Questions as I prepare for a lumpectomy: Tips please

@tinamaria1 Glad to hear that the pain is not terrible, thank you for sharing your experience. It helped my fear and anxiety. When is your radiation appointment? Sending good vibes and hope all goes smoothly.

@missycat Thank you for sharing your experience, it's good to know going in what would happen, to help prepare. How are you doing with the chemotherapy infusions? Hope you're doing well. Sending prayers and good vibes.

@jules2026
Unfortunately, not well, but does anyone really. Lots of side effects. I'm already anxious about my 2nd infusion on Monday. But, with my triple negative and 51% chance of recurrence, I don't have a choice. Well, I do, but my driving force is to fight this cancer monster and hopefully have a good 20- 25 years ahead . I have my 1st grandchild I need to be there for! Good luck and keep up posted.

Oh, I came out of surgery in a compressive bra that I wore almost 24/7 for several days. I bought post op bras that I wore thereafter almost 24/7 for about a week. The compression helps keep swelling down and can help with pain too.

@jules2026 hello dear, really there was no real pain to date..just a bit of tenderness if I tried to jog...so I just did power walking and light lifting, as advised by my nurse.. My initial consultation with my radiation oncologist John Hopkins, is May 5th...I have a bunch of questions, been preparing...but if they live up to their reputation (like Sloan Kettering did for me)? then most if not all of my questions will likely be answered upon meeting, and listening to them tell me what they know and procedures, etc.. i have experienced a breast surgeon from a regular local hospital, who wanted to do my surgery asap, offering me no consultation, just a call, no knowledge, no prep for surgery etc...AND that is when I went with Sloan Kettering, which like Mayo Clinic operates at a whole different higher level of customer service...So...I am hoping I like and also can connect emotionally too with the staff I meet next week. Please feel free to ask me whatever questions...wishing you peace

I feel overwhelmed that my DCIS surgery—it’s a very small bit of calcifications— would entail full removal of nipple and areola, due to location. I would love to hear from others who also had to make this choice (I haven’t had the surgery yet). This is so much more drastic and than the tissue lumpectomy for DCIS that most seem to get, and my cancer is so very small. Anyone else in this situation?

@orienteer I'm sorry to hear, I haven't done my surgery yet and so I have nothing to share. Sending prayers and good vibes

@orienteer I had my lumpectomy two years ago . It wasn’t that small 1.4 cm but it was close to the nipple , so at the beginning the approach was to remove it , however before the surgery , my surgeon said that she thought maybe it wasn’t necessary so she removed tissue close to the nipple and send it to pathology during the surgery to confirm that the tissue close to the nipple wasn’t compromised and it wasn’t!!! . So I kept it! … maybe you can ask if something similar can apply in your case.

@angiemal I’m so glad you were able to get a better resolution! I reached out again and got the same response from my surgeon (and a second one), who said they couldn’t get the margins without taking all that tissue. I’m currently doing Active Surveillance, and will have a repeat mammogram and exam in July, 6 months post-diagnosis/biopsy, to see if anything has changed. I know if things change, I no longer have an option. Thanks for reaching out. I feel very alone because of this unusual situation.

@jules2026 Here’s good wishes and hugs to you on your journey!