If you are getting chemo and your docs offer to give you a port. Take it. It will save your arms from being stuck for taking blood and giving IVs. Its a small button about the size of a soda cap inserted in your right chest. The nurses will use that for chemo, IVs, and taking blood. Much easier on you.

Nate

Let me suggest another way to look at this. You had 47 nodes that showed zero signs of cancer. That's very good. So your cancer had only spread to two nodes and those have been removed. With a Stage II DX, surgery and now radiation, no reason for you not to make a complete recovery. Trust me that you would much rather have radiation now rather than have this cancer come back again later.
Follow the advice here about TSH tests, etc and you will be good to go. Radiation is not an easy road but it beats the heck out of recurrence.
Charm

[quote=Nate82]and at times I even tell myself this is how it will go for I was deserving of this path. Nathan [/quote]
HI Nate, slap that devil sitting on your shoulder - hard! You are NOT deserving of this path - stuff just happens. Listen to the angel sitting on your other shoulder and listen to the people on this site who know.

And remember this ... you are a mere 2 weeks out from major surgery and after all the complications and trips to emergency you are 95% healed!! You are young, you will heal fast - you just proved it with surgery, there is no reason to think you won't do it again with radiation.

Good luck, and give that devil a slap from me
Karen

Nathan Sorry to hear about the nodes.You are right we are all your friends,andall of our hearts are praying for you.I have only recently became a member but I feel like I have known you all for a long time. Good luck on radiation and hopefully it will be done before you know it.

Nate, no body deserves this. Many of us have sown plenty of wild oats in our lives ( I went through the recreational chemistry of the 60's in a beautiful haze after I returned from Viet Nam) And then there are some who never have been into smoking or drinking or drugs and still wind up on this board. Deserving has nothing to do with it. Stuff happens. What you deserve is the strength and will to get through this and so you will and so we will all be here for you to lean on when you need.

I have had positive nodes twice - once in 2004 at my first diagnosis and again in 2007 (some ambiguity exists as to whether there were 2 or 3 positive nodes in 2007). I had surgery,radiation both times (w/chemo in 2007) and, I am still here.

I can clearly remember putting too much emphasis on whether the nodes were positive or not. I was sure that positive nodes were a death sentence, but here I am - years later getting ready to chop up my Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow and be with my family, being Thankful for each day.

Do not prejudge the future. I keep hitting milestones I was sure I would never see and THAT feels odd!!

As my surgeon said once - we took OUT the ones with the cancer cells - always a good thing.

Hugs

Donna

You all made my day, we get whipped on by the NYG today and I was a bit sad and then whamo! A big smile put on my face by you guys. I have been doing a lot lately and just have been trying to live and act like a normal person. We dont talk about my cancer, we just enjoy family time, football time and real late at night when the lady is sleeping I enjoy my video games lol. I call it my virtual life, the one where diseases and problems do not exist : ) . Thank you all for your support and advice, I will do the best I possibly can, hell I even had a beer or two today for the game! Love ya guys!

Your Friend,
Nathan