Okay then.

The bad news: 

The tumor is grade 3, which means that on a scale of 1 (best) to 3 (worst), it does not play well with others and is more likely to metastasize.

It also means, in combination with my age and other factors, that there may be a need for chemo even if the cancer has not spread. Since I liken chemo to drinking Drano for a few weeks, I am Not Happy about this. Won't know til after surgery whether it is necessary. It would be a drip, not a pill.

The good news:

There is probably little possibility that my daughter will have an elevated risk of breast cancer, since my family has no history of it (and thus, no gene mutation is suspected). This issue will be addressed at a later date, via genetics. First things first.

My fear about radiation close to my heart was somewhat lessened upon hearing the news that the current practice is to shoot the radiation parallel to the body, as opposed to directly into it.

It's stage 1, as I expected.

No MRI or additional pre-surgery testing will be necessary.

Because of the tumor location and size (and the size of other things, ahem), disfigurement is not expected. I'll believe it when I see it, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.

The hormone situation is good on all levels, which is apparently important.

It sounds as if I'll be able to get the 5-6 weeks of radiation within a couple of miles of home and work full time through it, with few side effects.

It also sounds as if I will not be given zombie-level pain meds for the days following surgery, as I was after my C-section. This is good news indeed, since I don't like being a zombie. Or the crazy all-night itching those meds brought me last time.

The other news:

The MDs say that the dozens of different drugs I shot up during my 12 months of IVF treatment probably accelerated the cancer, which they assume has been there for 1 or 2 years (my daughter is 2-1/2). I fully expect that in 20 years, it will be announced that some or all of those drugs cause cancer. Oh well. (Note: I brought up the possible connection, not the MDs.)

Although I was hoping for a surgery date of, oh.... say... tomorrow afternoon, I am pleased that it's scheduled for July 21.

The surgeon has hard, cold, clinical eyes. I suppose this is one wants in a scientist / professor.