bjacksontex

Rhonda, I didn't exactly breeze through. I had some complications. LOL! And I had my sister take pictures so I'd never be tempted to smoke again. I got something called Sub Cutaneous Air. So, was in the hospital a tad longer. 7 days in all. The Path report takes 14 days for results. So at least I only had a week after surgery for my results. IAN0M0. Stage one a, cured. I see them again for CT in May. They took so many dang lymph nodes, it's a wonder I have any left in my bronch area. The docs get a feel for these things but are so careful. Oh, and for me, having the chest tubes removed was a weird but not painful thing. The second one I remember better. No pain. Just "whoosh." One guy did it and then took a stitch or two at the area.

Hi Rhonda! Are you having the surgery at Clements? Part of UT Southwestern. Mine was there on a Tuesday also. I didn't have VATS. I had robotic and there is a difference. Since they told me they do the robotics on Tuesday, maybe that's what you are having. My doctor is Kent Kernstine. The whole staff there is great. In fact, I had a doctor who did a couple of skin biopsies on me for a clinical trial. Turns out he's going to be one of the guest speakers at the Hope Summit. I'm going. You might feel up to going. I know I was much better by my 2nd week home. Good luck this Tuesday. I'll be praying for you. Barb Jackson

Hi Merilee and welcome. Keep us posted. Barb

Apple, I see you are going to that Hope Summit. Me too. See you there. Barb

Ralph, What Cindy said is so right. Just get 'er done! Now, to answer your questions, no problems sleeping. Boy, they gave me Meds that took care of that & pain. Gabapentin was one good one I took morning, lunch time, and two at bedtime for 2-3 weeks I think. The first week home I got winded walking to the bathroom. My doctor ordered a walker & I used that. But every day it got easier. By the 2nd week I was not as winded. Walker no longer needed. By the 3rd week I went grocery shopping on my own. Just don't do it if you are still taking any pain Meds. Getting in & out of bed was no problem. When they did the surgery they had me on my left side. The biggest incision is maybe 2-3 inches in my right armpit. There are 5 incisions in all on my right side and towards my back that are very small. Less than an inch mostly. So, not bad at all. You will also get an incision right at the base of your throat. Oh, and they used dissolving stitches for most of the stitches. That incision at your throat didn't hurt me at all after. It was for them to do the bronchoscopy & remove lymph nodes to check to metastasis. They had me up walking the day after surgery. I'm telling you, you will be kicking yourself later that you stressed so much. Honestly, for me, the worst part was the lack of modesty. Made me bitchy. LOL! And they lost the clothes I wore to the hospital. The surgery will be harder for your family. You, Ralph, won't remember much I'm betting. P.S. Don't post to Facebook while on all those Meds in the hospital. Even I can't understand what I was trying to say. Ha! Barb

My surgeon made it pretty easy for me. Quit or he refused to operate. So, after years and years of trying, I just quit that day. Sept. 11, 2015. Appleneesy, I'm sorry you couldn't have at least the VATS. But glad you and Sio have quit the smoking. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Ralph, do you have an idea about the kind of surgery? I had a nodule in my right lower lobe about your size. 1.6 that they found early Sept. 2015. After all the tests and typing & staging, surgery was done at UTSW in Dallas the end of Oct. 2015. It was a minimally invasive robotic surgery. They removed my lower lobe and right now, no further treatment is necessary. Doctor says I'm cured. Of course, there's follow-up. But I wanted that thing out of me pronto. It's not bad at all. There was no collapsed lung. No agonizing pain. Your mind right now is your worst enemy. Hell, the worst part for me was peeing in a tube the first day. Ha! A catheter. But you don't feel it. It's just kinda embarrassing. Get it done Ralph! Barb Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'm signed up too. Looking forward to meeting other LUNGevity folks there. Barb J Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Oops! Aaron, I said SCLC. I meant NSCLC, squamous. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Aaron, I think it's about education. I knew I was high risk for LC. Mother died of it and I smoked 47 years. So, I asked my doctor to write the order for CT scan. Sure enough I had SCLC, stage 1a. I was asymptomatic, but knew the risks. There are clinical trials now to move from CT then PET to an MRI instead. That should be even better. Those with symptoms should have a much higher detection rate due to multiple and/or larger nodules. That's just my opinion. Barb Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Cindy, The Hope Summit sounds good this winter. The Dallas part....well? But if it means meeting other folks from LUNGevity, I guess I can handle more Dallas. Plenty of that lately as my cancer is being treated at UT Southwestern. See you all then. Barb

