Greetings from the Land of Enchantement,
Since the last time I wrote I have recruited in: Tucson, Phoenix, Austin, Albuquerque, and now I am in Santa Fe. I am exhausted to say the least and I am so ready to be home. Thankfully I will fly home tomorrow!
I hope everyone knows October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month. It warms my heart to see all those big NFL players decked out in their pink gear supporting the cause. Our Austin Race for the Cure team is 17 strong and my hope is it will continue to grow. Please remember if you can't participate on race day, please consider donating to our team. Susan G. Komen is such a great foundation and while we have come a long way in breast cancer awareness and research we still have room to improve. I am proud to say Martha's CUREsadors will be decked out in custom made t-shirts. I am so excited for race day.
In regards to my mom she is continuing to do well. She is about to embark on the two month mark since she was declared cancer free. Last week she went in for two scans, one of her head (she has been having her awful headaches again) and one of her body. Both have been cleared by her Oncologist so, that is wonderful news! She has visited her Plastic Surgeon, Radiologist, and everyones favorite her Oncologist on Friday. So far everyone has delivered good news, aside from the swelling she has recently encountered my mom continues to take recovery in stride. As always thank you for your support!
Best,
Chryssa
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, September 7, 2009
Cancer Free!
Hello,
This is about 3 weeks late but I wanted to report to everyone my mom is officially cancer free! On August 14th my mom had her last radiation treatment and visited her Oncologist who confirmed there are no traces of cancer cells. Below is a picture of my mom post-radiation with her radiation team. At her last treatment we celebrated by throwing confetti and she was presented a plaque.
For the next year my mom will be monitored closely to insure the cancer has not returned. The first year is crucial, if she does not have another occurrence in five years she will be considered in remission. We are just happy to hear she is cancer free. It's been a long and hard road but with all of your support we made it through.
Special thanks to my mom's co-worker Lizette who hosted a "Cancer Free" party for my mom and her colleagues. Linda presented my mom with a touching PowerPoint presentation that made everyone laugh and cry. We all wore pink and a good time was had by all! We hope to host a thank you party in the near future and I will certainly keep you posted.
Linda, Mom, Lizette at "Cancer Free Pink Party"
On another note, don't forget Austin Race for the Cure is right around the corner on November 1st. My hope is to meet our fundraising goal and have more participants than in the San Antonio race. Most of you should have received a team invite. If you didn't and would like to join or donate please visit: http://austin.info-komen.org/site/TR/RacefortheCure/AUS_AustinAffiliate?fr_id=1240&pg=entry, select join a team. Our team name is Martha's CUREsadors.
I actually start my recruitment travel today, so, most likely you will here from me even less but I will try to keep you updated on my mom's progress.
Hugs,
Chryssa
This is about 3 weeks late but I wanted to report to everyone my mom is officially cancer free! On August 14th my mom had her last radiation treatment and visited her Oncologist who confirmed there are no traces of cancer cells. Below is a picture of my mom post-radiation with her radiation team. At her last treatment we celebrated by throwing confetti and she was presented a plaque.
For the next year my mom will be monitored closely to insure the cancer has not returned. The first year is crucial, if she does not have another occurrence in five years she will be considered in remission. We are just happy to hear she is cancer free. It's been a long and hard road but with all of your support we made it through.
Special thanks to my mom's co-worker Lizette who hosted a "Cancer Free" party for my mom and her colleagues. Linda presented my mom with a touching PowerPoint presentation that made everyone laugh and cry. We all wore pink and a good time was had by all! We hope to host a thank you party in the near future and I will certainly keep you posted.
Linda, Mom, Lizette at "Cancer Free Pink Party"
On another note, don't forget Austin Race for the Cure is right around the corner on November 1st. My hope is to meet our fundraising goal and have more participants than in the San Antonio race. Most of you should have received a team invite. If you didn't and would like to join or donate please visit: http://austin.info-komen.org/site/TR/RacefortheCure/AUS_AustinAffiliate?fr_id=1240&pg=entry, select join a team. Our team name is Martha's CUREsadors.
I actually start my recruitment travel today, so, most likely you will here from me even less but I will try to keep you updated on my mom's progress.
