Dear Family and Friends,

 

I can’t thank you enough for the wonderful support you have given me as I’ve journeyed through the pokes, prods, tests and treatment of breast cancer. The love and concern from each of you has been overwhelming!

 

As you’re aware, at about the same time my cancer journey began my Mom fell and suffered a brain contusion. We were uncertain whether she would recover. Things felt very scary to me at that time. Then a dear friend (who has had her share of difficult times) shared some words with me…she said “When things are not normal, do normal things.” What words of wisdom those are! Though difficult to do at times, the very “normalcy” of daily life and God’s grace has kept me from dwelling and worrying too much about my Mom’s situation or mine. And that brings us to today….

 

My last radiation treatment was Thursday, May 27. My doctor said that in approximately two weeks I should see relief from the side effects (the burning and fatigue). I’ll take medication for the next five years, have semi-annual mammograms and visit the oncologist annually.

 

And as for my Mom….she has come a really long way. She will be here the second week of June to visit assisted living facilities in OkC and Tulsa (with Tulsa being her preferred choice).

 

When my sister Peggy closed her practice in New Mexico in April and moved into Mom’s house, Mom was able to move out of the rehab facility and back home. It was very surprising to the therapists how rapidly she improved. We’re so glad she’s gotten to the point where she can help select her new home.

 

When Mom moves to Tulsa or OkC the first of July, Peggy will move to Oklahoma City and start looking for a job. I’ll love having a sister in the same town and hopefully you’ll all get to meet her!

 

Again, thanks for all the prayers, dinners, flowers and love that have been sent my way over the past few months. I am blessed because of you!

 

Love, Patty

 

Radiation starts today

Patty's first radiation treatment starts today, April 12th, and will continue daily until May 26th.

Great News!!!!

No chemo needed! We couldn't have asked for a better report. All of Patty's test results indicated the absence of additional cancer in her breasts or anywhere else. The gene test shows her to be in a low risk category for future reoccurrence  (8 per cent chance). She will taking Arimidex for the next five years (one pill daily) and calcium/vitamin D.  Radiation treatments will begin in a week or so and will be daily for six and a half weeks. The major concern here is that her skin may burn because she is so fair skinned.

As we begin the Easter weekend, the Doublin family has a lot to be thankful for and this has certainly been a Good Friday. The Lord has blessed us with great news. Thanks go to everyone for your prayers and support. God bless each of you.

Patty's new Dr. appointments have been rescheduled for April 2nd. See blog comments posted on March 20th for details.

Frustration Continues

Patty's Doctor appointments for Monday have been cancelled as the Oncotype-DX test results are still not available. We received a call at 6:00 p.m. Friday from the oncologist office informing us the tissue samples just arrived at the lab on Thursday. It is anybody's guess where they have been for the last two weeks. Apparently it will be another two weeks before we know anything. Obviously, this is very frustrating for all of us  and Patty in particular. The other tests, Petscan and Bone Density, have been done and we will get the results at our next meeting with the doctors (date unknown at this time). I will keep you posted as to the latest developments as we proceed forward.

In Limbo

Patty met with oncologist and radiation doctors today but the results are still in limbo pending additional tests which will take an additional two weeks. The first test is called an Oncotype-DX which analyses 21 genes to determine her risk factors for the cancer coming back or spreading. There are 3 risk factors........high (chemo a certainty).......low (only radiation needed) .......medium(a gray area where several different options may be implemented). The other test is a PET scan which will determine if the cancer has spread to other areas of the body. PET scan scheduled for March 18th.

Today was a typical Monday where everything went wrong. Neither doctor had the pathology report and we had to wait for it to be sent over. Also, Patty's medical file was inter dispersed with another cancer patient who had infected lymph nodes and it took a while for all of us to separate the proper lab reports, biopsies, surgery, exams, etc. The doctors were confused, we were confused and I guess it was Murphy's law.

So, another blog report will be forthcoming on March 22th which hopefully will answer all of our questions. Please keep the prayers coming and thank you for the great support you have shown Patty. Much appreciated.

pathology repott

Some more good news. Received pathology report from Dr. Beverly Talbert at 5:15 p.m. Friday. Report confirmed lymph nodes were clear. Both tumors removed were cancerous, the largest being 1.2 centimeters. Both were considered Stage 1 and that is really good news. The oncologist will make the determination as to future treatment regarding chemo but Dr. Talbert believes only radiation will be necessary.  Appointment with Dr. McMinn and Dr. Prahbu is scheduled for March 8th and we will know at that time for sure about the type of treatment going forward. So, we are very pleased. Many  prayers have been answered. Thanks to all of you.

patty surgery update

Patty was in surgery for approximately one hour and forty five minutes. Both tumors were removed along with sentinel lymph node. No other lymph nodes were removed as on site lab tests showed the lymph node was clear. Patty was in recovery from 4:15 until 6:45 pm. She is home now and resting but still feeling the side effects(very tired, queasy, etc.) Many thanks to everyone who came out to be with my family and to support Patty. You will never know how much it meant to us. God bless each and every one of you. Patty's surgery was a success and the initial reports are very good. Thank you all for your prayers and support. More later when I can think a little clearer as we are all so tired. God Bless. Gary.

