Newbe

JTgreybeard

Good day.  I am a newbe to this forum.  I am scheduled for surgery Apr 11th.   Still trying to wrap my hands around this entire thing.    It is good to hear the stories from you all and to hear that things will get better.  Just wish it was tomorrow.  The waiting and the unknown is the worst part of all.  My emotions are all over the place.  Laughing one min and crying the next.   At times I know all is good and other times my brain tells me this is the last  (Whatever or time) you will do or see this thing.   I am a strong person and will get past this but it is not easy.  Thank you all for sharing on this forum and know that there are others like myself that draw strenth from your post.

 

BoondockSaint

Yes JT.......you WILL get

Yes JT.......you WILL get thru this. The waiting and what if's are the worst but try not to let it drag you down.

lean on us, lean on your family and friends. Do whatever you have to do to get to Apr 11 and the rest will be better every day.

hang in there brother.

Allochka

Hello and welcome!

Hello and welcome!

would you please share a bit of info? How big is your tumor?

Yes, cancer diagnosis is scary, but it is not the end nowadays. Judging by the fact your surgery is month away, sounds like your situation is not critical, which is great!

please tell us more.

Alla

foxhd

Doesn't it

suck? But as Alla says, there is a lot going on in your favor these days. Remember we are not dying from cancer. We are living with cancer.

icemantoo

Membership

JT,

 

May you have an unevetful surgery and boring recovery. I would say painless, but I would be laughed off this forum.

 

 

Icemantoo

JTgreybeard

foxhd said:

Doesn't it

suck? But as Alla says, there is a lot going on in your favor these days. Remember we are not dying from cancer. We are living with cancer.

I like that.  Living with it

I like that.  Living with it instead of dying from it.

JTgreybeard

Allochka said:

Hello and welcome!

Hello and welcome!

would you please share a bit of info? How big is your tumor?

Yes, cancer diagnosis is scary, but it is not the end nowadays. Judging by the fact your surgery is month away, sounds like your situation is not critical, which is great!

please tell us more.

Alla

I have a small tumor.  1-2cm

I have a small tumor.  1-2cm and it is contained in the right kidney lower part.  Should not be to much of a problem.  I know this but still have all the emotional stuff going on and the fear of the unknown.  Will just be glad when it is out of me.  Surgery backlog here in SC is about 2 months.  Robot is very popular these days and lots of customers "Patients". 

Bay Area Guy

Hi JT.  You're in almost

Hi JT.  You're in almost exactly the situation I was in.  I had a 1.5cm lesion on the right kideny, but it was a little higher than yours.  I had a bit of an advantage over you because my sister is a nurse; her husband is a nurse; their daughter is a nurse; one of my wife's nieces is engaged to a nurse; and one of her brothers is dating a nurse.  So I had a ton of experience to call on when I first saw the words "suspicious for renal cell carcinoma" on a CT scan report.  Aso unlike you, I was referred to a urologic oncologist who recommended that we monitor the lesion because he was not convinced it was, in fact, malignant.  That was in December, 2013.  After six month scans for 2-1/2 years, an ultrasound finally determined in April, 2016 that the little bugger had grown to 1.8cm.  So, he recommended surgery, which I had on June 22nd of last year.  It was a robotic assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy and it took place at Stanford Hospital here in the SF Bay Area.  I checked into the hospital at about noon on the 22nd.  The operation started at about 3PM.  I was in my room at about 7PM, with the melodious voice of my niece (the one engaged to a nurse) kind of yelling into my ear, "WAKE UP".  I did, the nurse walked me around the room for a couple of minutes and then I told everyone to get the heck out cuz I was tired.  LOL.  I drank a lot of water during the night as my mouth was pretty dry, and I was absolutely starving in the morning.  They told me I would likely be released if I could control my pain and could pee.  Well, since I had no pain other than a little pulling, that part was easy.  (Just be aware that my experience with no pain is ratehr unusual from what I've read from my comrades here; but I have always had a really high threshhold for pain owing to those stomach issues.)  And after they removed the catheter, I peed in about two hours.  So, at 1:30PM, 25-1/2 hours after I checked in, they tossed me out.

The pathology report said it was chromophobe RCC, a rare (5%) strain of the disease, that seems to grow very, very slowly, rarely, if ever spreads and rarely, if ever, recurs.  So, I was set up for scans every six months, as well as a chest x-ray.  The one I had done in January of this year was completely clean and the doc said if the next one in July was the same, we'd move to one year scans, which is fine with me.  My stomach issues revolve around colon twisting, so anything that gives me a look-see down that way is fine by me.

As for the emotional part of it, I'm not going to pretend to tell you that I was a rock.  Heck, I went through all the same emotions as you did, adding in a healthy dose of self-pity because I didn't have any risk factors for this damn thing.  My suggestion is that taking nice, relaxing walks or working out is a good way to get rid of the feelings, at least for a little while each day.  It also has the added benefit of getting you in great shape for the surgery and that'll help you recover that much faster.

You and I are really lucky that our cancers were discovered at such a small size.  A few years ago, I'm told the scanning technology wasn't good enough to discover things this small.  We get a chance to have these things taken care of when it's relatively easier to take care of it completely and with a minimal amount of pain and discomfort.

belowpar

I Am A Newbie Also

JT, I joined this group on March 11, 2017 when I discovered it as I was recovering from my radical nephrectomy Performed on February 20, 2017. 