Hugs,
Chryssa
Sunday, August 9, 2009
The finish line is in sight
Hello,
My mom is down to five more radiation treatments. She had a bit of set back last week and two of her treatments were canceled last week because the area that is receiving radiation has become extremely agitated and swollen. My mom says it is very uncomfortable and extremely painful. I keep reminding her she is down to five more treatments!
My parents were able to visit us this weekend and we went to the George Lopez show last night and had a great time! Paul and I have some much needed vacation coming up this week and we will be Austin to cheer my mom on to the finish line. Friday she will have her last radiation treatment and God willing her Oncologist will declare her cancer free! We plan on celebrating! Thanks be to all for your prayers and inspiration. Below is a recent picture of my mom and dad (special thanks to Linda for the picture), doesn't she look amazing?
Take Care,
Chryssa
My mom is down to five more radiation treatments. She had a bit of set back last week and two of her treatments were canceled last week because the area that is receiving radiation has become extremely agitated and swollen. My mom says it is very uncomfortable and extremely painful. I keep reminding her she is down to five more treatments!
My parents were able to visit us this weekend and we went to the George Lopez show last night and had a great time! Paul and I have some much needed vacation coming up this week and we will be Austin to cheer my mom on to the finish line. Friday she will have her last radiation treatment and God willing her Oncologist will declare her cancer free! We plan on celebrating! Thanks be to all for your prayers and inspiration. Below is a recent picture of my mom and dad (special thanks to Linda for the picture), doesn't she look amazing?
Take Care,
Chryssa
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Austin Race For the Cure
Hello,
Well the time has come to join the Austin Race for the Cure in honor of my mom's continuous fight against breast cancer. Our team goal is to raise $1,200 dollars. My hope is to surpass that goal. The race is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. at the Domain in Austin on Sunday, November 1, 2009. So, we have more than enough time to meet goal.
Becoming a team member is easy! All you need to do is click on the following link and register for the Race for the Cure© and "Join a Team" :http://austin.info-komen.org/site/TR/RacefortheCure/AUS_AustinAffiliate?fr_id=1240&pg=entry. Our team name is: Martha's CUREsadors. If you are unable to participate please consider making a donation on the team's behalf.
I am hoping to have t-shirts made for race day. I am open to your ideas. Here's to another successful race!
Thanks,
Chryssa
Well the time has come to join the Austin Race for the Cure in honor of my mom's continuous fight against breast cancer. Our team goal is to raise $1,200 dollars. My hope is to surpass that goal. The race is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. at the Domain in Austin on Sunday, November 1, 2009. So, we have more than enough time to meet goal.
Becoming a team member is easy! All you need to do is click on the following link and register for the Race for the Cure© and "Join a Team" :http://austin.info-komen.org/site/TR/RacefortheCure/AUS_AustinAffiliate?fr_id=1240&pg=entry. Our team name is: Martha's CUREsadors. If you are unable to participate please consider making a donation on the team's behalf.
I am hoping to have t-shirts made for race day. I am open to your ideas. Here's to another successful race!
Thanks,
Chryssa
Thursday, June 25, 2009
One more step to a full recovery
Hello,
So, here it is a month after my last post where I promised to post more frequently. In all honesty I get home from work and I am thoroughly exhausted! The last thing I want to do is come home and continue to look at the computer screen.
All excuses aside I thought this would be a perfect time to update you on my mom's journey. Well, she has recovered nicely. You could not even tell she had major surgery just over a month ago. She returned to work full-time about two weeks ago and I know she is glad to be back. We have all returned to our normal lives (whatever that is). Some really exciting news...my mom's hair is beginning to grow back she has some soft fuzz on her head. Pretty soon she will be able to ditch the hats, I will miss them because she has found so many creative ways to dress them up.
My mom visited with her Oncologist last week and after conferencing with the Pathologist and the Radiology Oncologist everyone was in agreement that radiation is the next step in my mom's road to recovery. Why? You might ask. Well, to put it simply the radiation is like taking out an extra insurance policy to insure the cancer does not come back. Radiation is usually recommended for those who have two or more lymph nodes that show traces of cancer. When my mom had some of her lymph nodes removed during surgery, the pathology reported two lymph nodes had minute traces of cancer. That's where the radiation comes in. The radiation is going to blast any remaining cancer cells she might have left in that area. In addition they are also targeting her kidney's, liver, chest wall and lung. They want to make sure they zap everything.
