As we prepare for a last getaway for the summer of 2025 and prepare to go back to school for the 2025/2026 school year (will have a 5th and 7th grader this year!), I realized that I passed eight (8) years of living with Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) in June and didn't mark … Continue reading Medical Updates, August 2025
Category: Medical Updates
Medical Updates; May 2025
A lot has happened in the last few weeks and I so appreciate all of you who checked in, sent me texts and memes and cards and gifts and presence. It's always good to be reminded of how many people care and how vast and deep my support system actually is. And while I would … Continue reading Medical Updates; May 2025
Waiting, waiting and more waiting
Before my Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) diagnosis in 2017, most of the waiting I can remember was for good things -- waiting for holidays or special family events; waiting to get married, waiting on the arrival of the kiddos or for them to open up a gift. There were some not so great … Continue reading Waiting, waiting and more waiting
Navigating Patient Vulnerability During Medical Procedures
Recently, I had my ninth (9th) procedure since my Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) diagnosis in 2017; it was the third procedure involving a port and the sixth (6th) or maybe seventh (7th) location. Many details aren’t at my fingertips or at the top of my mind, but I’ve learned a lot since 2017 … Continue reading Navigating Patient Vulnerability During Medical Procedures
The Fragility of Hope
One of my favorite medical shows is Grey's Anatomy and in a series of episodes, there is a surgeon who has a brain tumor. Dr. Nicole Herman isn't on the show for very long, but she had several poignant comments about hope; that when one is living with terminal inoperable cancer, hope is most devastating … Continue reading The Fragility of Hope
Port procedure/surgery
After seven (7) years of mostly behaving itself, my original port has been removed and I am the proud owner of a new power port! This may seem like a little thing, but it has been a challenge for years dealing with my first non-power port and having a port that can handle contrast without … Continue reading Port procedure/surgery
Scans #3 on Enhertu
As most of you are aware, the treatment for Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) doesn't end while we are still alive (with a few notable exceptions that we hope will become the rule). To determine whether treatment is working, those of us living with MBC undergo scans in various intervals (usually 3, 6, or … Continue reading Scans #3 on Enhertu
Medical Updates after PET #2 on Enhertu
On August 2nd, I traveled up to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville for the 2nd PET/CT since I started my 7th line of treatment, Enhertu. If you aren't familiar with the refrain: "treat, scan, repeat," let me just say that it's a vicious rollercoaster I've been riding since my de novo Stage IV Metastatic Breast … Continue reading Medical Updates after PET #2 on Enhertu
An update from the first infusion of Enhertu
It’s been quite the few weeks! The first infusion of Enhertu happened on March 1st and we braced ourselves for the outcome. I’d armed myself with a ton of information from a variety of sources and marshaled a rather impressive set of meds to be used as needed. It wasn’t until the pre-meds wore off … Continue reading An update from the first infusion of Enhertu
Reporting from the trenches …
As much as I hate the war metaphors as applied to cancer, I also very much feel as though I’m jumping from battle to battle as I prep for the next line of treatment. Perhaps that is unkind to healthcare workers who are probably doing their best (a mantra I repeat to myself over and … Continue reading Reporting from the trenches …
No Half Measures 