Have I Exceeded Expectations?

This week I had the “opportunity” to meet another new doctor.

Monday morning I woke up looking like Harry Potter after Hermoine cast a spell on him to disguise him from the snatchers (sorry for any spoiler alerts if you haven’t seen or read any Harry Potter books in the past 15 or so years).

This was the second time in six months I had to call my ophthalmologist after waking up with a red, swollen eye. My tear duct was infected. She prescribed antibiotics but told me I may need to see a specialist.

“Of course”, I thought. Why wouldn’t I need to see another specialist? A specialist I didn’t even know existed until Monday afternoon.

If anyone would have told me I would be meeting with a plastic surgeon, I would have laughed out loud. I have come to accept my scars and my wrinkles, I have earned every one of them. But this was a very special plastic surgeon. An oculoplastic surgeon, a plastic surgeon specializing in the eyes and face.

Amazingly, an appointment with the specialist was open on Thursday morning. If you are like my oldest daughter, you may think, it’s never a good sign when a specialist can see you that quickly. Spoiler alert, it turned out to be a great sign I was able to get an appointment that quickly.

First, my eye was still red and swollen, which made it easy for the doctor to identify my problem instantly.

Second, he immediately pulled out a pad of paper and wrote Acute dacryocystitis below the drawing of the anatomy of an eye. He explained the surgical procedure he could perform to prevent the infection from recurring.

Third, and this one shocked even me (although it really shouldn’t anymore) as we discussed my previous surgeries and history with metastatic breast cancer, he asked me if I had ever received Taxotere in my treatment. I had to pause and think for a moment, as I have had a lot of drugs during my 21 years of living with breast cancer. After going through the mental catalog of drugs I have taken, I finally remembered that Taxotere was one of the drugs I had during my original bout with cancer. When I acknowledged that I had indeed had the drug, he indicated he was testifying next month regarding Taxotere resulting in the side effect of Acute Dacryocystitis.

I left the doctor’s office grateful I had been referred to the practice. Specifically, the doctor with the knowledge to see, diagnose, treat, and identify the potential underlying cause of my recurring infections was the one who had the short-notice availability.

This morning, as I was processing that I would be having another surgery this year, it dawned on me that both of the surgeries are a direct result of side effects from drugs used to treat my breast cancer.

So it begs the question, from the perspective of doctors and caregivers, have I Exceeded Expectations?

In October, I will be starting my 15th year of living with metastatic breast cancer. I would hazard a guess that I have exceeded expectations by some.

If I were to give myself a performance review I would have to include the following as a justification for selecting exceeding expectations:

• Cancer took my hip. My hip was rebuilt with 3 prostheses.
• An infection 7 years later required the infection/prostheses to be removed
• I learned to walk without a hip. Still going strong 7 years later
• Currently on my 7th line of treatment (a repeat of a drug that was very successful in the past – wait, yep, it was good for 7 years)
• Surgery on my jaw for osteonecrosis – a known side effect of two drugs used in my treatment.
• Now, I have an upcoming surgery, also seemingly from a known side effect of drugs used in my treatment over the years.

Too bad the job of living with metastatic breast cancer comes with no opportunity for a salary increase.

I do have some amazing “co-workers” – amazing doctors, nurses, physical therapists, and mostly, the other people I have met who, like me, are trying every day to exceed expectations living with metastatic breast cancer.