Ice, Ice baby!

Well the oncologist okay'd my fertility treatment! So we are full steam ahead with freezing babies since the last I wrote. I am currently taking nightly shots to make each egg strong- and watch out octo-mom because I have 14 fertile eggs! ha-ha! Manny, thankfully gives me these shots and I see the fertility Dr every 1-3 days or so to monitor how it's going. I can tell you (and so can Manny) that the shots make you VERY hormonal and give you a really cute belly! If everything stays on track we will have egg retrieval Monday or Tues. Then they take Manny's little swimmers and make embryo's, this is because there is a better survival rate with embryo's than with eggs alone. So we have named them, Ice Cube, Frozen Pees and Ice Ice Baby! ; ) It has been quite fun experience, and the Fertility Dr. and her team have been extremely generous to us. Unfortunately even in my circumstance fertility treatment and drugs are not covered by insurance, and everything is very expensive, so they have kindly donated a few of the shots needed to do this treatment. It has been a huge blessing. My parents have also lent a helping hand for this which is more than anyone can ask for from a grandparent. I think I will make onesie's for my babies that say "Sponsored by Carlos & Amelia Alvernaz" hee hee!
So the worry that my early menopause will get in the way of us building a family is no longer a worry! I am blessed with that!

Now for the Cancer, I have what is called "Triple Negative Breast Cancer" which means in the three tests they run I am negative, I have a slight register on one of the them (HER = .4) but not enough to put me on a chemo drug called herceptin, which would have meant 1 year of meds! So that is another blessing! I am also having a gene test done ("Brac" test) to see if I carry the gene that is passed down and causes cancer. My grandfather (mom's dad) had breast cancer the year before I was born (I may have been in my mom's womb) he had a mastectomy and it never re-occurred. But my oncologist says the rarity of male breast cancer usually means they have the BRCA2 gene, and I may also have this gene from my grandfather, and this would at least tell me how I got breast cancer. Otherwise I will never know. Also this will help my siblings or cousins that they may also have it and to be cautious.

Instead I start with 2 drugs together (A/C) I do this A/C treatment 4 times every 2 weeks, beginning July 2nd. Every time I go I must have my blood cells counted to make sure they are high enough to proceed. That is the constant battle with the first four treatments keeping my blood cells and platelets stable. I am told that the first 4 are the worst and it gets easier as I go. After that I then get one drug (T) every week for eight weeks. I was told today that this every week treatment of this drug helps lessen the side effects, and I like less side effects. ; )
If all works as it's supposed to my lump should shrink and this is when I will have surgery to remove it and the lymph nodes that are also cancerous. We are also hoping this will be a lumpectomy rather than the mastectomy. Right now it would be mastectomy since it is 6cm x 6cm in size. My surgeon and oncologist are both confident that it will become a lumpectomy, so therefore so am I.

The best way to administer the drugs into my body is through a port, it has proven to be less painful this way. The port is a metal disk type thing surgically implanted under my skin on the opposite side of the tumor, threaded with a catheter into a vein on the same side as my tumor. The nurses will then inject into the port and will have no leaking into my body. (if it leaks into my body it is very painful) My surgery for the port is this Friday at 7:30 am in San Jose and I have to be there at 5:30 am! yucky! You all may see a bump on the left hand side of my chest after, now you will know what it is.

Side effects, they come a plenty and to warn most of you here is a list (click here) the most common is hair loss, which everyone should know. I should be very weak, and may also gain weight...translation I will be short, fat and bald! Manny is a lucky guy! ha-ha! But in reality I will work hard to keep the side effects, I can control, at bay. I will eat well, try and exercise often so my energy stays up. I am planning on starting yoga next week. I have already purchased a "cranial prosthesis" (aka a wig!) that I think looks pretty darn good. So if you see Manny walking around with some dark haired woman, not worry it's me!

I would like to end this with a BIG GIGANTOR thank you to everyone who has shown their kindness to my and my family. So many flowers and cards, prayers, books, retail therapy and generosity we have received! I am not sure I would be as nice if the roles were reversed, but I would like to think I would be. Again I would like to thank my entourage for accompanying me to every appointment, so much so that the Dr. offices are so confused to whom is actually being seen or shocked that we are all together. That also includes Adela for letting us use her van as our vehicle of choice these days, we will eventually figure out those darn automatic doors.

also might I add, that I am horrible with spelling and grammar, if you haven't already noticed!

SMILE!
Kelly Freitas