- D
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Warning: I’m sharing details, pour yourself a drink.
Sighhhhh, I said it, that was difficult, what can I do? I just have to deal with what’s be given to me. If I tried to ‘wish it away’, then someone else would have to suffer through it and I wouldn’t want that.
You ’d think that with the ‘pinpoint radiation’, pumping my body full of poisonous chemotherapy and tossing in the kitchen sink (as Dr Potkul stated to me), that would of demolished the endometrial cancer… but NOOOOOO, some horrible, evil cell hid out….waiting to hurt me, attack my spirit. THAT is the reason I had a hard time believing or saying that ‘I HAD CANCER’. (past tense)
All the follow-up cancer check-ups, Dr Potkul said everything looks good, you’re in remission. (it’s hard to believe anything they tell me right now, let me tell ya) In July, it would have been 2 yrs since my last chemo infusion.
January 12th, Dr Potkul checked … all was well. The day after Easter, my friend Barb & I took a road trip down to Sarasota FL … a Thelma & Louise adventure, minus the dive over the cliff. I began noticing some extremely light spotting and that wasn’t even daily. On the ride home, the coloration turned to a very pale pink, pain increased in my lower back and the last bathroom stop, the tissue alerted me that NO, this is not good, since I had a full hysterectomy, how could this even be possible? After placing Barb safely back to her husbands waiting arms, I drove home, immediately called the doctors office to tell my tale and an appt was made for a few days out. Since with EVERY appt I was asked…’is there any bleeding’… I thought that this is what was supposed to occur, so I wasn’t panicking.
Two hours later … all hell broke loose. I’ve never SEEN afterbirth or a miscarriage ….. but I imagine the handfuls exiting me was similar. What the hell? Where is all this coming from? Then I KNEW.
I dealt with 4 hours of continual panic, then it calmed down, back to a light panic.
In the doctors office, Dr Potkul said he felt something, 99% chance it’s a tumor and scheduled a CT Scan of my abdomen. Thankfully, the scan hit my lungs and showed something was there too. The lung surgeon Dr Lubawski (also at Loyola University Medical Center) scheduled a PET Scan, it confirmed the mass in the top lobe of my right lung was the same endometrial cancer…it spread, metastasized.
On June 11th, Dr Potkul will perform surgery, similar to a c-section but higher. His goal is to cut-out the ‘primary’ tumor that has grown just above the vagina at Loyola University Medical Hospital. He said the blood came from that tumor and the ‘Stage’ doesn’t change, it remains Stage 3. It’s been leaking or bleeding for over a month now. If all goes well, the surgery will take 2-3 hours, hospital stay 2-3 days and the recovery period is 3-4 weeks.
Depending on my progress at my 1st check-up with Dr Potkul, the lung surgeon, Dr Lubawski has ‘penciled in’ surgery for 28June. Dr L will start out with 3 or 4 slits of 1.5” and a 2” slit placed between my ribs. There’ll be a breathing tube placed in my left lung to continue breathing, the rib cage will create like a covered tent and the Dr hopes with the air removed from that right lung, it will leave room to better maneuver and proceed with inserting a camera, his tools, and room for his assistants. He wants to cut out the lung mass avoiding taking more lung than necessary it that top lobe. He’ll pull that part of the deflated lung through that larger slit, sort of like a wet, deflated balloon. That’s Door #1. If needed, (Door #2) he may need to make a larger incision to work his miracle on me. (sigh) I believe he said would take 3+ hours, in hospital 2-5 days and 1 month recovery. (some people experience a shorter recovery). If Dr L has to go with Door #2, the recovery is doubled.
I’ve got myself in one terrible, frightening, stressful mess, damn it. I’m so very very sorry that I am once again exposing my family and friends with worry and stress because of this damn cancer. My family is stepping up with covering my hours at security, working double shifts, driving me to appointments, taking documentation of all the visits, listening to my heart breaking thoughts and sharing their supporting hearts & compassion. Their support to me is more than I deserve and they provide the solid & strong foundation. My friends, my carefully chosen friends, mean the world to me and will rally around this psycho mess of what they too, call their friend. Thank you all from my heart. I read the PET Scan report, it said my heart is not enlarged …. But it sure is damn filled with all the love I feel from everyone!
Because I’ll be unable to work, the last thing I want to do it STIFF THE MEDICAL BILLS or lapse my medical insurance, so I have just set up a ‘GO FUND ME’ account to meet the $5000 out of pocket deductible. I know that everyone has to watch out for their own expenses but if you would like to make a donation ….. I’d be so very grateful and touched by any amount you can contribute.
Please, learn from my story: don't self-diagnose. Listen to your body and recognize the important signs it is sharing with you.
