gingerContinue reading “Helpful products during breast cancer”
A quick rundown of my side effects
For anyone about to go through a similar treatment plan, here are the side effects I experienced. I recommend being transparent with your doctors as they may be able to help with some of them. A/C Chemo Fatigue Nausea/Vomiting – Zofran didn’t help me so they switched me to a steroid for a few daysContinue reading “A quick rundown of my side effects”
Radiation: A burn that doesn’t tan
On February 27th, 2017, nearly four weeks after surgery, I began radiation treatment. Radiation was strange in that it was every day, 5 days a week, for 6.5 weeks – 33 treatments to be exact, but it only took about 5 minutes for the actual procedure each time. I spent more time changing clothes andContinue reading “Radiation: A burn that doesn’t tan”
It’s surgery time
Tuesday, January 31st, 2017 was the day that I had my surgery. I was scheduled for a lumpectomy (removal of the tissue where the tumor was), axillary sentinel node biopsy (removal of the first few lymph nodes in the armpit where the cancer originally spread to see if there were any residual cancer cells), andContinue reading “It’s surgery time”
Saying ‘stay positive’ can do more harm than good
Stay Positive. Those two little words have more meaning than I would ever have anticipated. The comments started before I was ready, honestly. Part of that was my own fault for being transparent with my diagnosis early on and part of it was simply how our society generally responds to negative situations. Always find theContinue reading “Saying ‘stay positive’ can do more harm than good”
Onto the next: chemo #2 Taxol
After 8 weeks of A/C chemo, it was time to switch to 12 weeks of Taxol chemo. I was grateful, as the build up of A/C meant I kept feeling worse as time went on and I was told that Taxol wasn’t quite as harsh. I was ready for a bit of relief. For Taxol,Continue reading “Onto the next: chemo #2 Taxol”
My own Sophie’s choice: lumpectomy or mastectomy?
Shortly after I turned 26 years old, I was faced with the decision of which surgery to get for my breast cancer treatment. My options were a lumpectomy, single mastectomy or double mastectomy. A lumpectomy is where they remove the tumor or tissue where the tumor used to be (if chemo was used first andContinue reading “My own Sophie’s choice: lumpectomy or mastectomy?”
Still Rising 