October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and I thought I would share my experience in the hope of helping others spot the symptoms and save lives. I'm perhaps classified as 'unusual' but there are more and more women falling into a similar category. I did not have a lump, I was young (still am...lol!), I breast fed my baby, I ate a healthy diet and exercised regularly. But sometimes cells go wrong and the body can't sort it and before you know it, cancer is part of your life. Young, old, healthy or not. It can happen with or without a lump. Many of you know I have secondary breast cancer which has spread to my liver and bones. I was originally diagnosed aged 33 with Inflammatory Breast Cancer, which is a rarer type. I had apparently had it for some time but I was completely unaware of it. I was very good at checking my breasts regularly for lumps. I had read the advice and kept a close eye on myself for other symptoms too and this is what saved my life. One morning I noticed the underside of my right breast looked dimpled like orange peel. I remembered that this could be a symptom of breast cancer so immediately booked myself in for an appointment with the GP and insisted on a referral. My breast surgeon asked me if I had noticed a change in the size of my breasts and I mentioned that the right one was heavier than the left but had been like this for many years. Although I began to wonder if it had become heavier recently? I pondered on this for some time but I could never be sure. The tests showed a huge mass in my right breast!! How could I have missed this? I felt my breasts weekly!! I was cross with myself. But when I spoke to my consultant he reassured me that I could not have caught it any quicker as the type I have is like a spiders web. It does not form lumps that you can feel. The average person would not be able to feel this kind of cancer growing and it is often diagnosed at a more advanced stage. The first signs are other things like the orange peel/dimpling of the skin in my case. It was also in my lymph nodes and it was likely that there were cells elsewhere in my body. They hit me with chemo, radiotherapy and double mastectomy plus a maintenance therapy of zoladex and tamoxifen. In my case the cancer did return despite the fact that I flagged it up quickly at the first sign and the doctors acted very rapidly to get chemo into me. But I am still here, almost 5 years on from initial diagnosis and this might not have been the case if I hadn't been aware of the other signs to look out for, as well as lumps. I do have secondaries and I am receiving ongoing treatment but each time it returns, we catch it super fast and throw lots of drugs at it until it retreats again. More and more people are living with secondary breast cancer thanks to the amazing new drugs that are being researched and available. My veins do now struggle due to all the chemo treatments I have had, so they fitted me with a port which you can see in the picture on the left. It's brilliant!! The port is just above the edge of my top and fitted under the skin. The black dot is a tattoo to show its location... yep I've got a tattoo!! Lol...actually I have about 6 tattoos from radiotherapy too! The line that goes up from the port and over my collar bone is a little pipe that goes from the port and across my chest and into my heart. It is brilliant and means I don't need cannula's most of the time. I do still have to have the odd one for a general anaesthetic or for a CT Scan as these drugs can't go through it but it minimizes the use of my veins and saves me a lot of pain. These days, I have accepted that I caught it at the earliest possible sign, despite it being huge and I understand it was growing in a stealth like manner. But jumping and acting rapidly has saved my life. Please please please check your breasts regularly for any changes, lumps, size changes, nipple discharge, skin changes etc... Do not just look for a lump. Acting quickly can save your life. (There is a link at the bottom of this blog to the Breast Cancer Care website with information about signs and symptoms to look out for)
Please share this story with your family and friends to help me increase awareness of Inflammatory Breast Cancer and other breast cancers so more lives can be saved. Deborah x
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My understanding of this is that it happens when the treatment works so well that the tumour starts dying quickly and this causes dead cancer cells to enter my blood stream and causes my markers to increase. It can also be painful going through the process of cancer cell death which explains the pain I had! So it's fabulous news! Now its a matter of staying on this current treatment and hope to fight off the cancer until it can't be seen anymore. Then I will stay on the treatment as a maintenance therapy until it stops working. Each, day...week & month that this treatment works is a bonus and a blessing far as I am concerned!
