got the call today that I've been waiting for since August 15th -- 4 long months. The final pathology from surgery on December 6th confirmed they got "negative margins." That means that they took healthy tissue beyond the cancerous tissue in all aspects and places. As Angela, the cancer surgeon's PA, said, they had to take a lot more tissue (not just the ECRL muscle, but fat and lymphatic tissue and veins and tendons) than they'd expected. It was indeed like a spider plant. Undifferentiated. No hard outer covering. No obvious edges. They had a 9-point grid and they went deeper and further afield than the radiation treatment's 'wide' field. But they got it. Hooray.
Next steps to talk to Scott Oates' team about scheduling the graft. And asking lots of questions about what's happening in my arm. E.g., is the fact that my middle finger is drooping and can't hold its own evidence of temporary or permanent tendon damage? But at last having solid good news is nice. I cried. (Ben had to ask his father why, but that's ok).
Meanwhile, the OT worked on scar tissue and swelling today. Super painful, but I get it has to be done.
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