Lumpectomy Day: Sharing My Patient Experience on Surgery Day

I was surprised to learn that my lumpectomy would be done as an outpatient surgery. I had expected to stay overnight in the hospital, but the actual surgery was very short. It was a long day, with an early wake-up and a late drive home. But I was so thrilled to sleep in my bed after the surgery was done.  

I’d like to share my patient experience with you today and I hope that it will be helpful for you as you prepare for your surgery.

I didn’t know what to expect for the day since this was my first surgery. It wasn’t going to be done at our local hospital since it was out of network for our insurance. (Boo) That meant additional travel time for us in the LA traffic. The ride down, I was full of nerves and fear, but the ride home felt short! I was still pretty relaxed from the anesthesia.  

My surgery happened before Covid hit, so there were not the same restrictions in place about visitors in the hospital. I also didn’t need to have a covid test performed before the surgery. Before your surgery, you will likely need to have a covid test. You may need to isolate for a designated time to ensure that you are as healthy as possible for surgery. 

2 Days Before: Nurse Call

Two days before my surgery, I received a call from the nursing team at the hospital where I was to have my surgery. This was a lengthy call that went over my medical history. The nurse asked me questions about my allergies, previous surgeries, and also gave me instructions to prepare for the surgery. There were medications I couldn’t take before my surgery. She also told me that I would need to be fasting for at least 7 hours before surgery. During this call, I got my arrival time at the women’s center for my localization. I needed to arrive at that location at 10:15. This was four hours before my scheduled surgery. 

Night Before: Pack and Plan

The night before surgery, I put together my bag for the day. I wasn’t scheduled to stay overnight, but I wanted to make sure I had supplies if that became necessary. Since the hospital was 45 minutes away from our home, it wouldn’t be convenient for Dave to drive home to get my overnight supplies if I needed them.  

I packed a toothbrush, deodorant, clean underwear, socks, and also a front-close bra. My surgeon had instructed me to bring one with me to wear home.

I also laid out my clothes for the day. I planned to wear yoga pants and a loose button-front top. I brought a sweatshirt for warmth.  

Surgery Day: 4 AM Breakfast and Shower

The alarm went off at 4 AM. I needed to finish eating my food by 5 AM, so I had an hour for breakfast and coffee. It would be a long day, and I didn’t want to start it without coffee. I sat in bed, enjoying my coffee and trying to keep my eyes open. 

I took a shower, which was a really good thing because I couldn’t take a standard shower for a while after the surgery.

Then, I got dressed in the clothes I had laid out the night before and headed downstairs.

Hug the Kids and Take Pictures

I woke the kids up before we left for the hospital to give them one last hug and take some pictures with them. I was terrified about whether or not I would wake up from the anesthesia. It was tough to say goodbye to them that morning. They would be doing their school at home and then going over to our neighbors’ house for the afternoon and evening.

My sons were old enough to manage the home by themselves, but I didn’t feel good about them being alone while I was in surgery. Thankfully our neighbors were willing to keep them company and take care of them on my surgery day!

Drive to Hospital

Dave and I got in the car and headed into LA. There was no traffic on that day because the freeway had been partially shut down due to fires. I had messaged my surgeon early in the morning to make sure that there weren’t any changes to my surgery time due to the fire.

10:15 Check-in for Wire Localization

 I checked into the women’s imaging center across the street from the hospital about 4 hours before my surgery. This was so that the radiologist could place wires in the targeted locations. My DCIS wasn’t a palpable lump, so the wires would help my surgeon know where to remove. I wrote about this process in a previous post, so I won’t go into all the details here. Let’s just say that I felt like a fish on a hook when the procedure was done.

Check In To Hospital

After I was done with the localization, I got dressed and headed out to see my husband. I was pleasantly surprised to see that he had a friend who would be hanging out with him during my surgery. I gave them both hugs (pre-covid, do you remember those times?). Then we got into a van and were chauffeured to the door of the hospital. There was a nurse with us as well. I’m not sure if they thought I would run away, but they didn’t want me unsupervised!

Then, we had to wait our turn to check-in. The hospital was crowded, and there was nowhere for me to sit. Dave hunted a chair for me and then waited out in the hallway. I was exhausted and uncomfortable.  

We got checked into the hospital after what seemed like forever. I was assigned a number. Dave would check my surgery’s progress by matching my unique number with color-coded progress status reports. He could see when I was in surgery, recovery, and back in the room just by checking the board.  

Long Walk to a Room- Why Didn’t I Ask For a Wheelchair?

Once I got checked in, we were walked through the hospital, down several hallways, up the elevator, down more hallways to another waiting room. It was a really long walk. I should have asked for a wheelchair.

Sit In A Waiting Room (again) 

We had another waiting room to sit in until a hospital room opened up for me. We must have been in that room, listening to the other people swap surgical horror stories for at least 30 minutes. This was not helping me calm down. I was in an unfamiliar hospital and had yet to see a face I recognized. I was terrified of surgery, but this was the only way to get the cancer out. 