We are so so so happy!!! Yay Yay Yay!!!! Deborah x p.s. looking slightly over-tired and bedraggled in this photo but hey ho!! Lol! On Wednesday I returned to the hospital for blood tests to see if my liver had improved and to check my cancer markers too after last weeks rubbish results!! Surprisingly my vein decided that blood would be allowed to be taken this time, usually it moves as the needle goes in which makes it extremely difficult for the nurses to get blood out of me! So we succeeded first time! I then met up with Prof Chan to catch up and set a plan in place for my treatment regime and find out my blood results. My liver function has improved a tiny bit - I will take that! If the liver function had been worse then I would have had to stop treatment and swap to something else which isn't good as it's all about using options up slowly. So I want that other option available for the future rather than use it now. So this was a big tick in a box to know my liver is coping a bit better. I have been feeling a bit better this past week with the nausea easing and the pain in my liver disappearing too. I have done everything in my power to help my liver recover. I already have a healthy diet but I avoided anything fatty like cheese that might be hard for the liver process and I have pretty much cut out refined sugar too. I needed to be sure that I had done everything possible to help my body. It may well have helped! Then the cancer marker test - this was the same as the previous occasion!! This is brilliant news! This suggests the cancer may have stopped growing already! After one round of treatment!! I didn't expect that to happen yet! So it looks like the treatment might be working. It's a good first indicator and step in the right direction. We still need to wait for another cycle of treatment, more blood tests and to see my marker reduce but also to see what happens when I have a CT Scan in a month's time. Then we will know for sure if the treatment is working. But I'm extremely happy with this first set of results. This summer 'the cancer' decided to join us on holiday, which I wasn't too impressed at! It was not invited!! However it seems that it is regularly joining me in my life although I do plan to get rid as rapidly as possible and hopefully it will not be joining us for Christmas dinner this year. There is no invite being sent - that's for sure!! I hope you have all had a fantastic summer, we certainly have had lots of fun :-)
The September editions of the Barrowby Bamboozler are currently being printed and will be available from the 4th September. Enjoy the Bank Holiday weekend! Deborah x Well it seems the roller coaster of life isn't going to get any easier in the short term. I feel like closing my eyes and putting my fingers in my ears and going 'La la la la... I can't hear you!!'. But life doesn't work like that, I have to be grown up and so I listened as Prof explained the latest set of results to me... So my latest blood tests show that my liver is seriously struggling and my breast cancer marker has increased. The biggest worry is my liver as this could suggest the cancer has grown or that the current treatment is damaging it. But we don't know which it is yet. Prof wants another set of test results next week to see what's going on and if there is a trend. I only started the new drug two weeks ago, so we want to give it a chance to work. The plan will then be decided. I may stay on this treatment and be closely monitored to see if the tests improve or we may switch me onto a chemo tablet and do a CT scan to see if the cancer has grown. We are in limbo for a week and need to sit tight and wait. Then decisions can be made.
Prof already has another drug ready and waiting for me as a back up option that my liver should cope with better. However, we don't want to use this next option yet, if we can avoid it as this is about extending life for as long as possible and so the more options I have the better.
