We have a date for surgery of May 15th! The expected duration is about 6.5-7.5 hours.

I had an unpleasant surprise from insurance where I am being told that somehow the breast surgeon is not in network even though St Joseph's building in which she sees me is in network. Even so, I am underway with an application for the costs to be covered under continuity of care.

A much more pleasant surprise was how hopeful the surgeon and oncologist are about the possibility of being cancer-free when they analyze the tissue removed at surgery. The PET scan showed a mass but the spot that was pointed out in the report could be simply inflammation in response to the chemo's effectiveness.  "No evidence of disease"  is a very desirable outcome and can point to a better chance at keeping the cancer away for 5+ years. The first surgeon (Dr. Dang) is going to analyze a collection of 3 axillary lymph nodes and if they come back positive she will have to take more, possibly all. If they come back negative, she is going to stop there. Based on my markers having lobular features there's a small chance that the OR produces a false negative and final pathology a week later comes back positive. Then I'd have to go back in for a full axillary dissection. Most surgeons would go straight in and remove them all the first time, so I appreciate her not overtreating me with the understanding that radiation is next up regardless. She has the approach of not wanting to take more than my case mandates and trying to be more conservative. I go in for PT instructions tomorrow and already have my pre- and post-op appointments booked!

I've updated our current known childcare needs and will continue to update it with anything new that gets scheduled during this appointment-heavy month! Thank you for your help, once again!