2weimies

Next staurday is the dauy I met with the surgeon and I'll already have done my PFT's and pre op. I am bring my DH and my sister who is a RN. I will try and formulate a list of questions to ask and collect as much info as I can. The VATS procedure sounds like it would maybe best recouperatively if possible.But with my history of PE I have no idea what the surgeon has in mind just yet. I appreciate all your concern and support and must say I feel at home here and am grateful to have met all of you caring people. I'll keep you all posted.Surgery is scheduled for march 13th.

Yes I beleive you may be absolutely correct about the OR time and it seems the doctors nurse felt that after reviewing all my films &cat & PET scan and reading the reports he felt surgery was the correct next step. I however was ill prepared to hear that...strange though cause when the pulmonologist said I must see a thoracic surgeon I thought really ? why? I guess I was /am in denial. I simply cannot belive that I a non smoker can have lung cancer its just too impossible to think about. I am also worried about the surgery and results.

seeing surgeon 3/3. doing pft's and preop 3/2. surgery scheduled for 3/13.

I spoke with the scheduler from hopkins and she explained what she knew and arranged my appt to meet with the surgeon saturday march 3rd and I will have my pulmonary function tests and pre op work done the day before on march 2nd. She also suggested that the doctors nurse call me up and talk to me to help answer any questions and exolain the proposed surgery. so I agreed.She was really nice and so was the nurse who spent alot of time with me answering questions and explaining what happens.Basically They do a bronchoscopy(sp?) after I am asleep with general anesthesia and then they'll do a VATS resection and biopsy the nodule.If its malignant they will open me up and do the lobectomy right then.So I wont know till(if)I wake up.That is very scary to me. I told my other 2 children tonight and I worry about my son age 18 who is at college and is a silent ,quiet kid. I tried to play up the positive side that its really small and contained IF its anything bad..so hopefully they are OK with it. Its going to happen quite fast I suppose litle time to plan. I had a phone message from my pulmonologist who wanted to know where I was with getting a surgeon and moving on this!!I was surprised she was so concerned and followed up! I suppose I'll be seeing her in the future anyway for followup at some point either way right??? I guess I have come to see based on what the nurse and you guys have said that surgery is my only hope for a cure should it be malignant and the nurse felt that the docvtor strongly suspected that was the case. Its always something........ Thanks for your support I will need to try to get my head together before March 13th (surgery day) I appreciate your support and prayers.

I guess I wont know what this doctor has inmind until and unless I go see him.But to have pre op testing done before a consultation sems a bit too much.I understand I need PFT's which scare me cause I have no idea what they are either and because anything to do with my lungs freaks me out since my PE. I wil definitley take several people with me to ask questions and to support me cause I am paralyzed with fear at this point. Thank you for writing I appreciate it!

THat sound so awful and painful. Did they not know you had one lung w/o lobes? How bnig was your nodule? did it light up on PET scan? Were you in great physical shape before your surgery? I am not in great shape I don't exercise and am overweight although on weight watchers I have lost about 18 pounds last 6 -7 weeks.... Can you walk up stairs afterwards? I could not after my hysterectomy and exploartory sugery but they were abdominal surgery so maybe thats different. The scar sounds huge! I am so happy you are well and a living testament it can be done and one can survive. I have had such bad luck with surgery and am a terrible patient. I have a sister and daughter who are both nurses and I still could not recover well.I have a one year grandaughter and I want to live to see her grow up and my son graduate College.I am just terrified at this point.Do you know what a VAT resection is? THe receptionist mentioned that or lobectomy as possible surgeries.I guess I can ask more questions tomorrow if I am able to breathe when she calls. Thanks so much for responding I feel really alone.

I don't know what any of those things(VATS) are .My sister thinks it was just a dumb receptionist barely a high school graduate who is playing doctor by dropping all that on me. She is saying don't panic yet. I just can't imagine more surgery ..I nearly died with a PE after the surgery last year and it has taken me about a year to get back to somewhat normal ( as normal as one can be with surgical menopause) Thank you for writing. Why can't they just biopsy it? Or is that what a VATS is?

What is alobectomy, wher was your cancer< how did they do the surgery, What was the recovery like. Did you need further treatment. Are you disabled now? How big of an incision do you have and where is it? Can you tell I am in total panic ?

I have been trying to get in to see this doctor at Hopkins,brought all my films and reports last thursday.I heard nothing and called today was told they are on his desk...I waited... Called back before 4 pm ( when they close ) and was told we don't have it back from him yet so I asked how long should it take.I was put on hold.. a few minutes later this woman says I have 4 people to schedule before you You'll be hearing from us tomorrow...Puzzled I said so I'll be seeing the doctor this week ??she said No in march.I said Oh so he thinks its ok and I can wait..She then says he will see you on Saturday March 2nd and your surgery will be march 12th it is a 3 hour surgery and you'll be in here for 3 days.I couldn't breathe and said what??? what surgery??I have not even seen or spoken to this doctor, what surgery is he planning ????She goes on I'll need to bring you in sooner for PFT and pre op work.I said What??? she said breathing tests and blood work.I said what surgery???she said he will meet with me on the 2nd to discuss it... I pressed on and she said its not really my area but probaly a lobectomy or vats resection/HUH? I left work crying...I need to find a doctor to meet with and talk to.Is this hot shot so sure this is cancer that he is willing to operate without ever meeting me?? Is this standard?? does not sound like any doctor I want taking care of me . Initially I was bothered that I could not get an appt without him first reviewing all my tests and now this scheduling surgery without my input or permission?? How do I find a good thoracic surgeon who specializes in lung cancer in maryland? Please help!! I have a 8mmx9mm nodule upper right lobe. It uptaked the tracer 4.6 SUV on Pet scan...Its a plueral based nodule a typical for malignancy according to radioogist report.

