The next vat of potions and lotions prescribed to get rid of the pesky skin infection still haven't cleared it 100% so another doctor's visit is imminent. Won't go on about it any further unless it turns out to be linked to the medication I'm on or is relevant in some other way.
The 'medication I'm on' currently is
Tamoxifen and there is some indication that skin rashes occur whilst taking it. Another somewhat upsetting side effect is
weight gain and if you click on the link you'll see two conflicting opinions;
1 weight gain IS due to taking Tamoxifen
2 weight gain is NOT due to taking Tamoxifen but due to chemotherapy
Whichever way, there seem to be a number of women (and I say women only because theirs are the stories I've read - men also get breast cancer I know, however I'm with
Nick Avery on renaming it 'chest cancer' for men) who are around my age, exercising, eating healithy (therefore on a low or no fat/sugar/processed food diet) yet still gaining weight. Over the course or treatment (5 years) I can expect to gain up to 25lbs (11kg). Bloodyhell. Like I said in my previous blog avoid cancer.
Yesterday saw my 4 monthly check up with Mr U. Mr U's lovely. He took the tumour out of my right boob and a fine job he did too. Got the whole tumour, didn't leave anything in and sewed me up beautifully. I've got two very neat scars thanks to him. Have just returned from holiday and was able to wear tiny vests without my underarm scar being visible (I've one scar under my arm where he took the cancerous lymph glands out and one under my boob - at 8 o'clock - where he took the tumour out). I like Mr U. A lot.
We had a brief chat about what I'm doing (just back from 11 days in France), gymming and doing volunteer work, theatre stuff the rest of the time. These guys like to see you living your life when they've given it back to you wrapped with a huge pink ribbon.
I told him I thought I'd felt a lump in my right boob whilst on hols but couldn't be sure. He checked and couldn't find anything. We talked about how the construction of my breast is constantly changing and for that reason it would be hard for me to really notice a difference but still I need to be vigilant and keep checking.
We then had a reeeeally confusing conversation about my next check up. Long and short of it is that I see Dr R my oncologist in December and then don't see Mr U until June, by which time I'll have had a further mammo and ultrasound.
Will endeavour to blog inbetween now and December but if you don't hear anything, no news is good news. It'd be good if that were true of you too.