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Today was the radiology follow-up. And the radiologist doesn't want to see me for a whole year! My skin looks great, I have to watch out for sunburn, take it easy with the left arm, and let her know if anything changes. "Anything" means a sudden increase in breast density, a sudden decrease in breast size (as if!), pain in the chest wall, constant coughing (and how I'm supposed to tell this apart from my regular constant coughing, I don't know), or, God forbid, a heart attack.
Unfortunately, she also told me that all my doctors at Dana-Farber were notified that my treatment was complete nearly a month ago, and none of them have contacted me about follow-up. So I made some calls. I have one appointment set up with the surgeon at 7:30 AM (EEK) on March 20th, and the oncologist's admin should call me back soon.
Which had better be tomorrow, or the patient advocate at D-F will be hearing from me again.
Oh yes -- new picture, this time with actual hair. It's coming in silver on the sides and dark on top, but the lighting in my study doesn't show the dark hair well. I went without a hat to church yesterday, and most everyone was flattering.
And I think it's true that, as I've noticed when looking at pictures in a Mennonite friend's high school yearbook, or the faces of nuns, or even the faces of observant Muslim women -- when the eye is not distracted by hair, you can really see the person in the face. Not that my face is particularly lovely, but it doesn't need to be.
In the picture you look so much like your dad; it's the first thing I thought of! And I'm glad that you are healing well!
ReplyDeleteYes, it's very interesting. Without my hair, I look much more like him; and as you know, everyone's always said how much I look like my mother, so it's a bit odd.
DeleteBut, as I was saying to Roger's son the other day, it's a wonderful thing to look at your own face or the faces in your family and see twinklings of people from the past.
You ARE lovely!! Look! The Image of God!! I have been thinking of you muchly and what a journey this has been. A long way from our first conversation. Congrats, dear one, and blessings on the road ahead, replete with gifts of the last few months. You ARE the gift.
ReplyDeleteYou'll be pleased to know that I've resigned from being Permanent Clerk and will now be taking up the LEM role again. It's been far too long since I met people sacramentally instead of bureaucratically.
DeleteToday I got a letter from my radiologist, reminding me of my follow-up appointment the end of this month (and which was made the day I finished radiation). My surgical 3-month post-op appointment was made the day I had my month-after check-up. And my next oncologist's appointment was made when I had my visit a month after I started letrozole (and I already have the Rx for the mammogram I'll have before that appointment). Seems like Dana Farber is a little behind in the follow-up department (and I hope they called you already!).
ReplyDeleteI called the surgeon myself and made the follow-up appointment, and the oncologist's admin did call me, eventually. And I did try and make those appointments in advance, but they wouldn't let me.
DeleteTo be fair, the surgeon only does office visits on Tuesday mornings, so trying to book her several months in advance was probably a non-starter.
But you raise an interesing issue. The radiology group where I was treated assumes that surgeons arrange for mammograms. I don't know why, and I don't know if that's what D-F does. I should probably find out.
Not only does she look like our father, but she's making that raise-of-the-eyebrow face which our father would make! I love you!
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