And now for the exciting conclusion continuation of Boobectomy!

Before being probed by the surgeon, any visitor must first be groped by his gaggle of minions. Unfortunately, the first doctor-level minion had the bedside manner of starving bear. The first words out of her mouth were "blah blah blah mastectomy blah blah." Uh, what happened to lumpectomy?

While possibly not the smartest decision, I chose to ignore Dr. Oncologist's warning that I might lose a boob or two. It made me happier about the situation while I was busy with the whole wedding thing. But this evil minion (are there any other kind?) had ruined that fantasy seconds after entering the examination room.

Luckily, Dr. Surgeon, with the help of further mammograms, was of the opinion that a lumpectomy would suffice. Of course, he was careful to always use phrases such as "I think" and "should be". More importantly, he was willing to try, though would be the last time. Ultimately, it was my decision as to how much of me he would remove.

Well, gee, I rather like me, so let's go with the lumpectomy. Surprisingly enough, I did not make that decision easily, even after a million questions. For instance, Dr. Surgeon mentioned that other doctors were in favor of the mastectomy route. The other doctors turned out to include Dr. Radiologist, who was taking my age and family history into account. And if I did choose mastectomy, it would probably be a double, due to the aforementioned factors and so that I would look even. Each side would require a drain, and the only thing worse than one drain is two. Then there would be the reinflation phase. A plastic surgeon would insert expanders, either during the same surgery or a separate one. The expanders would be injected with saline, over the course of weeks, until my new boobs reached the desired size. The end result would be good looking, but lacking in the sensation department.

Of course, going the lumpectomy route wouldn't be fool-proof. Should the margins not be clear, or if more evilness was found during surgery, I would end up losing everything. And it goes without saying that even if everything goes well this time, should more calcifications of doom appear, there would no longer be a lumpectomy option.

I also consulted with Dr. Oncologist before making my final decision. She said that if Dr. Surgeon believed that my boob could be saved, then it was worth a try. And with that, it was time to schedule surgery. Oh, and just for fun, more Herceptin! My next tri-weekly dose would be postponed a week and moved to Friday, to allow sufficient post-op healing. Then the next one would be two days early, as no one wanted to deal with chemo the day after Thanksgiving.

Fast forward a week and a half, and my parents arrived. In other words, time for surgery!