Successful 6 month follow up at oncologist

When I completed my cancer treatment on March 3, 2017, I pretty much moved on to thinking about my needed shoulder surgery. And aside from seeing my deformed left boob in the mirror every day, feeling the scar tissue nodule the size of a golf ball in it, and the effects of lymphedema in my breast, I really don't think of myself as having had cancer. 

Then the calendar tells me I need to go back to the surgical oncologist every 6 months for a while and have a 3D mammogram and exam by my beloved, Dr. Jennifer Manders (the best breast surgeon in Ohio!) That day was today.

I started my day with a 6 week follow up with Dr. Nitz, my orthopaedic surgeon and found out I am now cleared to drive again and continue strengthening my shoulder, but I am healing great! Yeah...

Then I drove down to Cincinnati and had my 6 month follow up mammogram and exam. I admit, I was anxious (a little) but not because I thought the results would reveal more cancer, but because since my shoulder surgery, my left breast is filled with lymphatic fluid and I couldn't do much about it (so I thought) because of my shoulder surgery restricting my arm. So over the past 6 weeks, I have a rather normal soft 50 year old right boob and a firm and perky 15 year old feeling left boob. Some may say they wish they had a little lymphedema in their boobs, but I assure you, it's not all that great! So my fear was that with the lymphedema and scar tissue, I would feel pain with the mammogram. Thankfully, I did not. The woman was great who took it and she was very considerate of my comfort.

The great news besides getting a clean bill of health from the mammogram was that my amazing Dr. Manders did do some lymphedema massage and got a lot of the lymph pushed out of my breast and it now feels more normal!

So that's the scoop on the follow up...all good and uneventful! I love those kinds of appointments!! Thank the Lord!