A mass the size of a cinder block!! 4" x 8" Tumor

Roman369

I was diagnosed in July of 2023 with a mass the size of a cinder block on my right kidney (it was cancer). On July 21st 2023 it was removed and I was found to be cancer-free. This all happened within a few weeks, which, in itself is life changing. I was immediately kicked off of my health insurance and I'm left with no way to follow up for the next few years, as my doctor recommended quarterly scans.

Is there anyone out there that shares my story and can recommend my next action? I'm 48 years old and concerned about my future.

eug91

First off, welcome and CONGRATULATIONS on getting through your nephrectomy. It wasn't easy, but you did it. Well done. Hopefully your recovery is going well.

The annoying part is that the mental part of this process is its own thing separate from the physical recovery. It's not easy and we all go through it.

This is a good piece of advice FoxHD gave years ago about positive thinking-

It is a shock to be diagnosed with cancer. There are no do-overs. But here you are. You have a good prognosis. So with more time you will be able to go on living. You'll be ok. That is how you do this. Otherwise you are only wasting time on the negative thoughts. But believe me, you will never stop thinking about cancer. If you are going to live or die, move forward. You have to learn that you are living with cancer. Not dying from cancer. It makes all the difference in the world. But takes practice.

Lastly, it's important to stay on top of your follow-up appointments and it's awful that your insurance did that to you. Depending on what state you live in (I assume the United States), look into the Obamacare exchanges and other state programs, and hopefully you can find something that will get you covered again.

AliceB1950

Were you given the measurements in inches or centimeters? Centimeters are the standard medical measurement unit.

I'm sorry about your health insurance, that really sucks. Can you see if your medical facility has reduced rates for uninsured people? A lot of them do.

donna_lee

By now, I'm sure you realize your tumor wasn't the size of a cinder block....more likely it was 4 cmx8cm. The staging of your tumor would give you a better indication. As in the T-N-M and the numbers that go with it.

In any event, hope you have recovered and are getting on with life. That's about what we do at this time.

I've been at this since 2006, with a couple of recurrences caught by regular monitoring in 2007 and 2008. Since then it has been tests of various kinds at 3 month then 6 month and finally yearly. My oncologist finally said he didn't need to see me at all and left me in the hands of my internist and nephrologist. Just had an ultra sound for my neph. and it was good.

Happy Turkey Day tomorrow.

donna_lee

brian_keegan

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/327241/a-mass-the-size-of-a-cinder-block-4-x-8-tumor

I’m glad you had no metastasis . A tumor that size would have been growing for quite awhile and been deeply embedded in the kidneys vascular system. i had a similar size one. I called it my third kidney. When removed they took a third of my liver, and my local lymph system. Through ct scans, they found a lot of small nodules in my lung. After treatment with sutent for 5 years and then two months of immunotherapy, Im doing well. You didn’t mention scans but i presume your cancer free status was confirmed by scans. I've had two brain MRIs and one full body bone scan to make sure the metastasis didn't progress past my lungs and right adrenal gland. over 10 years, I've had a lot of CT scans to keep watch . US and some state laws don’t allow health insurance or an employer to drop you after a diagnosis . i would see if your state has a human rights commission which can help with an ADA claim