# Stereotactic breast biopsy Friday-- anticipation is freaking me out **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 17, 2015, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919 "2015-02-17T16:22:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/61 "2015-03-04T12:35:48Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > What is the post-lumpectomy recovery like, specifically WRT walking my dogs. I’m thinking it will be awhile before I can let anyone tug hard on my left arm. One of the dogs is pretty big and pulls. > > What other restrictions did you have in your activities? I was told not to pick up anything over (I think it was) 10 pounds using the arm on that side for a week after the surgery. My 11-lb cat was too heavy. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/62 "2015-03-04T12:59:53Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Unfortunately, one of the sentinel nodes was positive, so I’m probably looking at chemo as well. > > I am wrapped in a giant, tight cloth binder that covers my whole upper torso (and all incisions) and I have 4 bulb drains dangling off me, not unlike a cyborg sow. Varieties of pain, none terrible. I’m on benzos only (no opiates), though I should say that later this week I’ll be advocating for a higher dose or frequency. > > This is not how I intended to spend this month! :mad: (or year). I’m so sorry. A friend of mine went through it and both of us were…well, it would not be too much to say _appalled_ at how difficult the immediate post-surgery circumstances are. I went with her to all her appointments before the surgery and we didn’t know exactly what was coming. Another friend who had a bilateral said, they don’t tell you everything ahead of time, and she works in a plastic surgeon’s office, so she thought she knew all about it. All that and chemo, too…although one is grateful it’s available…still a bummer. ☹ Miss Mapp, thanks for the info. Very helpful. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2015, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/63 "2015-03-04T19:24:10Z")
My mother had a mastectomy and had a great deal of trouble getting it to heal. They had to go back twice and cut new margins before they started to heal together. My sister had a lumpectomy and chemo and radiation. Her radiation was targeted with radioactive pellets being inserted via a coffee-stirrer-looking straw then withdrawn for 5 or 7 days. Chemo was relatively short-term, too. She did need three surgeries before they got clear margins with the lumpectomy. Late that same year she had to have two surgeries for thyroid cancer. As for walking the dogs, when friends say, “Can I do anything to help?”, take them up on the offer. If you can buy or borrow a dog pen for exercise, that might be an option. I had surgery on my foot and was feeding horses and bringing in wood for the wood stove on crutches and in a boot. Good luck. This is very survivable. StG ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/64 "2015-03-12T00:07:48Z")
Well, y’all, my surgery is about 12 hours from now. They want me at the hospital at 5:00 am. Might just as well sit up all night in the parking garage. 😉 I’ve got food in the house, visitors lined up, ducks in a row. See you on the flip side. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/65 "2015-03-12T04:02:55Z")
Sending positive, healing thoughts your way **ThelmaLou**. Good luck. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/66 "2015-03-12T04:23:33Z")
Thinking good thoughts for you. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/67 "2015-03-12T04:28:41Z")
Best wishes, from me and my aunts, both of whom had breast cancer decades ago. ---
**Author:** ![SJL4041](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@SJL4041](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SJL4041)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2015, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/68 "2015-03-12T08:52:16Z")
Good luck, Thelma. We’re all rooting for you. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2015, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/69 "2015-03-13T01:47:10Z")
Happy, quick healing thoughts! ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2015, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/70 "2015-03-13T02:50:32Z")
Surgery went great, but anesthesia left me sick as a dog. Surgery was over 12 hours ago-- still queasy and dizzy. Spending the night in hospital. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2015, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/71 "2015-03-13T04:10:58Z")
I hope morning finds you feeling much improved. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2015, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/72 "2015-03-13T11:08:26Z")
I hope you’re feeling better today. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/73 "2015-03-13T22:42:29Z")
I am. Thanks. The anesthesia thing really came out of left field. Totally unexpected. I’m only having the very mildest discomfort from the surgery-- just a little soreness. She said she took out an amount of tissue equal to a small biscuit (that would be a bun/roll, not a cookie, for the Brits on board). Fortunately I had acreage to spare. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2015, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/74 "2015-03-14T13:37:40Z")
I’m glad to see you’re doing okay–the thing with the anesthesia was worrying. Did the surgeon tell you how your margins were? ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/75 "2015-03-14T22:34:58Z")
