More Healing

  I had a great first check-up with my plastic surgeon. All my incisions are healing and there have been no areas of excessive swelling causing alarm. I do have to back off and strictly abide by no reaching over my shoulders or lifting more than 5 pounds, however. This is due to my oncoplastic portion of my surgery, not my lumpectomy or sentinel node biopsy. 

 Being the PT that I am, I do want to share a valuable resource that if you have only a lumpectomy and/or sentinel node biopsy and if cleared by your surgeon to do so, this is a great list of exercises to perform to prevent scarring or adhesions and get back to full range of motion of your arm.

 

  From what we currently know from my pathology report, I will have restrictions based on my surgery healing to when I can begin my radiation and further targeted therapy with likely chemotherapy. While all the known cancer was surgically removed, radiation and further targeted and chemotherapy will help to ensure there were no cancerous cells elsewhere in my body looking to grow and wreck havoc.

 As of what we know today, I will have to wait 6 weeks from my surgery day to start radiation and 8 weeks from my surgery day until chemotherapy. This will ensure my incisions have healed and we will not have wound complications which would put a wrench in all the works. 

 What is still pretty amazing is that my case will be discussed next Friday with all my involved physicians sitting at the same table to come up with my plan. I can't ask for a better medical care team and plan of care than that!