I have been trying to get in to see this doctor at Hopkins,brought all my films and reports last thursday.I heard nothing and called today was told they are on his desk...I waited Called back before 4 pm ( when they close ) and was told we don't have it back from him yet so I asked how long should it take.I was put on hold.. a few minutes later this woman says I have 4 people to schedule before you You'll be hearing from us tomorrow...Puzzled I said so I'll be seeing the doctor this week ??she said No in march.I said Oh so he thinks its ok and I can wait..She then says he will see you on Saturday March 2nd and your surgery will be march 12th it is a 3 hour surgery and you'll be in here for 3 days.I couldn't breathe and said what??? what surgery??I have not even seen or spoken to this doctor, what surgery is he planning ????She goes on I'll need to bring you in sooner for PFT and pre op work.I said What??? she said breathing tests and blood work.I said what surgery???she said he will meet with me on the 2nd to discuss it... I pressed on and she said its not really my area but probaly a lobectomy or vats resection/HUH? I left work crying...I need to find a doctor to meet with and talk to.Is this hot shot so sure this is cancer that he is willing to operate without ever meeting me?? Is this standard?? does not sound like any doctor I want taking care of me . Initially I was bothered that I could not get an appt without him first reviewing all my tests and now this scheduling surgery without my input or permission?? How do I find a good thoracic surgeon who specializes in lung cancer in maryland? Please help!!

I had surgery last march and developed a PE as a result,was on coumadin for 6 months there after and am just getting mysdelf together.I had a cat scan which confirmed the PE in MArch @ hopkins( no nodule) and one in april ( just to check ) and I believe there was a 1mm nodule middle right lung.Another Cat scan in august all fine no PE and still 1mm Lung nodule ( middle right lung) now jan 25 I start having really bad UPPER ight chest pains I wait a day or so and eventually callmy primarty doctor who insists I go to the ER as he thinks I have developed another PE.Good news no PE .ER doctor says follow up with your doctor cause you have alung nodule.He sent me home with films but not report..so I assumed it was same lung nodule middle of teh lung..However it wasn't .They found a 6mm lung nodule same lung but UPPER in pleura area... I was refrred to my pulmonologist who said it was probably nothing as I had no symtoms of lung cancer and am a non smoker...she wanted to follow up in 2 months or so ..But said If I felt better and to be sure she could send me for a PET scan which she calimed would definitely be negtaive due to small size 6mm of nodule...she said teh solution they use is not sensitive enough to catch cancer at such a small size... It took about a week or so to get the insurance companies approval and I had it done feb10th...I picked up the preliminary treport and films and then had the final report faxed ,.The nodule is 8mmx9mm and showed moderate FDGuptake ..and bmaximum SUV of 4.6.No other areas showed uptake!! It said that location was somewhat atypical for a malignant nodule but that malignancy cannot be completely excluded. My pulmonologist immediately wanted to sendf me to a thoracic surgeonand I am trying desperately to get in with a top doc at HOPKINS.I understand he has my films and reports on his desk and I am awaiting a call as to whether he wants to see me urgently for an appintment or else it takes about 3 months to get in and see him!! Questions are 1.Is this malignant? 2.what can be done? 3What else could it be,it wasn't there in march, april or August so its developed and grown to that size since August. 4.Are their blood tests that can be done or something else?? I have no chest pain now that resolved in a few days after the ER visit.and no other symtoms I am terrified.Both my parents died of cancer intheir early 50"s my older sister has Dx malignant melonma ( 3 years older) and several uncles and aunts died of cancer ..its all over my familty

what size was your original nodule? If you had the upper right lobe removed how can you develop another mass in it?? I thought after researching and reading that removal of the cencer initialy was the best hope for a total cure. Do you think you should have also had chemo or radiation after you initial surgery? How long did it take fir you to recover from the surgery and how was it performed.Sorry to ask so many questions but I want to be totally prepared when I see the doctor.Also did you have a PET scan with your original nodule?? Thanks so much for writing.

I am new here ,but here is my story. I have a Lung nodule right upper lung.It was discovered on a Cat scan @ 6mm in the ER due to chest pains they thought I was having another PE.The nodule is visible on a PET Scan ( larger than previously thought) now 8mm x 9mm and apparently ' did Lite up" with moderate uptake..... They said if biopsy is deferred than CAT scans should be done at regular intervals to monitor the stability of this nodule" Although the spot where its located is atypical for malignancy they cannot exclude it. I think that the rational for doing the PET scan was to see if there were any cancer cells ( those that suck up the glucose) "uptake"....so I wondered is it ever possible that something can "uptake" and not be cancer??? I can't seem to find that info anywhere........ If anyone is going to do any biopies or whatever I want someone who knows what the hell they are doing. Of course Hopkins just creeps me out as they nearly killed me with the PE after surgery last year . This was something I was not expecting cause the pain in my chest subsided and the pulmonologist said it would definately come back negative ( we never discussed what would happen if it didn't) The pulmonologist wants to refer to a thoracic surgeon. She said they will have to go in and remove it ,cannot be biopsied and if its cancer they'll take the entire Lobe! I am going to (I think) get a second opinion) from a pulmonologist oncologist type doctor probably at Hopkins. I am all for avoiding uneccessary surgery. Does anyone have a similiar story with a happy ending?? I am a Non smoker who is married for 20 years to a smoker. Go figure!