No one wants to hear there cancer journey is not over. All you want to hear is your cancer free! But, like a told my mom we have so much to be thankful for and this is just another step in the journey to recovery. She's been through the hard part. Radiation will seem like a walk in the park. The only side effects the doctor mentioned is extreme fatigue. My mom has already began to feel the effects.
So this is where she is at: she is scheduled to have 33 Radiation treatments (administered every week day). After she completes the 33 Radiation treatments she will have a CT scan and MRI’s to see how she responded to radiation. If there are no signs of cancer cells then she will be “cancer free.” She will visit her Oncologist every two months for blood work and scans for the first year. Following the first year she will visit the Oncologist every four months and this will continue for a total of five years. If she continue to be cancer free for five years she will hit the ultimate goal…Remission!
Aside from radiation she will have three more scheduled sessions of Lymphedema Therapy. Then sometime in August she will have outpatient surgery, to complete the reconstruction. Our road is still long but we are beginning to see the light at the end. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. I will leave you with a story in today's Statesman: http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/2009/07/01/0701bonnie.html. This is a story about the place my mom went to when she shaved her head, this woman does wonderful work!
Take Care,
Chryssa
So, here it is a month after my last post where I promised to post more frequently. In all honesty I get home from work and I am thoroughly exhausted! The last thing I want to do is come home and continue to look at the computer screen.
All excuses aside I thought this would be a perfect time to update you on my mom's journey. Well, she has recovered nicely. You could not even tell she had major surgery just over a month ago. She returned to work full-time about two weeks ago and I know she is glad to be back. We have all returned to our normal lives (whatever that is). Some really exciting news...my mom's hair is beginning to grow back she has some soft fuzz on her head. Pretty soon she will be able to ditch the hats, I will miss them because she has found so many creative ways to dress them up.
My mom visited with her Oncologist last week and after conferencing with the Pathologist and the Radiology Oncologist everyone was in agreement that radiation is the next step in my mom's road to recovery. Why? You might ask. Well, to put it simply the radiation is like taking out an extra insurance policy to insure the cancer does not come back. Radiation is usually recommended for those who have two or more lymph nodes that show traces of cancer. When my mom had some of her lymph nodes removed during surgery, the pathology reported two lymph nodes had minute traces of cancer. That's where the radiation comes in. The radiation is going to blast any remaining cancer cells she might have left in that area. In addition they are also targeting her kidney's, liver, chest wall and lung. They want to make sure they zap everything.
No one wants to hear there cancer journey is not over. All you want to hear is your cancer free! But, like a told my mom we have so much to be thankful for and this is just another step in the journey to recovery. She's been through the hard part. Radiation will seem like a walk in the park. The only side effects the doctor mentioned is extreme fatigue. My mom has already began to feel the effects.
So this is where she is at: she is scheduled to have 33 Radiation treatments (administered every week day). After she completes the 33 Radiation treatments she will have a CT scan and MRI’s to see how she responded to radiation. If there are no signs of cancer cells then she will be “cancer free.” She will visit her Oncologist every two months for blood work and scans for the first year. Following the first year she will visit the Oncologist every four months and this will continue for a total of five years. If she continue to be cancer free for five years she will hit the ultimate goal…Remission!
Aside from radiation she will have three more scheduled sessions of Lymphedema Therapy. Then sometime in August she will have outpatient surgery, to complete the reconstruction. Our road is still long but we are beginning to see the light at the end. Please continue to keep us in your prayers. I will leave you with a story in today's Statesman: http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/2009/07/01/0701bonnie.html. This is a story about the place my mom went to when she shaved her head, this woman does wonderful work!
Take Care,
Chryssa
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
The Surgery and The Recovery
Hello,
I know I'm fired for not posting sooner. To tell you the truth the last two weeks have been a blur and the first week was rough. The last thing I wanted to do was get on the computer and post. So, here it is. My mom made it through her eight hour surgery with flying colors. Since her surgery was a double mastectomy it doubled her time in the operating room. She also underwent reconstruction at the same time.
The hours were grueling and stressful on us but the doctors kept us updated of her progress. After surgery she spent a few hours in post-op and then made it to a regular room. According to the surgeon she was low on blood when she went into surgery (due to the chemo) they gave her 2 units of blood during surgery. Aside from being groggy and sore she looked pretty good. The doctors were all really proud of their work and did confirm the chemotherapy that was administered pre-surgery did successfully shrink her tumor. After four days in the hospital we learned the pathology results.
