Family and friends, I could really use your prayers over the next few days.

But first, some updates on the kiddos! We took a somewhat last-minute trip to San Diego last week to celebrate the end of chemo and also have one last hurrah the weekend before school starts. It was a fantastic time to catch up with old friends and also make some new ones. We even spent two nights in the valley I wrote about a couple of blog posts ago. Big thanks to the Lane Family for letting us crash at their place! The kids got to experience the beach, real waves, sandcastles and La Jolla weather for the first time in their memory and completely fell in love. They were very sad to leave. We also hit up the Birch Aquarium, San Diego zoo, and what trip is complete without visiting a local tractor and engine collector? Norah started the 6th grade today and said everything went off without a hitch. She even got her locker open on the 2nd try. Beau had to miss the first day of school due to pink eye of all things. He was pretty bummed about that. Both kids have classes with their best friends which certainly helps ease the pain of going back to school. 

After taking the kids to school this morning, I turned right around and headed to Dallas for pre-op procedures. They placed a radioactive seed next to my titanium markers (the ones from January’s biopsies below my armpit). Turns out those tiny titanium clips are nearly impossible to find once they open you up, so tomorrow they’ll use a Geiger counter to locate them. Modern medicine is wild.

The second procedure today was rough. They injected a radioactive isotope near the tumor site, and I have to say, after 8 months of pricks, pokes, seven incisions in my abdomen, including a literal semi-permanent hole in my abdominal wall and even chemo shingles, this was hands down the most painful experience yet. My jaw is sore because I gritted my teeth so hard due to the pain.

They can’t use lidocaine during the procedure because it affects the drainage of the isotope into the nodes. The isotope traveled to the nearby nodes over the course of an hour, marking the first three nodes that need to be removed and tested tomorrow. The machine was pretty neat to watch. I lay under a nuclear sensitive pad that collects the gamma radiation (high energy photons) I am currently emitting through my skin, which maps the three injection sites and the nodes of interest. 

What we’re believing for is a pathological complete response (pCR), meaning when they examine everything under the microscope during my mastectomy, they find zero cancer cells in the breast tissue and lymph nodes. This is the big prayer request: that all the cancer is dead and that I am healed!

Tomorrow (8/13/25): Check-in at UT Southwestern is 6:30am (the early bird gets the tumor?) then surgery starting at 8:30am. If everything goes as planned, I’ll stay one night and head home Thursday.

I’ve spent the week preparing for what’s ahead, including “T-Rex arms” for post-mastectomy mobility. I’m looking at about two weeks of limited arm movement and managing four drains that must be emptied day and night for 2-4 weeks. Since lying flat won’t be possible, I’ve set up my recliner as base camp with pillows and a side table. My main concerns are working the recliner handle with limited arm mobility and managing my ostomy on my own. Since I have to also keep a tight ACE bandage around my chest for several weeks while also needing to change the dressing every three days, I expect I will have some home health services come by the house. 

After I have recovered from all this comes radiation as I also continue Phesgo, which my insurance approved a few weeks ago! This is another answer to prayer because it keeps me from having to sit for hours to do the Herceptin and Pergeta infusions and instead is a simple injection administered over 5 minutes. 

If I am able, I will update everyone after I arrive at my hospital room tomorrow. The good news is that the next time you hear from me, this tumor will finally be out of my body.

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support. It means more than you know.