My boss Ellen recently participated in Aspen’s “Race for the Cure” and wore my name and her Aunt Libby’s name on her back! Thank you Ellen! That’s her baby Wiley with her. Everybody say “aaaaaawwww”.

Exactly one month ago today on June 17, 2009 I had the fateful double mastectomy (with immediate reconstruction) on the advisement of multiple Dr’s. This unanimous decision was primarily due to the fact that this cancer was caused by the high gamma-ray direct radiation treatment I received to my neck and chest at 19 years of age.

That aside, the healing has been tremendous! I give credit to my youth, taking it easy, avoiding jumping jacks, and my already-existing great health (all things considering). I also give credit to my exceptional core team of providers and caretakers whom have been so diligent in helping me make the right decisions.

Playing the well-known sport of “Air Tennis”:

So where are we today? Well here’s the skinny. I have made a personal decision to preserve something very precious to me that I learned has a 60% chance of being permanently destroyed as a result of chemo. I have been given an opportunity to preserve this and have received the guidance and approval of my Oncologist. That was #1. In addition, I have found an organization that can help me financially with this decision. That was #2.

With both obstacles now out of way (thanks to fax machines, cell phones and email!), I am thankfully being given the opportunity to pursue this route and will henceforth begin my chemo treatments in mid-August. This mysterious organization? www.FertileHope.org.

So here I was alll worried that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the summer of 2009. Well @#$! that! It’s all about enjoying life right now and “living in the NOW” and appreciating what each day has to offer. Not to sound like corn, but it’s true! I am more positive and optimistic in my life right now than in recent memory. Needless to say I’m looking forward to flying past this, put this behind me soon and be done with it. The treatements will last 4.5 months and should be done by Thanksgiving or the week after (depending on an Aug 13th or 20th start).

You learn things about yourself when you are faced with challenges. The way I look at it is that you can CHOOSE your reaction. In my case, there’s no way in hell I’m going to let this be a “downer” and jade my inner core strength and power of the mind. I believe that the body, mind and spirit work as one. We each have the power to be our own healing vortex.

Sending “thankful” energy into the Universe, living in the NOW and never giving up on yourself are just some examples of the best tools to use in this situation. When you have self love and want to live fully, you may surprise yourself by discovering that your thoughts may default into the best mindset that they could possibly have. Imagine the possibilities.

So! Onto other things… With the help of friends I have been able to enjoy a camping trip, one of my many favorite things! This time I took it easy and didn’t lift many things or make use of my upper arm strength. Here are some pics taken from this past weekend at the “Hecla Junction” campsite near Salida, Colorado:

Playing by the campfire:

The coolest thing to do when camping. Sit by said campfire:

Friends Krystal and April came down the following day. That’s the “Arkansas River” next to our campsite:

We enjoyed a hike along the Colorado Trail near Mt. Princeton – one of Colorado’s esteemed “fourteeners”:

“YMCA!”:

A great crew of peeps:

And finally… for grins here’s what I could look like in 6 weeks. Yes, I’ve been goofing on the possibilities. And yes, that’s my hand on the left.

Until next time, stay tuned for “Elana tries to hold onto her long hair for as long as possible!”

Love,
ER

Happy being independent! ;] So I seem to have this calendar theme going. “One week to the day”, “One month ago today”. Heh.

No, seriously. Happy 4th of July!! I hope this year proves to be a splendid one for all. I say “splendid” because to me, grand fireworks over your head are a sight and sound to behold. Nothing compares to that one experience you have only once a year.

So yes, one month ago today – June 4, 2009 – I was diagnosed with BING! IDC breast cancer (see other posts for more details). So much has happened in a month. I can barely keep up with it myself.

My mom was here 16 days. During that time of recovery (still am), we enjoyed the Denver Botanical Gardens and took a drive to the top of Mt. Evans (Denver’s closest 14,000 ft mountain), and strolled through rose gardens at Wash Park. During this time I am discovering that I have an appreciation for the simplest of things – take roses, for instance. They are immaculately beautiful, pristine, and unique in their own right. No two are alike. Each color brings their own scent. I appreciate these delicate differences. In my life right now, and for the 1st time in a long time I am actually stopping and smelling the roses – literally!

Mom at the Botanical Gardens. I’m diggin’ on the upside down flowers… in a tree no less.

So last week I met with a new Oncologist whom specializes in breast cancer. He was my “2nd opinion”. For various reasons I have decided to receive my upcoming treatments from him and his facility. Nothing against my original one. He too is a good man, a genius and I appreciated his promptness with my situation. The original one was a Dr. I visited in the past for my Hodgkin’s check up (although I was deemed “cured” by the medical community in 2002). That said, it seems more fitting to me to be treated in a facility that’s directly breast-cancer focused. I will be amongst “sistah’s”. Das right!

However my next appointment with new said dude isn’t until July 15th. Until then I am in a holding pattern – unaware of when my chemo will begin or exactly what treatment. There was a mention of “TC only” when visiting with the 1st Doctor (Taxotere/Cyclophosphamide). He actually called the new one and they discussed my case on the phone while I was in the office. Turns out the “A” in the “TAC” treatment (another option) would cause possible heart trouble – specifically Adriamycin. And thirdly, the clinical trial option I was presented would also cause the same risk with Avastin. Hence = “TC only”.

Why such a fuss about my heart? Apparently with my mantle radiation 17 years ago, my heart MIGHT’VE been affected. But there has been no evidence of such. In fact the EKG I just had a few weeks ago came out with flying colors! Flying colors on the graph too. But both Dr’s mentioned that they didn’t want to take that risk.