Minute traces of cancer were still in the breast and were removed during the mastectomy. 16 lymph nodes were removed and 2 showed very small traces of cancer cells. So, this left us asking: what’s next? Well the good news: my mom's port was removed and no more chemo!! Because my mom's cancer is triple negative and the tumor was considered aggressive her next step in this journey is radiation. The reason for this is simple, it’s insurance for the future. If my mom's cancer was hormone positive they could give her the drug Tamoxifen and this would insure the cancer would not come back. However, my mom's cancer is not hormone receptive; therefore, we have to look at other options. Her Oncologist did say she could walk away from this and not go through radiation and the small traces of cancer cells that were detected in the lymph nodes could have all been removed during the surgery or she could walk away and there could be other small traces of cancer remaining in her lymph nodes that could be problematic later on down the road. So there is no way of REALLY knowing all the cancer is gone. That's why they are recommending going in and blasting the area with radiation preventing the growth and spread of any cancer cells that are remaining. My mom has already been through the hard part this is just an added piece to the puzzle.
My mom made it home after just five days in the hospital and has been resting and recouping at home. I had the assistance of my uncle Joe last week; he flew in from
We are visiting the plastic surgeon tomorrow and praying they remove her drains. She came home with five drains from the hospital and last week they removed two, so we are hoping all three are removed tomorrow. I know my mom will be able to get around better once the drains are removed. As you can imagine she is frustrated with her limitations. Thursday, she has an appointment with a radiology oncologist to discuss her radiation treatment options. Next Monday, she will be visiting the
It seems my mom is one step closer to putting this all behind her. We would like to thank our family and friends for all the calls, e-mails, cards, flowers, and visits. It truly has lifted our spirits and helped us maintain our positive attitude. My mom is a living example that attitude is everything and I thank all who have helped her maintain that positive attitude.
I head back to
THANKS!
Chryssa
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Happy Mother's Day!
Hello,
On eve of my mom's surgery I am left reflecting on what an amazing person she is. We went to dinner last night and she thanked us for being her support but we also thanked her for her courage. I am of awe of her strength and the support we received through her journey. Support from loved ones, friends, and even perfect strangers. My mom said just the other day she was at JCPenney and the lady behind the jewelry counter recognized her from the week before. My mom went to check-out and the lady asked, "how are you feeling." My mom said, "great, I have my surgery on Monday." Now this lady a complete stranger asked my mom if she had anyone to take care of her and then she continued to say, because if you don't I will give you my number and I will be more than happy to sit with you and run errands for you if you need my assistance. It just goes to show you there are angels everywhere.
Now I know my mom is nervous. Who wouldn't be? But she is in the best place she can be and she has the best team of doctors that will work on her tomorrow. The surgery will start around 7:30 a.m. tomorrow and will take approximately 8 hours. We are in for a long day. Tonight we are surrounded by family and we spent the day with my grandmother.
Mother's Day is about celebrating not just my mother but all mothers for their wisdom, their strength, and their courage.
I will post tomorrow as we get reports.
Hugs,
Chryssa
On eve of my mom's surgery I am left reflecting on what an amazing person she is. We went to dinner last night and she thanked us for being her support but we also thanked her for her courage. I am of awe of her strength and the support we received through her journey. Support from loved ones, friends, and even perfect strangers. My mom said just the other day she was at JCPenney and the lady behind the jewelry counter recognized her from the week before. My mom went to check-out and the lady asked, "how are you feeling." My mom said, "great, I have my surgery on Monday." Now this lady a complete stranger asked my mom if she had anyone to take care of her and then she continued to say, because if you don't I will give you my number and I will be more than happy to sit with you and run errands for you if you need my assistance. It just goes to show you there are angels everywhere.
Now I know my mom is nervous. Who wouldn't be? But she is in the best place she can be and she has the best team of doctors that will work on her tomorrow. The surgery will start around 7:30 a.m. tomorrow and will take approximately 8 hours. We are in for a long day. Tonight we are surrounded by family and we spent the day with my grandmother.
Mother's Day is about celebrating not just my mother but all mothers for their wisdom, their strength, and their courage.
I will post tomorrow as we get reports.
Hugs,
Chryssa
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)