> [@Miss\_Mapp](#): > > I’m glad to see you’re doing okay–the thing with the anesthesia was worrying. Did the surgeon tell you how your margins were? She said she tried to get everything. I was pretty out of it when she talked to me. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2015, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/76 "2015-03-15T00:20:09Z")
ThelmaLou. I just saw this thread, I wish you all the best, and a speedy recovery. Seems there’s a lot of current Dopers involved with cancer, or their loved ones. Please keep us updated. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/77 "2015-03-19T15:12:44Z")
Update: It’s a week since the lumpectomy. Starting to have discomfort in armpit area, but not bad. I think the tissues are waking up and screaming “We’ve been robbed!” Speaking of screaming, did any/all of you have “wire localization,” which means a wire is inserted in your breast to guide the surgeon to the tissue that needs to be removed? During the biopsy, the doctor leaves a marker inside the breast at the site of the bad cells, and the wire is a physical roadmap to the location. (This is as I understand it.) Some reading around the internet about various people’s experiences told me that the breast should be numb during the WL, just like during the biopsy. My biopsy was painless. The WL, however, was _sheer torture_. Supposedly there was lidocaine in the tip of the needle that they stick in there to serve as a conduit for the wire. Even if there was, my whole breast did not get any shot or any numbing drug. My impression is that the needle went in through my nipple (EEK!), but I’m not positive. The tissue to be removed was on the underside of my breast. I cried loud and bitter tears while they were sticking the needle and then the wire in there. The people doing it (at least one had an MD on her name tag–the others, not sure) kept saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry” over and over. Then they had to do a mammogram/x-ray to make sure the tip of the wire was in exactly the right spot. When they got me back to the pre-op area with a plastic drinking cup taped over my nipple to hold the wire in place, the surgical team had already been by twice to get me. That makes me wonder if they were in a hurry and did not take the time to numb my breast. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Mapp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miss_mapp/32/369_2.png) [@Miss\_Mapp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Mapp)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/78 "2015-03-19T15:54:37Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Speaking of screaming, did any/all of you have “wire localization,” which means a wire is inserted in your breast to guide the surgeon to the tissue that needs to be removed? During the biopsy, the doctor leaves a marker inside the breast at the site of the bad cells, and the wire is a physical roadmap to the location. (This is as I understand it.) > > Some reading around the internet about various people’s experiences told me that the breast should be numb during the WL, just like during the biopsy. > > My biopsy was painless. The WL, however, was _sheer torture_. Supposedly there was lidocaine in the tip of the needle that they stick in there to serve as a conduit for the wire. Even if there was, my whole breast did not get any shot or any numbing drug. My impression is that the needle went in through my nipple (EEK!), but I’m not positive. The tissue to be removed was on the underside of my breast. > > I cried loud and bitter tears while they were sticking the needle and then the wire in there. The people doing it (at least one had an MD on her name tag–the others, not sure) kept saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry” over and over. Then they had to do a mammogram/x-ray to make sure the tip of the wire was in exactly the right spot… Yeah, that was the worst piece of breast-torture for me too. My two biopsy sites were on the upper portion, about half an inch apart. The tech staff who was putting the needles and wires in kept saying “Don’t look down,” but of course I did take a glance at one point before she put some tape over the site to hold the wires in place. Wires–two pieces about 5 or 6 inches long sticking up out of the top of my breast and waggling around like two little antennae for some cyberpunk-Borg electronic implant. Decorated cheerfully with little pink-flowered bandages. Not just painful, but completely surreal. A little later, just before I went into the surgery, someone asked me if I had any false teeth, prosthetics, implants, or body piercings. “Only the ones you just gave me…” ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/79 "2015-03-19T17:23:06Z")
> [@baker](#): > > thelmalou. I just saw this thread, i wish you all the best, and a speedy recovery. > > Seems there’s a lot of current dopers involved with cancer, or their loved ones. > > Please keep us updated. This! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2015, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919/80 "2015-03-19T18:35:44Z")
> [@Miss\_Mapp](#): > > Yeah, that was the worst piece of breast-torture for me too. … Was your breast numb for this procedure (like I assume it was for the biopsy)? Or was it “somewhat numb”? Or not at all? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stereotactic-breast-biopsy-friday-anticipation-is-freaking-me-out/712919.md?page=5)