Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Negative for the BRCA I/II gene mutation

Just got my genetic test results back and I do NOT have the BRCA I or BRCA II gene mutation that would increase a person's risk of getting breast and/or ovarian cancer. It's interesting because although I did not have the strong family history of breast cancer often associated with the gene mutation, I do have the TYPE of breast cancer that is often correlated to the mutation (triple negative), particularly at such a young age. So...does this make me "quadruple negative"? haha!! In an hour I head over to the local UCLA oncologist's office (Dr.B) to meet and review how the chemo will work, what drugs I'll be taking to manage side effects (in addition to the laundry list of supplements on my checklist), and find out what my activity restrictions will be, among other things I'm sure. I'll post later with what I find out from this meeting. PS- this morning I took my daily walk (according to research studies, walking 30+ minutes, 6x/week or more reduces a person's chance of experiencing a recurrence of cancer - you better believe I'll be a walking machine every day possible). I brought Cooper along and I envisioned me and Cooper as immunity super heroes, vaporizing rogue cancer cells and replacing them with healthy ones. :) I even heard a super hero, ass-kicking type of soundtrack in my mind as we walked - I have no idea where that came from but I like it!

5 comments:

Denise Brown said...

RIGHT ON!!!! Great news...You go girl!!

Lissa said...

You two would make awesome super heroes!! Know anyone in a band who could make you your own superhero theme? That would be great!

Anonymous said...

All you need is a cape! Glad to hear your good news!

Anonymous said...

That is SOOOO wonderful! I am so very happy for you! My name is Katie by the way from ivillage! One piece of advice I would like to throw out there is that flaxseed in seed form is more of a roughage and our bodies do not absorb it, however the oil of flaxseed is what can do wonders for us. I just wanted to offer that up in case it might be helpful! Good job getting your walk on! I wrote this for you, hopefully it finds you laughing! "Julie and Cooper kicking cancer in the pooper! They're here to walk to say "No More, Good Bye! Cancer today is the day YOU die! We stand behind them, strong and tall cause Cancer we know you aint got no balls! So scurry away now, YOU rest in peace cause we've had enough of your ugly disease! Good Bye Cancer run real fast, Julie and Cooper are kicking your ass!!" Love Katie and little Emma Lou

Anonymous said...

Hi Julie!

I just learned what's going on with you. Please know I will keep you close in heart and prayer as you go through the steps to get this thing kicked. I'll watch posts on this site and Facebook to stay updated. God Bless you. Barb