Surgery was Successful

The surgery was extremely successful and Patty is doing okay.  The dye they injected earlier in the day did not travel to her lymph nodes so she did not have to have them removed from under her arm! This is very good news as this means the cancer did not travel (as far as we know).  They did remove one lymph node to examine in a lab under a microscope.  But as it stands, the surgery went as good as it could go and the outlook is could.

We will know more when the lab results come back and after her first run of radiation.

So far, everything is going as planned and we are very pleased with the results.

-Derek

Timeline of Patty's Surgery Tomorrow (Wednesday, 2/24)

8 A.M. - Patty will be going into Mercy Hospital to fill out her paperwork.

8:30 AM - Patty will go to Nuclear Medicine to get a dye injection.  This is how they'll determine if there are lymph nodes involved in her cancer.  If the dye doesn't travel to her lymph nodes, then they won't be removed. We are hoping that is the case because that means the chances that the cancer has spread to other parts of her body is greatly reduced.  If the dye does travel to her lymph nodes, then she will receive additional surgery underneath her arm to have them removed.

9:30 AM - Patty will go to radiology to have two guide wires inserted in the exact spot the cancer resides.  The surgeon will use these guide wires to pinpoint the cancer's location during the removal process.

2:00 PM - Patty will go into surgery to have the cancer removed.  Two golf ball sized sections will be removed around the cancer sites.

4:00 PM Patty will come out of surgery and cook us all dinner.

Patty will recover and attend radiation (and possibly chemo) on March 8th.

Dear Family and Friends,

'Tis the eve of my surgery and I just wanted to thank you for the prayers and kind offers of assistance as I move through this process. Last Sunday at church one of the hymns was "On Eagle's Wings." I'm sure you're familiar with the refrain:

"And he will raise you up on eagle's wings, bear you on the breath of dawn, make you to shine like the sun...and hold you  in the palm of his hand."

As I sang and listened to the words I thought - how appropriate for me right now. I thought of all of you, dear friends and family, and how much you all mean to me. I can move through this with calm because of each of you! I truly can't convey how much you mean to me!

Tomorrow morning, my day will begin with an 8 o'clock check-in at Mercy's Day Surgery Center. At 8:30 I'll be taken to nuclear medicine to receive a dye injection that will indicate if the lymph nodes are involved. Following that, from 9:30 to 11:30, I'll be in radiology having guide wires placed in the two cancer sites. Around noon I'll go to my cubbyhole, an IV will be started, and eventually the anesthetic will be administered. The surgery will commence between 2-2:30 and will probably last about two hours. That will be followed by approximately 2 hours+ in recovery. Hopefully, I'll be home by 7:00, but it could be as late as 9:00.

Love, Patty

Update. Surgery Date Set.

After meeting with two surgeons today, the decision was made for Patty to have surgery next Wednesday, February 24th. Her options were full mastectomy or segmented mastectomy (which is actually a dual lumpectomy). We elected the dual lumpectomy because the survival rates are the same as full mastectomy. The present plan calls for the removal of two tumors in different areas of the same breast and a third area under the armpit where the lymph nodes are located. Even though the tumors are small, they will remove a golf ball size mass from each area as a precaution. The number of lymph nodes affected will not be known until the actual surgery. The infected lymph nodes will be removed. Because the cancer cells in one of the tumors is consider to be the invasive and aggressive type we are probably looking at full chemo followed by full radiation treatments. The final determination will be made 2 or 3 days after surgery when the pathology report is issued by the oncologist. The surgery will be performed  Dr. Beverly Talbert at Mercy Hospital at approximately 2 o'clock with preliminaries beginning at 8 o'clock. If all goes well we should be home by 9 p.m. Keep those prayers coming. Thanks .

Introduction...

As many of you may know, my mother, Patty Doublin has been diagnosed with breast cancer.  Since it can be an exhausting task to call everyone, send out emails, release carrier pigeons, and answer the same questions over and over again like an employee at an Indian Call Center, I started this journal to keep people posted on any news and updates we receive concerning her condition.

In December her annual mammogram indicated a possible problem. This was not a cause of concern at the time as Patty has had several false positive mammograms throughout the years. However, the subsequent tests were always clear. Not so this time. In early January a biopsy was performed and the results indicated the presence of cancer. The area was small, but as a precaution additional tests were performed, including an MRI. The MRI showed a second area of concern that was much larger than the original one. Both are in the same breast. An Ultrasound and Ultrasound biopsy were performed on January 28th.  The results indicated additional cancer. We are meeting with two surgeons on Monday, February 15th and will learn more about her condition, our options, the type of treatment and the kind of surgery to be performed. Patty's attitude and spirit has been an inspiration and source of strength for all of us throughout this whole ordeal.


The type of cancer Patty was diagnosed with is called INVASIVE DUCTAL CARCINOMA which is the most common form of breast cancer there is.  The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 180,000 women in the U.S.A. have this form of breast cancer.  Luckily, she caught hers early which gives us a good outlook on things.  7 of the 11 women Patty currently works with have had breast cancer as well as her sister, so we currently have a lot of people to turn to for advice.


Please keep my mother in your thoughts, prayers, songs, chants, rituals, dances, and tribal animal sacrifices.  The next update to this journal will be on the evening of Monday, February 14th after our visit with the surgeon. Thanks.

Sincerely,

Derek