CentraState - Healthy Directions

www.centrastate.com Fall 2014 5 Terri, who has three stepchildren with her husband, Ted. "It was kind of a shocker; I was completely expecting to hear that everything was OK. I had to make a decision quickly because it was growing rapidly. It was an immediate shock because I needed to make this life-altering decision to have a mastectomy in a matter of days." Two weeks later, on Dec. 18, 2008, Terri returned to CentraState for a skin-sparing mastectomy—a way to treat breast cancer and save as much breast skin as possible. The cancer had spread to multiple lymph nodes, which also had to be removed. A FEELING OF NORMALCY At the same time as her mastectomy, Terri underwent breast reconstruction with Ashish Bhattacharya, MD, a board-certified plastic surgeon on staff at CentraState. "Similar to other areas of breast cancer treatment, reconstruction surgery after mastectomy has advanced dramatically in recent years," Dr. Bhattacharya says. During reconstruction, a surgeon places a device called an expander in the chest. The expander is gradually filled with saline over several weeks to stretch the skin to create room for a breast implant. "New techniques now allow surgeons to put enough fluid in the expander during reconstruction that many patients leave looking as if they have a new breast," Dr. Bhattacharya explains. In addition, doctors at CentraState are now performing breast symmetrization, which lifts a woman's other breast to match the reconstructed breast. A patient's own body fat can also be injected into the breast to create a more natural appearance. "Now, more than ever, we can help women achieve a more natural look and feel after mastectomy," Dr. Bhattacharya says. "Breast cancer patients are such strong women—I find myself inspired by them—and looking better after surgery is a small silver lining for a terrible diagnosis of cancer." STAYING CLOSE TO HOME In February 2009, Terri began chemotherapy. Surgery had removed cancerous breast tissue and lymph nodes. The intent of chemotherapy was to destroy any remaining, microscopic cancer cells in her body, says Bhavesh Balar, MD, a board-certified hematologist and oncologist on staff at CentraState. Terri says she greatly benefited from having all of her cancer treatments at the Cancer Center at CentraState, a five-minute drive from her home at the time in Freehold. The center offers community-based cancer care and is staffed by a compassionate and skilled team of doctors, nurses and specialists, including nurse navigators, who help patients access all the services they need. "We have the capability here at our center to manage just about any type of cancer," Dr. Balar says. "We're able to deliver the exact same treatments as the major urban cancer centers and, in some cases, we can provide better care because we are providing it close to home." When her chemotherapy ended in May 2009, Terri began a five-year treatment regimen with a hormone therapy called tamoxifen. "Her specific type of breast cancer needs estrogen to grow and hormone therapy blocks that process," Dr. Balar says. MOVING ON WITH LIFE Terri says she will never forget the day her therapy ended: May 5, 2014. "I celebrate being off the medicine," she says. While she was able to continue singing and working as a project coordinator at an engineering firm, the hormone therapy had left her with little energy at the end of each day. Now, she's back to exercising, slowly regaining her former status as a "gym rat," and remaining thankful for the support of her family and friends, she says. "Five years later and I feel like I'm getting my life back," Terri says. "I feel really good about the next five, 10, 15 years of my life. I keep saying that if I can get through cancer, I can pretty much get through anything." For more information about CentraState's cancer services, visit www.centrastatecancercenter.com or call 855-411-CANCER (855-411-2262). HD Mark Lehman, MD, board-certified surgeon Ashish Bhattacharya, MD, board-certified plastic surgeon Bhavesh Balar, MD, board-certified hematologist and oncologist 5 Years: A Breast Cancer Survivor Shares Her Journey

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