That is awesome! What an achievement! Congratulations LUNGevity. I love that name by the way. Barb J

Hi Cindy. Darn! That is just about 10 minutes from my house. By the way, this is in Arlington which is not even in the same county as Dallas. Just sayin'. I really wish I could go to this but I'm having a lobectomy on Tuesday Oct. 27th and will just be home from the hospital then (hopefully). Next time for sure though. Thanks. Barb

Eric, 7 years! That's so great. May you have a great time celebrating. You deserve this!

Hi Beth, So you are having your MRI tomorrow. Let us know how it goes and if the pain from your port has eased. Sounds like you & I have some similarities in our stories. I saw from your post on another thread that your mom had lung cancer in 2008, and now you. Same here. Mom had been totally healthy seemingly right up to the time in Feb. '08 when she couldn't shake the flu. She was 78. So, she was admitted to the hospital for tests. After being told it was pneumonia, then Legionnaires Disease, the bronchoscopy showed stage IV NSCLC. Even knowing there was a genetic link, I still smoked. But in the back of my mind, it nagged at me. Until I finally asked the doctor for a CT scan. Bingo! Right lower lobe is coming out Oct. 27th. I learned today that they will wait until the pathology results two weeks after surgery before they decide if I'll need chemo, etc. Everything about this seems to be "wait, wait, wait." I'll be thinking of you in your battle against this. My sister likes to tell me our Mom is up there rooting for me. Take care, Barb (now ex-smoker) Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Sherie, Checking in to see how you are doing? How was your first treatment of chemo & radiation? I'm a little frustrated. Doctor is delaying my surgery to the end of the month. He wants my A1c down from 7.3 to a 5?! That's a blood test that averages your blood sugars over 3 month period. That means a wait of almost 2 months from the CT scan. I hate this wait. At least you have been off cigarettes for so long. I've only been smoke free for 3 weeks. I guess the extra time will get more of the effects of smoking out of my system. Hope to hear from you soon. Barb Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Tom, you don't enjoy time on the beach?

Thank you Cindy!

Cindy, how does that work? The mentoring. Thanks. Barb Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Sherie, I'm really curious how much this all is going to cost. But not much in alternatives. LOL. I do have pretty good insurance luckily. Wow. Chemo & radiation the same day? That sounds rough. I'll be thinking of you. Update us when you feel up to it. Barb

Hi Sherie. I'm to have robotic lobectomy the end of October. Tests show only the one nodule. He wants me to get my diabetes in better control to help with healing. Also, he has all his surgical patients have pre- and post-surgical physical therapy again to assist in recovery. I'm seeing an endocrinologist tomorrow. Mentally, I'm in a good place. Nervous, but optimistic. The doctor will refer me to an oncologist after surgery, but he doesn't believe any chemo will be necessary.

I'm new here and all I can say is "wow." Thanks for sharing hope. Barb

Susan, Sounds like you have a lot on your shoulders right now. You are trying to be strong for your Mom and your family. I just recently found this site myself. Been reading a lot of posts. Hearing about others does help cause I'm not alone. My daughter lives out of state too. She is freaking out over my diagnosis. Honestly, I've got it easy compared to her. I'm preparing my battle plan and reading up on all this. She's stuck in Oklahoma feeling helpless. I'd suggest you finding yourself some "me" time. Maybe a mani-pedi or massage. Just leave it behind for a little while. My thoughts and prayers are with your family. Barb

Thanks Tom. My doc does the VATS robotic surgery. I have my Cancer binder with lots of questions to take to him tomorrow. Honestly, I'm thinking a lobectomy might be the best way to go instead of a wedge resection. I want that stuff outta here! I'm going to ask about coordination with oncologist tomorrow. It's on my list. My doc suggested keeping a cancer book and journaling. Good idea I think. Finding this site is another plus. I was up late last night reading a bunch of posts. Hearing everyone's story. Your journey is amazing.

Got my biopsy result today via their online system. Good to finally have it confirmed. It's squamous cell NSCLC. The battle begins! Barb Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk