Is it just me?

[Irwin1]

On May 29 I had my PET scan done. Had my first office appointment with my oncologist on the June 4th. The first visit I had with him was around May 20 when my lung mass was discovered on an ER CT scan which was diagnosed as pneumonia. 

    The PET scan was positive on the mass with one lymphnode that also lit up. I am not having a good day today because I am low on energy and weak. The oncologist made an appointment with a thoracic surgeon on June 19 for an office visit. I don't know when the procedure will be done. But since I only have that one local lymph node showing positive you would think that there would be some urgency to get the lymphnode out. But as you can see it sure looks like they are dragging their feet. Am I the only one who this is happening to or is it just my experience? 

 BTW. Could the low energy be due to the pneumonia that I had on the week of May 20? I have been having an on and off again low grade fever and someone told me that it takes a while to recover from the pneumonia.

  

[Rower Michelle]

Hi Irwin

If you take a look around the forum, you’ll see we all can’t stand the waiting part of the diagnosis and monitoring process.  It stinks.  It’s not unusual for the initial diagnostic and testing to take 6-8 weeks.  The outpatient medical community unfortunately doesn’t move with the same sense of urgency we think they should when looking at a cancer diagnosis.  

If you are having fevers, call the oncologist’s after hour service and let them know.  While it can take a while to recover from pneumonia, fevers aren’t typical.  

Make sure you are getting plenty of water (at least 64oz per day). Let the doc know about your fatigue too- that could be anything.  

I understand how frustrating all of this is however at the end of the day all this waiting does pay off. The better the diagnostic process, the more precise your treatment plan will be. Hang in there   You’re making progress  

Michelle 

[Irwin1]

Wow. Have you considered becoming a hostage negotiator for the police. You never miss on giving a shot of encouragement.

   Well the pulmonary doctor said that it would take at least more than a month to recover from the pneumonia although he didn't say anything about low grade fevers. I didn't have a super heavy case of pneumonia. I was admitted for the mass they found. 

   I did mention the low grade fever to the oncologist on the one office visit because I had one in the office. I mentioned that it might be from the pneumonia. He said that it could also be caused by a tumor. So he is aware of the on and off fevers.

   But tomorrow I am going to call my pulmonary doctor and let him know what's going on. Maybe he can do something. Plus I haven't been too active for the past two months because my wife had a relative staying with us. So for the first time I had to take out a kitchen garbage bag outside to the main garbage and I ended up losing my breath doing it. I didn't realize that I had developed shortness of breath so quickly because of my lack of activities. I also have trouble walking off and on with weak legs at times because of DDD in my lower back. 

   Anyway you and Tom are so great at giving advice. It seems like it's always been there did that for everything in the world of LC!