Meeting the surgeon

Learning that I had cancer put me in a neighborhood that I had only read about and never wanted to move into. My surgeon, Dr. VW proved to be a thoughtful, serious gentleman who not only tolerated my questions, but seemed delighted that I had done my homework and researched my diagnosis, treatment, and outcome. Dear Michael and Lily accompanied me and were the ears I didn't have at the pre-surgery meeting. Dr. VW had obviously read my entire medical history and knew about my blood pressure, my thyroid, my occupation, my family, my hearing loss, my life. He gave the facts and would not give statistics, saying that whenever there's a 70% chance of a positive outcome, someone has to be in the 30%. Instead, he told what was true for me and my situation: DCIS with micro-calcifications that would be removed with a lumpectomy. He told me that there would also be a sentinel node excision. The sentinel nodes are the lymph nodes closest to the cancer and would be the first place cancer would go if it were to spread beyond the breast. He went on to say that the surgery would first start with the sentinel nodes so they could be sent down to pathology and then proceed to the DCIS. If the cancer was found in the nodes I would be facing both chemo and radiation. If the nodes were clear, all I would need post-surgery would be radiation. I stopped listening at this point. It was then that I realized the seriousness of my situation. I got scared, really scared. All the movies, books, and TV shows that featured women battling breast cancer flooded my brain and I saw myself wasting away, sick, and debilitated. I started shaking, my teeth chattering. I longed to go home and pull the blankets over my head and cry. Thank goodness Michael and Lily were there to schedule the surgery and get me home.