Run for the Cure!

I am so proud and so thankful! So many people contributed to my first Run for the Cure! I couldn't believe how many people were supporting me and my cause. I was completely overwhelmed with emotion on Sunday, October 4th, 2015. What a day. I will never forget. So many people were there. I am completely at a loss for words to explain the emotions and joy that I felt on that day. See for yourself...

Booking upcoming appointments...

Just when I was settling in and feeling like all my appointments were in the past, I get a phone call.  Yup! It was the hospital looking to book all of my November appointments. They called in August! That's the lat thing I wanted to think about!! I just finished radiation! I knew they were coming because I was being retested for everything but still.  It was almost cruel and inhumane. Needless to say, my appointments were booked - another CT scan, bone scan, breast MRI and mammogram. And then waiting for results all over again...

The radiation just keeps on going, even when it's done...

When I completed my radiation I thought my skin looked awfully red and it was really itchy. That was nothing.  A week after radiation had already been completed, my skin continued to burn and bubble and blister. It was disgusting. The skin was dying and the top layers had almost turned a blackish-brown colour. Chunks of skin were peeling off. I had steroid cream to use to help stop the burning and itching. I really don't know if it worked or not. Beyond the steroid cream, I was also using a cream recommended to me by my radiology oncologist called Glaxal. It's a fantastic cream. Very rich but not oily at all. It has no oil, no perfume, nothing at all but it works so well. About three weeks after my last radiation treatment, my skin was almost repaired to the point that it wasn't peeling and it didn't hurt much anymore. A month after my last radiation treatment, I had a follow-up appointment with my doctor. My skin had healed well to that point. I was now asked to use Vitamin E cream liberally, twice daily for the next three months on the treated area. I felt like the worst part of all my treatments was now over. My fingers are crossed (and will be) for the rest of my life...