Breastfeeding and Breast Cancer

OH, I'm doing fine. Still just very low energy is the biggest side effect.  Port incision seems to be healing fine. Still doesn't look that great but it looks better than before and that's all I can hope for, right? I thought I started getting the mouth sores but I think it is just my gums being inflamed.  Nurse Angela doesn't agree with me. She says my mouth and throat are all red and she is worried it could erupt in mouth sores which are very unpleasant. She gave me a mouth rinse that is an equal mix of nystatin suspension (nystatin is oddly enough something used to treat nipples for thrush), mylanta (full strength) and lidocaine 2%.  It is the MOST disgusting thing I have ever had to do. It has a sickly sweet taste but the consistency of it is the worst, kind of like really thick saliva. Worse than that though the lidocaine is a numbing agent so my mouth is numb after I rinse. I don't like that feeling. I think I'm fine with the baking soda and salt rinse...but I'll stick it out for a few days nonetheless.

I am doing some research on breastfeeding and chemotherapy.  The news isn't great. I've emailed Dr. Jack Newman, the "know-all" guru of breastfeeding to get his opinion. In his book he suggested that a woman who had thyroid cancer while pregnant (and had surgery while pregnant) delay her second course of treatment so that she could breast feed a little longer (but I don't know if she was Stage III just that she had already had her tumor removed and was waiting to start Chemotherapy).  I will also call Wendy at the Pump Station to get her input as well.

I know that I can breastfeed for at least 2 weeks before I restart the Chemo and do the battery of scans and tests.  Maybe I can stretch it to a month.  A month being normal and breastfeeding sounds so amazing to me.  I want to bond with little Peanut when he gets here.  Plus I want to recover from the C-section too. (Well, really I want to pretend I don't have cancer and am just like any other mom with a newborn - breastfeeding, sleeping, eating, playing, helping Abby adjust to her new brother, etc.).  

I'm going to enlist pregnant and breastfeeding mommy friends to pump milk for Peanut. I hope I can get a good supply.  So if you are one of my mommy friends and you are pregnant or breastfeeding this means YOU!!!  PLEASE HELP!!!