So when we got to the hotel last night, the redness and soreness around my expander that I’ve been trying to ignore for the past two days had gotten a lot worse. Bad enough that I couldn’t deny that something was wrong.

This morning, our first stop in our series of appointments was with Katie, the PA for the plastic surgeon. One look at the area, and she was “not pleased.” Something is obviously wrong.

She ordered an ultrasound to check out what was happening.

From there, we went to see the PA for Dr. Gainer, the breast surgeon who will be performing my surgery. She wasn’t pleased either. She did her exam, then hurried us on our way to the ultrasound. I could tell things weren’t looking good, especially since we had to remind her to let us sign the consent forms for the planned surgery.

I was right…while we sat in the waiting room for the ultrasound, Dr. Gainer’s PA found us and said that after talking with Dr. Gainer about the situation, they were going to cancel my surgery for tomorrow. With the infection not being cleared up, they did not want to do it.

My ultrasound showed thick fluid in two areas. “Not much, but it is there,” said the radiologist. She said that it was too thick to insert a drain, so Dr. Kronowitz will have to decide how he wants to approach it.

We never got to see him, but he made the call to admit me into the hospital tonight. He wants me to start on IV antibiotics, then he will come see us on his rounds in the morning. The PA we talked to made mention of taking the expander out. My gut tells me that is what will happen.

I feel better than I have ever felt since I had surgery on Nov. 5; yet, I’m being admitted into the hospital. Odd.

It is pretty disappointing, but I think I mentally prepared for this to happen earlier this week when the first signs of “weirdness” began to appear. I’m most frustrated about the fact that I’m now looking at February before I start chemo. I just want to get this started so I can get this finished.

I realize this is a long post, but I feel like I have to add one more tidbit of information…

The last time I got bad news was the night I met Laura from Alaska. Today in the ultrasound waiting room right after the PA told us the surgery was canceled, a girl sitting close to me said, “We don’t belong here, do we?”

Now, we have been here more times than I care to mention, but besides Laura, I have never talked to any of the people around me.  I was taken a little by surprise.

I agreed with her given that she looked pretty close to my age which is well below the median around here. I asked if she was newly diagnosed. She wasn’t. She has been battling breast cancer for awhile.

She had found a lump a year or two before being diagnosed. She had no family history, and her family doctor told her it was nothing. A year or two later, she went back because it was still a problem. By that time, it had spread to her lungs and spine.

She has been getting treatment in Michigan. She came to MD Anderson this week for a second opinion. After tests yesterday, she found out the earth-shattering news that it has spread to her brain.

She’s really young. She has two kids — ages 10 and 8.

Guess a postponed surgery doesn’t seem so bad after all, huh?

I just know that it is not a coincidence that these people have entered my life at the exact times that they have.

So today, I thank God for perspective … exactly when I need it … yet again.

I thank God that Dr. William Bondurant (our family doctor) didn’t send me home even when he suspected it was a harmless fibroadenoma.

I thank God that, with my measly little IV antibiotic drip, I do not fit in the stem cell transplant wing they have put me in tonight. (The hospital is really full so they put me in the only room available – heck, I don’t even know what stem cell transplants are for!)