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tkelley

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Posts posted by tkelley

    One Year and Now I Am Having Scans..... [b]UPDATED[/b]

    in GENERAL

    Posted

    Hi Everyone!

    Thanks for the well wishes. Met with the gyn on Monday and he said my counts were 294 and they like to see under 20 :shock: Needless to say I almost fainted. He did say that the test is unreliable in premenopausal woment but he said that he wanted to refer me to an oncologist. My mom called my dad's old oncology nurse and she recommended one out of that office and was able to get me an appointment a week earlier which was great. (Sue, she is in the Virginia Oncology group)

    Had a CAT scan yesterday. My hats go off to all of you who drink that barium everytime. That stuff is horrible! I don't know how my dad did it all of the time. Anyway, even the technician commented on how "huge" my cyst was( I didn't think they were supposed to say anything).....

    Met with the Oncologist today and she truly feels that it is benign but said there still is a chance it could be cancerous and they won't know until they remove it. It is much bigger than originally thought. It is 18cmx18cmx15cm. Apparently the size of a 6 month pregnancy! She feels the solid piece could very well be my ovary. The only way to test it is to take it out so I will be getting a call tomorrow to schedule surgery. It will be a full laparotomy and I will be on my butt for at least 2 weeks. I keep trying to think of it as a mini vacation. They are hoping to only take the cyst and whatever ovary is attached to it, test it and if no sign of cancer, finish up. They will test it while I'm under and if it is malignant I will have a full hysterectomy.

    I am feeling much better about it today because the doctor was so calm and matter of fact. I think I am in good hands. Thank you so much for all of your thoughts and prayers. It truly means so much! I was convinced the fly that wouldn't get out of my car the other day was my dad and had a long talk with him :) (Hope no one was looking at the crazy later talking to the fly in her car) :wink:

    By the way, mom and I got the local ice hockey farm team down here (Norfolk Admirals) to tentatively agree to a "lung cancer awareness night in November" still working out the specifics and hoping that Lungevity will be the benficiary of whatever is decided!

    One Year and Now I Am Having Scans..... [b]UPDATED[/b]

    in GENERAL

    Posted

    Hi Guys,

    Well the 11th was a year for dad. As I am sure others understand, I can't believe it has been that long and in other ways it feel like an eternity....My mom, myself and the kids trekked up to NY to the cemetery and a mass in my dad's name. It was nice, most of his family was able to be there. I was finally able to have some alone time at the cemetery which was hard but I was able to grieve without my kids watching me and that was cathartic.

    Right before I left, I went in for a routine gyn exam and they thought my uterus was enlarged and had me come back for an ultrasound. The tech wasn't looking more than a minute when she left and got the nurse practicioner who then left and got the doctor.....I knew from experience that it wasn't a good thing :)

    They found a very large cyst (12 cm x 12 cm) that was obstructing their view of my ovaries and is apparently pushing up my uterus. They did say it is mainly fluid filled from what they can see (maybe a small solid piece of about 3 cm) and that it is smooth which is supposedly a good thing. They ran a CA-125 to check cancer counts and called while I was in NY to say it was elevated.....so, now they want a CAT scan this week.

    I have an appointment with my gyn office this afternoon for a surgery consult and an appointment for a second opinion on Weds. As of right now, not sure when the scan will be. Apparently the CA-125 is not a reliable indicator so I am hanging on to that hope but know not to get too excited until I have more info.... if there is any hint that this is cancer I am going to consult a gyn/onc......

    Sorry this was so long but needed a place to get this off my chest without making my mom too crazy....and I thought those "scanxiety" days were behind me :)

    Stand Up To Cancer Money

    in GENERAL

    Posted

    After reading Ginny's post I was really ticked! I did a little research and found some more information regarding the specific teams that the money was donated to. I've added the link if anyone wants to check it out. I did notice at the bottom of the page, that one of the people on the first dream team is a director of the lung cancer program at Lovelace Respiratory Research Center. This made me feel somewhat better. I also noticed that one of the groups is titled "Targeting the PI3K Pathway in Women’s Cancers". Hopefully this includes cancer other than breast cancer. I haven't had time to look into it further but if I do I will let you all know what I find out.

    Tammy

    http://www.standup2cancer.org/node/3531

    Suki

    in GRIEF

    Posted

    Thinking of you and your family. Over the years, it has been so obvious how much you love your mom. She did win.

    Dreams

    in GRIEF

    Posted

    How sweet and such a special valentine. My 2 year old daughter on several occassions has said "I see Cappy". One time she was staring off into the distance and I said "What are you looking at?" and she replied back "Cappy". There was no one anywhere near where she was looking. I just smiled because I truly believe that she does see him!

    Don M's request of his wife, Jude

    in GRIEF

    Posted

    Jude,

    Don never ceased to amaze me. I used to tell my parents about how involved he was with his treatment strategies and options. He did fight the good fight and was always there to encourage me and others here. He will be terribly missed but I know that like my dad gained his wings six months ago, Don has gained his also. I feel priveleged to have known him. My hugs and prayers are being sent to you and your family.

    6 Months Today

    in GRIEF

    Posted

    Hi All,

    Hope everyone is hanging in there. Its been rough around here lately. Mom has been having such a hard time. Between Thanksgiving, what should've been their 40th wedding anniversary and Christmas she is like a lost puppy. She is trying hard but I think its worse now than it was when my dad first died. My son and I went over the other day and helped her put up some Christmas decorations. We put up a small tree and put NY Giant ornaments all over it. My dad would've loved it.

    My son must be thinking of him alot lately because he has been watching the New York Giants superbowl win from last year and running around with my dad's Giant hat on. (Before we closed the casket it was the only thing he asked to have of my dad's).

    In some ways I can't believe its already been 6 months and in other ways it feels like a lifetime. I've convinced my mom to come here Christmas Eve and sleep over and enjoy Christmas day with the kids and then the day after we will meet up with the rest of the family in NY to celebrate Christmas up there and go to the cemetery together. Thank God for my children. If it weren't for them this would be so much harder.

    I hope you all get through Christmas ok. I'll be thinking of everyone.

    Tammy

    My first Holidays without Alan

    in GRIEF

    Posted

    Deb,

    We'll be thinking of you while we are going through the firsts this weekend also. Thanksgiving and then the following Sunday would've been my parents 40th wedding anniversary.......I know how much it sucks!! My mom has opted to go somewhere else this holiday. A friend gave us their beach house so we don't have to look at where my dad used to sit. We'll see how that goes. We're doing an informal Thanksgiving this year.

    I'm sorry to hear about your friend and will say an extra prayer for her.

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