As far as I'm concerned...this is a small set back and simply an inconvenience in my life that I shall yet again overcome! Hello everyone! Well it's been a rather eventful few weeks and I thought I would let you know what's been going on. A couple of weeks ago my cancer markers rose a little and I had a gut feeling the cancer was back for the third time. My liver was a little sore and I was very concerned. The amazing Prof listened to me and although my cancer markers were officially in the 'ok' zone, he understood my worries of it increasing and my gut feeling so he put me through the CT Scanner. Unfortunately the cancer has come back in my liver. It has become resistant to the treatment I was on. The good news is that it hasn't returned in my bones and it is extremely early in my liver, a few tiny spots. We were due to go on holiday a couple of days later so he quickly moved me onto a new treatment regime and started me off with a Faslodex injection. We then flew the next day and had two wonderful weeks together away from all the worries. As soon as we returned I started on a new drug called Palbociclib which is a kind of targeted chemo. It is a brand new treatment which has had superb results. It doesn't have the same level of side effects as "normal" chemo but fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite, neutropenia and anaemia can be a problem. The latter two tend to be at the start in the first few weeks. I started the Palbociclib this week and so far I just have mild nausea but these things do tend to build up in my system over time. I am also on a bone strengthening drug. My Oncologist is hopeful of getting me back into remission very quickly. It is of course, disappointing and upsetting that I only had just over a year on the previous treatment. It's about getting each treatment to last as long as possible before we switch to the next. There are still plenty of other options after this one too. Hope is very important in life and I certainly have buckets of it especially when looking at the drugs that are currently being researched. I love life and enjoy every day I am given thanks to modern medicine. I am planning to continue work on the magazines as normal during school term time. The September ones are already written and at the moment I plan to keep life as normal as possible. I like to keep busy and I enjoy my business during term time. I am busy having lots of fun with my family over the summer holidays. Have a great Summer, Deborah x
I got my first tin of pastel pencils and self taught from then on wards. What has developed as part of my drawing holistically is my ability to connect with the animal in drawing. They begin to feel like they are sat with me as I draw them. Sometimes I'm almost sad to see them go, but so happy when the owner collects or receives the picture, particularly when sadly the animal has passed over as owners say the pictures often bring their beloved pet to life and capture their personalities. That is a wonderful complement to hear. I do all my drawings from photographs. The photograph needs to be of good quality to help me really capture detail. Especially with the eyes. It's detail that makes the picture special for the client. Recently a client was brought to tears when he received his late pets drawing. He'd made several holes in the dogs tag and these were captured in the drawing, these little details mean so much."
If you would like to try and win a Half Price Portrait of your beloved pet by Heart & Soul Portraits, then make sure you have a go at her puzzle in the April edition (available from 1st April 2017) and send me your answer for a chance to win! If you would like to enquire about having a portrait of your pet done by Haley then please contact her directly: Phone 07778 213042 Email: [email protected] www.facebook.com/Heart2soulportraits In 2013 I was diagnosed with breast cancer in my early thirties. I underwent chemotherapy, radiotherapy, double mastectomy and reconstruction. I gave up work during this time to recover and focus on my family. In early 2015 I had an operation to fit breast implants which was the final reconstruction operation required. I felt like life was becoming more normal with less treatment and no operations on the horizon. I have always been an entrepreneur and was keen to find my next project but was struggling for inspiration. Then one morning I had a 'eureka' moment and announced I was going to start a local magazine. I chatted it through with my family and whilst batting ideas around we came up with a puzzle magazine about local businesses and then the name 'Barrowby Bamboozler'.
I was keen to get started and went out into town to speak to some local businesses that day. I was still recovering from the very recent surgery but being the determined person I am, insisted my husband drive me into town to see what local business owners thought of the idea. I immediately sold several pages and it went down very well. I came home and got started! The magazine began with a distribution of 500 magazines around Grantham but it quickly became popular and with more businesses interested, I increased the distribution to 1000 and then later added in a free email subscriber option. The initial idea was to create a magazine that was fun and interactive but also supported local businesses so I kept my prices low. I wanted to do something which was flexible to suit me and also support local businesses. My idea was that by doing an interactive puzzle specifically about the business featured, it would be more memorable to readers. I was delighted each morning to open up my email and find lots of entries and lovely messages from local readers thanking me for a fun magazine. Initially I wrote out the names of those who entered and put them into a hat and had someone independent draw a winner. However, I quickly realised this was not going to be a practical solution as the entries were coming in thick and fast with the second edition so we set up a spreadsheet to log all the entries and then had a number randomiser pick the winner. This was a very good solution and huge time saver! In early 2016, the magazine evolved when I was at the Nottingham City Hospital one day as part of a vaccine trial to prevent the cancer returning. I was effectively a 'human guinea pig' !! Lol! I needed to do everything in my power to help my daughter and future generations so happily offered up my body to be poked, prodded and injected. I was sat in the waiting area designing puzzles and my nurse asked me about it and mentioned it might be good for the hospital. I offered