Life update!
In support of
Brittany Kell
View Support Registry
Brittany Kell
Evening!
It has been awhile since I posted an update about what’s going on in my life!
On July 28th, I had my last immunotherapy! Yay! No more infusions, no more sitting in chairs for hours, but that also means not seeing those taking care of me anymore. 😭 I was very emotional leaving. It was bittersweet. You spend every week with these people and then you just… move on. It’s a weird feeling!
But, don’t be fooled that I’m feeling like a million bucks! Now I’m dealing with extreme GI issues. I was able to get a referral from my oncologist to see GI and they recommended a colonoscopy. Another thing on my BINGO card I never thought I would have to do before 40. I have that in less than two weeks. They think it’s either crohns, colitis, or autoimmune colitis. There is sheets of side effects from chemo and of course, this is one of them. Or it could be from the copious amounts of antibiotics I was on for my infections by in April. So, hopefully we can get answers soon for this, cause it’s not fun at all. It’s not just having to go to the bathroom all the time, it’s the bloating, cramping, and sometimes it feels like my stomach is being tied into knots. 😔
I also met with plastic surgery and hopefully we’ll be scheduling my diep flap surgery in early October. There is no good time this time of the year to do surgery, but it has to be done! Diep flap is when they take your own fat and move it to your chest. He will take my stomach fat and move it on up! It’s an intense surgery- I will spend 3 days in the hospital and it’s about an 8 hour surgery. Fingers crossed it works and no complications!
Life after cancer has been… hard. It could be the fact I’m not done with it all, and truly never will be. But I think when you’re dealing with something like cancer- something that could kill you- and you have no choice but to fight cause your life depends on it- you don’t have time to think about it. You just go into survival mode. You know you have to keep going, especially when you have little ones. You have to fight for your life and then go and be mom, wife, employee, etc. I never felt I had the time to sit and talk process it cause there was no time too. Now I sit back and can’t even believe how much I have gone through this year. And then I think about how I really hope I never have to do this again. I had asked my oncologist why I don’t get scans anymore (common with a mastectomy, I just wasn’t aware), he explained that there is barely any breast tissue, and that if the cancer came back, it would probably be incurable. He said by the time it came up on a scan, it would probably be too late, and I would most likely have symptoms that indicate something’s wrong. But… we’re just going to pray that doesn’t happen.
But anywho, the family and I have really enjoyed summer- camping, park trips, beach days, zoos, softball and baseball- we’ve been so busy! I’m going to miss the kids when they go back to school- even Coley will be going 2 hours a day, 3 days a week! I’ve had a nice break from doctors appointments but September starts those up again, but hopefully by 2027- I can get back to my normal life ❤️
It has been awhile since I posted an update about what’s going on in my life!
On July 28th, I had my last immunotherapy! Yay! No more infusions, no more sitting in chairs for hours, but that also means not seeing those taking care of me anymore. 😭 I was very emotional leaving. It was bittersweet. You spend every week with these people and then you just… move on. It’s a weird feeling!
But, don’t be fooled that I’m feeling like a million bucks! Now I’m dealing with extreme GI issues. I was able to get a referral from my oncologist to see GI and they recommended a colonoscopy. Another thing on my BINGO card I never thought I would have to do before 40. I have that in less than two weeks. They think it’s either crohns, colitis, or autoimmune colitis. There is sheets of side effects from chemo and of course, this is one of them. Or it could be from the copious amounts of antibiotics I was on for my infections by in April. So, hopefully we can get answers soon for this, cause it’s not fun at all. It’s not just having to go to the bathroom all the time, it’s the bloating, cramping, and sometimes it feels like my stomach is being tied into knots. 😔
I also met with plastic surgery and hopefully we’ll be scheduling my diep flap surgery in early October. There is no good time this time of the year to do surgery, but it has to be done! Diep flap is when they take your own fat and move it to your chest. He will take my stomach fat and move it on up! It’s an intense surgery- I will spend 3 days in the hospital and it’s about an 8 hour surgery. Fingers crossed it works and no complications!
Life after cancer has been… hard. It could be the fact I’m not done with it all, and truly never will be. But I think when you’re dealing with something like cancer- something that could kill you- and you have no choice but to fight cause your life depends on it- you don’t have time to think about it. You just go into survival mode. You know you have to keep going, especially when you have little ones. You have to fight for your life and then go and be mom, wife, employee, etc. I never felt I had the time to sit and talk process it cause there was no time too. Now I sit back and can’t even believe how much I have gone through this year. And then I think about how I really hope I never have to do this again. I had asked my oncologist why I don’t get scans anymore (common with a mastectomy, I just wasn’t aware), he explained that there is barely any breast tissue, and that if the cancer came back, it would probably be incurable. He said by the time it came up on a scan, it would probably be too late, and I would most likely have symptoms that indicate something’s wrong. But… we’re just going to pray that doesn’t happen.
But anywho, the family and I have really enjoyed summer- camping, park trips, beach days, zoos, softball and baseball- we’ve been so busy! I’m going to miss the kids when they go back to school- even Coley will be going 2 hours a day, 3 days a week! I’ve had a nice break from doctors appointments but September starts those up again, but hopefully by 2027- I can get back to my normal life ❤️
Comments
Dan Burgeson 15 days ago
Ali Risse 15 days ago
Angie Dycus 15 days ago
Michele Rifkin 15 days ago