So will I go with “TC only”? I won’t know until the 15th. The time between now and then will give me means to research what the heck that is and honestly, I haven’t had time for that. And when I DO have time I like to rest. Or write on this thing. LOL.

Last night, however, I stood in for a few songs with my beloved, favorite local blues-rock band Tempa & The Tantrums at the Boulder Outlook. There’s something to be said for feeling normal again:

Thank you guys for your love and support and lets keep on rockin’! I will be in touch.

Happy 4th to YOU!

Word,
Elana

Hello all! Thank you so much for calls, emails, all of your caring words, loving thoughts and prayers. I appreciate each and every one of them.

So it’s now been a week to the day since my surgery. My mom and sister were here and I had several friends visit me. I stayed one night and was discharged around 5 PM the following day. The one night was definitely needed! I was in a lot of pain and on some serious drugs, as you can see here… LOL

Or better yet… here I am just a few hours after waking up from anesthesia. Heh. I look chilled out and happy. Hmmm. Friends Tempa, April and Emily came to check on me. Our inside joke will forever be “where’s my jello?”

Introducing… Elana Robotron.

I also had my own personal chef. Well, “personal” as in – he would come in, take my order and bring it to me in a silver tray. I think I landed on a special unit somehow. Hey, I’m not complaining! Below I specifically wanted swiss cheese with my omlette. Don’t ask.

When I got home, Phoebe decided to sport a mustache. She walked around for a while totally clueless about her newfound masculinity. Soon she returned to her feminine ways…

Each day since I’ve been home, I’ve grown stronger and stronger. I’m more able to call friends back, leave the house, go do errands with Mom (driver), see friends. But my actions are limited. I can’t raise my arms over my head and I’m walking slowly. I can’t bend backwards yet or twist my back. Both Mom and Kim have helped with massages and helping me clean house – which has been more helpful than they know.

I’m now more focused on my diet and herbs than ever before. My goal is to be as strong as possible to prepare myself for what’s to come – and to hopefully accelerate my current healing. I feel like Sarah Connor getting ready for the impending war at the end of the original “Terminator”. Heh. Last night, for instance I went to my very first nutrition class. Previously I would’ve never considered such a thing!

Sunday night I had some girlfriends come visit me, which was kick-butt. You have no idea! We watched “Airplane” and ordered Thai take-out. It was a great night! To that point I’ve added nothing but comedies in my Netflix queue. *grin* Here’s a pic of us by the pond near my house. Amanda, me, Kristina, April. Elana having a bad hair day:

Onto the interesting stuff: While doing they mastectomy / reconstruction surgery they also removed about 4 of my Sentinel lymph nodes. These are the 1st lymph nodes to which cancer cells spread after leaving the area of the primary tumor. They were all NEGATIVE!! So does this mean the cancer is out of my body? Hopefully yes. Does this mean I’ll still have to have chemo? Unfortunately… yes.

To wrap up, I will not find out when this begins until I see my Oncologist next week. My goal between now and then is to continue to focus on my healing and get strong to prepare my body for what I’m about to tackle. The best part is that I have rights as a patient and am seeking a 2nd opinion. So next week I see TWO Oncologists. Each will have my records and each will tell me their treatment suggestions.

The journey continues and I am optimistic for the outcome! It’s an inconvenience but I will endure and come out stronger for it.

Thank you loved one’s and friends!! See you soon…

Laner

Hello All,

As some of you know, as of last Thursday I have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Specifically “high-grade infiltrating ductal carcinoma”. This is a direct result of the radiation treatment I received 17 years ago for my then Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

Unbeknown to me, this has become an epidemic:
Pediatric Hodgkin’s Disease Survivors Face Increased Breast Cancer Risk
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090212125132.htm

The staging I have had over the past few days has indicated that it’s a Grade 3, stage 1 or 2 (I forget), and it’s 99% aggressive. Yet on the GOOD news front: There’s no evidence that it has infiltrated the surrounding lymph nodes! This is major. But it is moving fast.

That said, I am sending this email because it’s hard to get in touch with everyone and keep up daily communications. But I wanted to let you know what’s coming:

Next Wednesday, June 17th I will have a double masectomy. Both “girls” were affected by the radiation 17 years ago so both girls are at risk. This is the SMARTEST thing to do in my case and more than one Dr has told me this. Trust me – I don’t want to go through this again 5 years down the road! I will be at Rose Medical. I will stay 1-2 nights based on how well I recover in the hospital:

Rode Medical
4600 E. Hale Pkwy
Denver, CO. 80220
http://www.rosemed.com/

From that I will be out for a month. I will not be working and will be on short term disability. I will have limited access to email and voice. However your phone calls and emails are very important to me!! There will be instances where it’ll be nice for a friend to come over or perhaps leave the house with. So please don’t hesitate to check in on me. I just can’t promise how quickly I will respond.

Following my recovery I will begin chemo. I do not know what type, how long, the frequency or when it will end. But I WILL be able to resume normal social activities and resume work during that time. The toughest part for me will be this next month starting next Wednesday.

Please don’t forget about me. I am not a monster. I am still the sweet goofball-cool chick Elana that you know. This is just an inconvenience that I have to endure – but I will get through! I will continue to write songs and I will perform at open mics over the summer. And I would love to continue hearing from you and seeing you! Having the continued support from my friends and loved ones will keep me going strong.

Please keep me in your prayers and I will be in touch soon.

Much Love,
Elana