Waiting and the unknown are definitely two formidable opponents i battled as well. Fortunately I did not have to wait very long and when the date did arrive, it was a relief to get it behind me. I had laparoscopic surgery even though my tumor was nearly 8cm. The surgeon did have to make a larger than normal cut to be able to remove it along with my kidney but all went well.

I will be praying for you, your family and your surgical team.

Steve.Adam

Hi JT

It is a lot easier to be relaxed about this stuff after it has been dealt with and you know what it is and know it is gone.

It is good to meet people who understand our feelings and it is also good to get some reassurance about the likely outcome, which should be good in your case.

But the waiting is bad... It is so good to get it all behind you.

Steve.

 

rhominator

Hello JT

JT, welcome to the group!

rhominator

belowpar said:

I Am A Newbie Also

JT, I joined this group on March 11, 2017 when I discovered it as I was recovering from my radical nephrectomy Performed on February 20, 2017. 

Waiting and the unknown are definitely two formidable opponents i battled as well. Fortunately I did not have to wait very long and when the date did arrive, it was a relief to get it behind me. I had laparoscopic surgery even though my tumor was nearly 8cm. The surgeon did have to make a larger than normal cut to be able to remove it along with my kidney but all went well.

I will be praying for you, your family and your surgical team.

Hi belowpar

belowpar, welcome to the group! I'm guessing you're a [good] golfer.

 

daisybud

Hi

Welcome JT

 Kim

Jan4you

belowpar said:

I Am A Newbie Also

JT, I joined this group on March 11, 2017 when I discovered it as I was recovering from my radical nephrectomy Performed on February 20, 2017. 

Waiting and the unknown are definitely two formidable opponents i battled as well. Fortunately I did not have to wait very long and when the date did arrive, it was a relief to get it behind me. I had laparoscopic surgery even though my tumor was nearly 8cm. The surgeon did have to make a larger than normal cut to be able to remove it along with my kidney but all went well.

I will be praying for you, your family and your surgical team.

Hey, just wanted to stop and

Hey, just wanted to stop and say, welcome!

Glad you joined our site here! Like your name! HA! Hope your recovery is going well, is it?

Warmly, Jan

 

Jan4you

Hey JT glad you are here! I

Hey JT glad you are here! I was lucky. I stopped here before even seeing my Urologist/surgeon. I asked tons of questions, received a lot of support and was so prepared by the time I even saw the Urologist. 3 years NED (no evidence of disease).

Its ok to feel whatever you are feeling. Our emotions aren't right nor wrong, they are OUR to feel.

I have had 4 abdominal surgeries, and this one was the easiest. Saw the operation online ahead of time, but that's me. I like to be THAT prepared!

Used ice over incisions, dry ice packs slipped inside my lumbar wrap to hold and support those healing muscles.

Hang in there. We'll be here for you all the way!

Warmly, Jan

JTgreybeard

belowpar said:

I Am A Newbie Also

JT, I joined this group on March 11, 2017 when I discovered it as I was recovering from my radical nephrectomy Performed on February 20, 2017. 

Waiting and the unknown are definitely two formidable opponents i battled as well. Fortunately I did not have to wait very long and when the date did arrive, it was a relief to get it behind me. I had laparoscopic surgery even though my tumor was nearly 8cm. The surgeon did have to make a larger than normal cut to be able to remove it along with my kidney but all went well.

I will be praying for you, your family and your surgical team.

Prayers lifted for you.  How

Prayers lifted for you.  How is your recovery going?

Iggyrip

Hi JT. Welcome. Waiting for

Hi JT. Welcome. Waiting for surgery and not knowing about the future is scary, but things will work out. When I was first informed of my cancer, I freaked out, but somehow got it together. After that, I just wanted it out. Glad you found this group. Prayers out for you.

 

Take care,

 

Iggyrip

JerzyGrrl

Welcome --

Welcome, JT --

As others have said, sorry you have to be a member of this club, but glad you've found us -- great supportive bunch here.

Small is good when it comes to kidney masses.  Waiting sort of stinks. Hope you can keep yourself distracted / occupied in the meantime.  But your surgery date in April will be here before you know it (Not to mention, then you'll be post-surgery before you know it, because they give you anesthesia so you get to snooze while they do all the work). 

Deanie0916

Welcome JT

I pray you have peace and calm while waiting for the surgery. Small tumor size is good as many have said already! God bless you.

JTgreybeard

Thank you

Thank you all for your kind words.   You are all making a differance. 

I have booked a Cruise with Carnival on the Magic traveling in October.  This one sales over Halloween so it will be a hoot.  That is going to be my 6 month celebration.   This also gives me something to look forward to that is positive and gives me a push to rehab quickly so I can enjoy snorkeling.  Would love to see some of you if you all want to book the same cruise.  We can all celebrate life together.

 

APny

Hi JT, so sorry you have to

Hi JT, so sorry you have to be here but it's a very supportive and knowledeable board with great people. They got me through with my sanity intact. I have to say the waiting and anticipation anxiety are about the worst part. Not that the surgery and recovery is fun or a piece of cake but honestly, my imagination prior made it 100 times worse then it turned out to be. My surgeon advised me to up my exercising before the surgery so I used the treadmill twice a day for 40 minutes. It really improved my lung capacity and I do believe it aided in my recovery as well. Also, they gave me a breathing apparatus that I used several times a day before surgery. If you didn't get one, ask for it. All the best to you! Small tumor is great and your chances of being rid of permanently are excellent.