I think I'm 'now' Jewish. I took a genetic test called the BRCA1 and BRCA2. It's the test for the breast cancer gene. My doctor suggested I take it since I am young to have breast cancer, my father is of Eastern European decent [Hungarian] and I have a daughter. Tahe gene is prevalent amongst Eastern European Jews and since Hungary falls into the Eastern European map- I qualified.

My results came back positive for BRCA2. [pronounced bracca 2] This answered the 'how' I got breast cancer. It also included some genetic details of my ancestry.

If you test positive for this gene [and more on this later when I feel like really sharing my deepest thoughts on this topic since it involves my kidlets] you may be of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry if you carry the mutations 187delAG, 5385insC and 6174delT. 

I am positive for 6174delT. #mazeltov

The report says: If this individual is of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry, it is recommended that follow-up testing of relatives of this individual include analysis for the mutations 187delAG, 5385insC, and 6174delT because of reports of coexistence of two high-frequency germline mutations in some Ashkenazi families.  [my dad tested positive, he was raised Catholic][and my genetic counselor wants my siblings + later my children at age 18 to get checked]

I'm not all that surprised. My father was raised Catholic. His father's side of the family was "very" Catholic... including Cardinal Janos Simor . I think his mother's ancestors were of Jewish decent. The family tree shows a last name ending in Stein. #deadgiveaway,maybe

I also wondered if my dad knew any of this... he was born in 1928, fled from behind the Iron curtain in the 40's when being of Jewish decent was obviously not very popular... which leads me to believe his parents never told him. [my dad confirmed that over Thanksgiving]

I'm also not that surprised because, well, quite frankly, I felt a little Jewish. Ok... how does one 'feel' Jewish. And can you be a little Jewish or is that like being a little bit pregnant? I don't know... but there was a certain comfort that I was amongst my people when I taught at Mercer Island High School in the Seattle area. [a predominantly Jewish community] My students noticed it, commented on it. I even tried to teach while sitting on my hands one day... that didn't work.

When I share my new info with my Jewish girlfriends, they welcome me to the tribe. Yesterday I even had a gift on my front porch. It included books on Hanukkah and Matzo Ball soup, a dreidel, and Hanukkah cookies. :) #seethecookiepicabove #happyHanukkah

I'm not sure what if anything to do with my newfound ancestry. In fact I wasn't raised Catholic, I don't belong to a church and I embrace people's rights to worship whom or what they please. What I do know is that I carry the BRCA2 gene and I don't believe that any god would wish breast cancer on anyone.

for more info on BRCA Analysis:
www.myriadtests.com
www.facingourrisk.org

It's been a long day. A good flippin' long day.

My pet scan results came back.... voila just like that [ok, not so voila, just like that]
Negative. Negative on the carcinoma. NO CANCER. No glowy spots on the scan. No tumor. No funky nodes.
CANCER FREE BABY... just how I like it.

I cried tears of joy. I don't think I've done that yet in the realm of my cancer world. [If my words are 'off' meaning they don't grammatically match up to what I'm '... blame it on the pain meds. Yes, I'm on them today, I got expanded again and my new ta-tas are stretching out my pecs + skin]

When I told my daughter she smiled big...with her new smile that is missing her top front tooth. She said "You don't have cancer anymore". That is so simply put, yet so larger than life.

I don't feel cancer free yet... it will take a while to soak in. I still have a shitload of items on my cancer treatment checklist to tackle before my journey is over. So as much as I'd like to feel like it's all over, it isn't. Closer.... a LOT closer.

What's left:
6 weeks of radiation [to insure the bastard doesn't come back]
Breast reconstruction [they are coming along quite nicely]
Hysterectomy [because I'm at a high risk for ovarian cancer]

So today I CELEBRATE, but tomorrow I see my radiation oncologist to keep on keepin' on.

p.s. I VERY much appreciate all your kind comments on Facebook and on Twitter today. Thank you all for walking next to me as I mosey on down this path. It's way more fun with you than without.

Last March- 8 months ago, I had my first Pet Scan click here... I drove myself, cried on the curb, then received messages from my girlfriends to never drive myself or go alone to appointments. I listened. So tomorrow my faithful friend Lisa will be driving me to get my 2nd Pet Scan. #doespetscandeservetobecapitalized? If I need to cry... Lisa will cry with me. If I chatter on about the amazing technology she'll agree. She'll ask questions that I'll forget to ask and she'll probably offer to carry my handbag because it may be too heavy for me to carry post op. 

I don't say this often, but I'm actually scared about tomorrow. Not so much about the process... which is uncomfortable but tolerable, but about what the possible bright orange/yellow glowing objects that may appear on the scans. I don't want to see anything but black and white. PLEASE NO COLOR.... I don't want a speck of cancer to be in my body. I WANT IT ALL GONE.

Tonight I read my mastectomy pathology report... I mean read it, not just glanced at it. There is a portion of the report that read as follows: [i'm only going to share a tid bit]

GROSS DESCRIPTION
1. Left breast (prophylactic): Received fresh labeled "Colvin, Krista, left breast prophylactic" is a 1116 gram specimen.....

2. Right breast and axillary contents: Received fresh labeled "Colvin, Krista" is a product of a modified radical mastectomy. .....

Holy Shit... my breast tissue was in a tray- labeled with my name. Reading the nitty gritty details made me cry.  I hope all the cancer made it from my body to that tray. I hope not a speck was left behind. I hope not a single cell snuck off to make it's home elsewhere in my body.

I DON'T WANT TO HAVE BREAST CANCER A SECOND TIME OR A THIRD TIME.  Once is enough for me. Once is enough for my kids. Once is enough for my husband.

So tonight I am scared. I want the scans to be clear. I want to enter radiation knowing it's just something one does to keep cancer from coming back.

I'm ready to see a colorless scan of my body.