Cancer Free

Tomorrow morning I'm having surgery. It's not the surgery I anticipated, but that's really just fine. My doctors feel that chemotherapy has destroyed the cancer tumor (and all cancer) so they will just do a lumpectomy instead of a mastectomy. I will also have some or all of my lymph nodes removed, depending on what the doctor decides when he gets in there. First, there will be a procedure called a "needle locator"that places a wire in my breast for the surgeon to follow to the tumor site. Then I'll receive some isotopes (I failed to ask what these are for) and a dye to identify lymph nodes. Tissue will be removed from the designated location with the hope that any remaining cancer cells will be removed as well. The surgeon talks about "clear margins" meaning that anything left from the tumor is safely removed. It will only require a two-inch incision instead of removing my entire breast. I'm cautiously optimistic that this will be good enough to make me completely cancer free. BUT if they don't get clear margins and the tumor grows back, I can always have a mastectomy later on without repeating chemotherapy. As far as the rest of my system goes, it is what it is. If I don't have any cancer symptoms in the future, I can assume that I'm healed. This feels like it should be very good news. I've had a wonderful blessing that I trust. So...let's do this!