to do one and with my nurse’s help we managed to get agreement to do a magazine for the hospital. I thought it would be an ideal place for a puzzle magazine as it can entertain the patients while they are waiting for hours, sometimes. But also, I decided I would donate 20% of the profits to Professor Chan’s Breast Cancer research at the hospital. I wanted to give something back after the treatment I had received under his care. In May 2016 I was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer in my liver and bones. It was a complete shock and a day I will never forget. My world literally crashed around me as I heard Prof tell me the test results. I was immediately put back into chemotherapy and a targeted therapy as well as jabs to help strengthen my bones. I sent out a message to let businesses and readers know what was going on and that I would continue to do the magazines but that I would be doing less work and so smaller magazines. I had so many emails and messages offering help and support particularly with delivering which had become extremely difficult. I was overwhelmed by how everyone had rallied round and with help from readers and businesses I was able to continue as they helped me deliver the magazines - which I am so grateful for. I am now on a targeted therapy and have one day in hospital every 3 weeks which is fine. Its part of my normal life now and its nothing in comparison to what I've been through! Prof Chan and my nurses are keeping me alive with the latest drugs which are created through research. I wanted to support Prof by donating 20% of my profits from the Nottingham Mag to his research in Nottingham. If it wasn’t for the amazing treatment, I wouldn’t still be here and currently in remission with no signs of the cancer. I love doing the magazine. I enjoy writing it, promoting it, replying to emails and hearing how much readers enjoy the magazine. I love creating the puzzles and distributing the magazines too. Im extremely passionate about my magazines. I love that they entertain my readers and support businesses too. Its particularly lovely to know I am helping to entertain patients as well as raise money with the Nottingham edition. I know how hard it is waiting around whilst having treatment or waiting for life changing results. If I can help take people’s minds off whats going on around them for a couple of hours, then that’s fantastic and I have achieved my goal. Entertaining readers and supporting businesses are at the heart of my magazines. I thoroughly enjoy working on both my Grantham and Nottingham editions. Thank you to all the businesses who are featured and readers for entering the competitions. You have all helped make these magazines a success. Deborah x When I started the Barrowby Bamboozler almost two years ago, one of the key things I wanted to do was support local, independent and family run businesses. There are many benefits when buying from one of these businesses and I wanted to highlight these and remind us all of why we need to continue to buy locally and support independents. I have brought this article together using researched information (sources at the end of this article) and having spoken to local businesses. Most of the businesses featured in my magazines fit into at least one of these categories which is something Im proud to support.
Sources
(1)www.fsb.org.uk/media-centre/press-releases/fsb-report-reveals-the-power-of-small-businesses-in-the-local-economy-pr-2013-35 https://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/dec/06/shop-locally-small-business-saturday-seven-reasons Birds of Beauty Parlour: 21 Westdale Crescent, Nottingham. www.facebook.com/Bobp21 Grantham Computer Centre: www.thegcc.co.uk The Beeston Brownie Company: www.thebeestonbrowniecompany.co.uk Mandarin Leisure: www.mandarintherapies.co.uk Bold Beanies: www.boldbeanies.com Photos from www.freeimages.com and www.unsplash.com I always say that after a cancer diagnosis, its about finding a 'new normal'. The first time I had primary breast cancer I spent some time wanting my old life back and trying to be who I was. I definitely felt like I had lost the old me. But I quickly realised I needed to treat life like I had been re-born and given a chance at life and needed to embrace it. I soon found a new way of life and just felt so grateful for each day I was in remission. I always knew that there was a high chance of the cancer returning and very much felt like each day I had in remission was a blessing. I made it my aim to find something every day which made me feel happy. Of course, there were bad days, thats life! Stuff happens!! But at least Im alive to experience it. The cancer returned last year as secondaries and I completed treatment in August which was quickly followed by a hysterectomy. Once I had fully recovered and my test results came back showing that I was in remission, I felt a huge wave of relief. I know that the cancer is almost definitely still in my body, but it is effectively hiding. My blood tests are incredible. Not only have I gone into the 'normal' range on my marker tests but they have continued to fall even further which is unusual. My CT Scan in December was clear which is unbelievable. The problem with having had secondary breast cancer is that treatment never ends and life becomes complicated. This time I was 're-born' after treatment I needed to get used to another new way of life. This time it includes a trip to hospital for one day every three weeks so I can have basic tests and blood markers done followed by receiving a targeted treatment by IV and also a bone strengthening injection. I am in remission and this is so incredibly wonderful but I do still need ongoing treatment to keep me in remission. This comes with a few side effects but it very tolerable and is only a minor inconvenience as far as Im concerned. I just get on with it and that's very much my motto. I don't do the whole feeling sorry for myself thing. I just want to embrace life and live it to the absolute max. If that means I need regular treatment, well that's fine. I keep life as normal as I possibly can. Some of my nurses do find it quite entertaining the way I arrive at the hospital on a treatment day and set up my laptop and spread out my work and in moments I'm completely engrossed in my emails or writing the magazine. As far as I'm concerned, I'm just at my other 'office' surrounded by people I know. The bubble is usually 'popped' when a nurse places a urine pot under my nose and asks for a sample!! Not exactly the norm when you are working! Lol!! It makes me laugh so much!