YOU KNOW YOUR BODY BEST!
Sighhhhh, I said it, that was difficult, what can I do? I just have to deal with what’s be given to me. If I tried to ‘wish it away’, then someone else would have to suffer through it and I wouldn’t want that.
You ’d think that with the ‘pinpoint radiation’, pumping my body full of poisonous chemotherapy and tossing in the kitchen sink (as Dr Potkul stated to me), that would of demolished the endometrial cancer… but NOOOOOO, some horrible, evil cell hid out….waiting to hurt me, attack my spirit. THAT is the reason I had a hard time believing or saying that ‘I HAD CANCER’. (past tense)
All the follow-up cancer check-ups, Dr Potkul said everything looks good, you’re in remission. (it’s hard to believe anything they tell me right now, let me tell ya) In July, it would have been 2 yrs since my last chemo infusion.
January 12th, Dr Potkul checked … all was well. The day after Easter, my friend Barb & I took a road trip down to Sarasota FL … a Thelma & Louise adventure, minus the dive over the cliff. I began noticing some extremely light spotting and that wasn’t even daily. On the ride home, the coloration turned to a very pale pink, pain increased in my lower back and the last bathroom stop, the tissue alerted me that NO, this is not good, since I had a full hysterectomy, how could this even be possible? After placing Barb safely back to her husbands waiting arms, I drove home, immediately called the doctors office to tell my tale and an appt was made for a few days out. Since with EVERY appt I was asked…’is there any bleeding’… I thought that this is what was supposed to occur, so I wasn’t panicking.
Two hours later … all hell broke loose. I’ve never SEEN afterbirth or a miscarriage ….. but I imagine the handfuls exiting me was similar. What the hell? Where is all this coming from? Then I KNEW.
I dealt with 4 hours of continual panic, then it calmed down, back to a light panic.
In the doctors office, Dr Potkul said he felt something, 99% chance it’s a tumor and scheduled a CT Scan of my abdomen. Thankfully, the scan hit my lungs and showed something was there too. The lung surgeon Dr Lubawski (also at Loyola University Medical Center) scheduled a PET Scan, it confirmed the mass in the top lobe of my right lung was the same endometrial cancer…it spread, metastasized.
On June 11th, Dr Potkul will perform surgery, similar to a c-section but higher. His goal is to cut-out the ‘primary’ tumor that has grown just above the vagina at Loyola University Medical Hospital. He said the blood came from that tumor and the ‘Stage’ doesn’t change, it remains Stage 3. It’s been leaking or bleeding for over a month now. If all goes well, the surgery will take 2-3 hours, hospital stay 2-3 days and the recovery period is 3-4 weeks.
Depending on my progress at my 1st check-up with Dr Potkul, the lung surgeon, Dr Lubawski has ‘penciled in’ surgery for 28June. Dr L will start out with 3 or 4 slits of 1.5” and a 2” slit placed between my ribs. There’ll be a breathing tube placed in my left lung to continue breathing, the rib cage will create like a covered tent and the Dr hopes with the air removed from that right lung, it will leave room to better maneuver and proceed with inserting a camera, his tools, and room for his assistants. He wants to cut out the lung mass avoiding taking more lung than necessary it that top lobe. He’ll pull that part of the deflated lung through that larger slit, sort of like a wet, deflated balloon. That’s Door #1. If needed, (Door #2) he may need to make a larger incision to work his miracle on me. (sigh) I believe he said would take 3+ hours, in hospital 2-5 days and 1 month recovery. (some people experience a shorter recovery). If Dr L has to go with Door #2, the recovery is doubled.
I’ve got myself in one terrible, frightening, stressful mess, damn it. I’m so very very sorry that I am once again exposing my family and friends with worry and stress because of this damn cancer. My family is stepping up with covering my hours at security, working double shifts, driving me to appointments, taking documentation of all the visits, listening to my heart breaking thoughts and sharing their supporting hearts & compassion. Their support to me is more than I deserve and they provide the solid & strong foundation. My friends, my carefully chosen friends, mean the world to me and will rally around this psycho mess of what they too, call their friend. Thank you all from my heart. I read the PET Scan report, it said my heart is not enlarged …. But it sure is damn filled with all the love I feel from everyone!
Because I’ll be unable to work, the last thing I want to do it STIFF THE MEDICAL BILLS or lapse my medical insurance, so I have just set up a ‘GO FUND ME’ account to meet the $5000 out of pocket deductible. I know that everyone has to watch out for their own expenses but if you would like to make a donation ….. I’d be so very grateful and touched by any amount you can contribute.
Please, learn from my story: don't self-diagnose. Listen to your body and recognize the important signs it is sharing with you.
YOU KNOW YOUR BODY BEST!