Check Into Room

I was so excited to hear my name called. Finally, it was time to get this show on the road! I kept looking at the clock because there wasn’t much time before my scheduled surgery. All of the check-ins were putting me behind schedule. Although, if I wasn’t there, the surgery couldn’t happen. So, it didn’t matter if I was late. The nurse greeted us and walked us to our room.

Get Clean with Special Towels

I was given a package of special wipes. The nurse told us that we needed to follow a specific procedure to get me cleaned up for surgery. This was to reduce the risk of contracting a bacterial infection in the hospital. There was a strict procedure to follow with each of the towels. Dave helped get me clean on the areas I couldn’t reach. I was clean and cold!

I crawled under the cozy warm blankets in the hospital bed and pressed the call button for the nurse.  

Nurse Check-in

The check-in nurse came in to go over the entire process with me. She asked me many questions about my medical history, went over the surgery timeline, talked to Dave about when he would meet with my surgeon, and gave instructions about recovering at home.

She then started an iv on me and called the surgery floor to tell them that I was ready to go. One of the last bits of encouragement she gave me was to think happy thoughts as I was going under. She said that whatever I felt right before surgery would carry over to when I was waking up. I had no idea if that was true, but I was willing to try!

I then gave Dave my valuables to hold for me during surgery. My clothes were kept in a bag with my name on them and would be given back to me after surgery. I kept my front-close bra with me so that the team could put it on me after they were done.

To the Surgery Floor

My surgeon called down to the admitting floor. He was ready for me and was wondering where I was. After all the nurse conversations were done, it was time for me to be moved to surgery. The orderlies were called to move me to the surgical floor.

It was a bizarre feeling to be moved down the corridor and into the elevator while lying down in the hospital bed. Dave was able to walk with me to the doors of the surgery ward. He kissed me and then was off.

Surgery was really happening.

2 PM:  Surgery

I was wheeled into a corner of the surgical floor and then left there for a bit. I could hear the voice of my surgeon as he was chatting with his colleagues. It was the first familiar voice I had heard all day. Immediately I felt calmer.

My surgeon looked over and realized that I had finally arrived. He walked up, touched my arm, and asked me how I was doing. Next, I would talk with the anesthesiologist, and then we would get started.  

The anesthesiologist came over and introduced himself (or herself). I have no good memory of whether this doctor was a man or a woman. All I remember was that he said he wasn’t going to have me count down before administering the anesthesia.  

After the meeting, I was wheeled into the surgical room. It was bright, cold, and full of people. I saw my mammogram films up on the light board. These were images of the wire placement that had been done just a few hours before. I saw my name on the board and my drug allergies listed.  

The staff picked me up off of the hospital bed and moved me to the cold surgical table. To my left was a nurse who introduced herself to me. Her entire job was to make sure that my vital signs were stable throughout the surgery. She would also be there in recovery.

I remember a mask being put over my mouth.

Waking up – Around 4:30?

The very next thing I remember is waking up. I looked around, and I was in a different room.

“Is it over?” I asked the nurse. She said yes, and I laughed and cried happy tears. I felt relaxed and relieved. After all the horrible biopsies, it was finally over.  

Then I started to shiver. She put some Demerol in my iv, and I felt a wave of calm come over me.

After a few minutes, I was wheeled in the bed back to the floor I had started on.

I was alone in the room for a little bit, hearing the nurses chatter in the hallway. Then I heard Dave’s voice. He was working out the details of my medication. I could not wait to see him. If I could have gotten up, I would have.

Reunion and Heading Home

It was amazing to see him again. I had been so worried that I wouldn’t wake up from the surgery. He kissed me, and then the nurse went over some of the instructions. My blood pressure was doing fine, but I needed to get up and use the restroom before I was released.

I got up with assistance and made my way to the restroom. I was a little unsteady, but other than that, I felt pretty good. I wasn’t feeling any pain at all.  

We waited for the pharmacy to deliver the medications to us, and then it was time for me to be released.  

I got in a wheelchair and was pushed to the door of the hospital. Just a few hours before, I had entered with wires poking out of me and a fear of surgery. Now, we were headed home.

Walk to Car

Dave asked me if I was willing to try to walk to the car. There was a lot of construction going on at the hospital, and it would have taken more time for him to get the car and figure out a way to get me.

I was ready to get home and felt pretty good. So, I got up from the wheelchair, and he held me steady as we made our way to the car.  

I have very little memory of the ride home. I think I made a few happy (and loopy) calls to my immediate family.

I got comfortable at home and had a little to eat. It felt good to be in my own space. After being home for a little while, we were ready to have the kids walk home from our neighbors’ house.  

It was amazing to see them. I had been so afraid of the entire day, and yet it was over.  

That night was the best night of sleep I’d had in months. The cancer was out. Recovery and radiation were still ahead of me, but for now, I could rest. 

Surgery day was long for us. I think we were gone from home for over 12 hours. The actual surgery was only about 2 hours long, but the travel, wire localization, preparation, checking in, and recovery took up a significant amount of time.

 Your surgery day may look very different from mine, but I hope that this post helps you prepare for your lumpectomy.