More is Less (alternate title: Tammy and the Power Trips)

 

I finally got my MRI results. Unfortunately, the additional information gleaned from the imaging is… not great.

They found another mass above the (previously confirmed) tumor on my right side. I am having a location-specific (per the MRI “mapping”) ultrasound of this new mass on Monday. If the doctor is able to clearly see it on the ultrasound imaging, she will likely take me back and do an ultrasound guided biopsy right then.

If she is not able to see the mass on ultrasound, I will have to have an MRI guided biopsy, which will be scheduled for another day.

Whether or not I have to wait for an MRI guided biopsy on the right side, they also found a mass in my left breast, and they have already determined that it WILL be necessary to do the MRI guided version on it. For whatever reason, they know it will not be visible on ultrasound, so that’s not an option for this one.

Because the MRI guided biopsy is done with contrast, and that contrast is administered via IV (bloodstream), they will not be able to do both at once (if the right side ends up requiring it). The contrast has to be visible in the “right spot”, and it moves with the blood, so it would be hard to time it right to get both sides done in one session. So, I’m looking at definitely 2 appointments, but possibly 3 before I will even have the tissue all sent off for testing. Then, of course, we have to wait for the results.

I don’t know yet how all of this changes things. If the biopsies are negative, then I guess it doesn’t change anything but my timeline. If the new right side mass is positive, then it will definitely be a larger surgery than originally planned. If the left side mass is positive, then I will have to have at least a lumpectomy on that side, as well. I don’t know if any of this will change the original lumpectomy recommendation to mastectomy, or not. That would be a lot more damage and recovery, so I hope not, but I don’t know.

My experience with the  MRI technician (Tammy) was my least favorite interaction at the breast center, so far. I do not look forward to working with Tammy again, and am currently experiencing nerve pain from an IV stick (the third of four before she finally tried the vein I suggested) that went awry. It’s a very minor annoyance in the grand scheme of everything that’s going on, but I do hate that I now dread having to deal with Tammy-and-her-weird-power-trip on top of having to deal with everything else.

I did meet with the plastic surgeon this morning, but we didn’t have any of this information at that time, so now, if any of the new areas are positive, he wants to meet with me again. His recommendation, as of this morning, was to do nothing. He would close up the lumpectomy incision to make it look as good as possible, but he said I had no need for additional work of any kind. If I have to have more tissue removed then that changes everything, so there could be the potential for reconstruction.

Tomorrow, I have my consultation with the radiation oncologist. I assume the limbo I’m in will cause problems for this consult, as well, but hopefully we can just go over the various scenarios and have a Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C in place to deal with the various possibilities.

That’s all I really know, for now. My “grade” and “stage” numbers, as well as prognosis and treatment plan are back to unknown status until we have the biopsy results. I have no idea when that will be, so I just have to figure out how to cope with the fact that more information is also less information, and that’s how it’s going to stay for a while.