New diagnosis

Well, I went very quiet after my initial post, didn't I? It wasn't by choice but everything was in such a state of turmoil and rush that I didn't seem to have any time for thinking, let alone posting on a blog! So, first, let me say how grateful I am for all the messages of support I received in what has turned out to be quite a journey! I am so grateful. I live in a semi rural area to the north west of Noosa in Qld, so travelling for services is par for the course. Within a week of visiting my surgeon, I was to be operated on. First, on the day of my op. I had to drive 50 minutes to the Nuclear Medicine facility (as my hospital has no such facility) to have radioactive isotopes injected into my breast. I was scared but it turned out to be a fairly painless - piece of cake! Then it was back to my hospital to have the hook wire inserted - ouch! Then the op! By the time I was wheeled into the operating room, I was looking forward to the sleep lol! The op went well and I was in tip top shape with very little pain. Bonus! I was discharged home 2 days after the op and, although I was feeling vaguely unwell, was considered well enough! So home I went ...... Then all hell broke loose! The evening of the day I was discharged, I was so ill that, when hubby came home from work, I was begging him to take me back to the hospital. The emergency room doctor took one look at me and five minutes later, I was being wheeled up to the ward I had been discharged from earlier that day, bloods were taken, cannulas inserted and I was being fussed over. I don't remember much of the next two days except having a raging fever, vomiting, feeling cold and very, very ill. Turned out I had developed an very large haematoma behind the wound (which is quite normal), coupled with a very nasty infection. The long and short of this sad story is that I had to have a further operation to deal with the haematoma and infection and was in hospital for another 12 days. The good news is that the margins were clear and there was no involvement of the lymph nodes. So, all good, right? Well no, not exactly. Turns out it was a Grade 2 tumour, not Grade 1 but it's Radiotherapy for me. I visited the Oncologist for the first time on Friday and, to say I'm shocked at the scope of the radiotherapy would be an understatement. Because the tumour was in my left breast, there could be heart involvement, lung scarring etc along with the myriad of other possible side effects which I dont have to tell any of you about. I think this radiotherapy is the worst part - did anyone else feel like this? I came out of the Oncologists office and burst into tears at the receptionists desk. I felt so alone (as I have throughout all of this journey - no ones fault, just circumstances) and scared at the thought of what is ahead! I would love to hear the experiences of other survivors during their radiotherapy treatment and am also seeking info on clean eating or cancer fighting foods if anyone has anything to share. Thank you so much again for your support thus far and I look forward to hearing back from anyone who cares to post. Cheers, Barbara