I drove to the hospital and was checked over. My Oncologist said I was wheezing and he too suspected a chest infection but because of my history of having had secondary cancer he decided to do a CT Scan. I was due a CT in a couple of weeks anyway to see if Im still in remission. At the moment Im scanned every 2-3 months and blood markers every 6 weeks. My last set of blood markers were really good so its unlikely that the cancer has returned. But we have to be careful and Ive been coughing since Christmas.
So that afternoon I was put through the CT Scanner. I wasn't expecting to be at the hospital all day and as I was being scanned, I found myself pondering on what I needed to prioritise doing in the short amount of time before the school run and things like the shopping list and what I was going to do for dinner were running through my mind!! Lol!! I did wonder if I had lost the plot??!! Maybe! At the end of the day, I can't change the results and I know that whatever happens, we will find a way to deal with it. I like to live life to the full and just get on and enjoy it and deal with results as and when they are given to me. We have everything crossed in the hope that Im still in remission later today. My husband is part of my quality control process for the Barrowby Bamboozler. He does all the puzzles in all the magazines, often several times over as part of the checks to ensure every puzzle works perfectly. He never wins any of the prizes because he is not allowed to enter the competitions. He was doing The Beeston Brownie Company's puzzle when he was checking the Nottingham magazine recently. My husbands absolute favourite dessert is brownies. He LOVES them. I watched him doing the puzzle and looking longingly at the page saying how wonderful they sounded... "handmade gourmet chocolate brownies". The next day I emailed The Beeston Brownie Company to ask about their Valentine's Boxes. I thought it was about time my husband received a 'prize' for all his hard work. He is an amazing person, so incredibly supportive, always there for me when I need him. This past year has been particularly challenging and he has been right by my side every step of the way. I got an email back very quickly with all the details and a list of types of brownies available. It was pretty difficult to choose as they all sounded amazing!! I chose 8 different ones and ordered them. I then eagerly awaited their arrival! A few days later the package arrived with each brownie individually wrapped and labelled in a beautifully presented box. I was so excited to give my husband the present on Valentine's Day. The expression on his face said it all, he was soooo happy!! Luckily for me he wanted to share them with me - YAY!!!
I have to say I have never eaten such amazing brownies in my entire life!!! They are so soft and moist and really really tasty!! Wow is what popped into our heads. We absolutely loved them. I just can't get over how gooey they are!! Thank you to The Beeston Brownie Company for making my husband's Valentine's Day present so special. The Beeston Brownie Company are featured in the Nottingham Barrowby Bamboozler Free Puzzle Magazine. Enter their competition for a chance to win a box of their delicious brownies! Email me for free copy of the magazine ([email protected]), see the puzzle in the Nottingham Magazine on our website (http://barrowbybamboozler.weebly.com) or pick up a hard copy at Nottingham City Hospital. |
AuthorI run the Barrowby Bamboozler. I spend my time writing puzzles backwards!! Archives
October 2017
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