Surgery scheduled at MD Anderson… cancer suspected

buzymom3

5 years ago my local GYN found a 4cmx4cm tumor on ovary. I’ve already had Non Hodgkins and Breast cancer so she did CA 125 and ultrasounds every 6 months. Grew to 7.1cmx6.8cm. CA 125 raised but still normal. She refused to do surgery to remove.

Went to MD Anderson and had tests The radiologist and the surgeon agrees, explained that he thinks it is cancer because it keeps growing I’m 68, post menopause. Strong history of cancer and have Chek2 I’m terrified. I was told that if it is cancer they will do debunking while I am still under. Trying to figure out what I’m going to be waking up to? Any chance this cyst could be benign? lol yup I’m in denial. How long will a hospital stay be? We don’t live in Houston but they specialize in difficult surgery, so here I am. Any insights or help on how to cope would be appreciated.

bibliophile

Buzymom3, I am here from the CRC boards. Sorry I didn't respond earlier; it has been a busy month. I hope that you are still checking back in. Are you scheduled for surgery? I just had a debulking surgery at Mayo for colon cancer spread. They ended up taking both ovaries, appendix, two sections of colon, and debulking a lot of my peritoneum.

Your doctors are experts and they are usually right about whether it is cancer. Of course we don't want it to be, though, and I, too, went through periods of "are they really sure this is malignant and this surgery is necessary?" From the other side of pathology, it was malignant in multiple spots, and the surgery was necessary.

I am 48yo and was in what I considered good health outside of my cancer before surgery, so my experience so far (7 days out) has been much better than I expected. I had surgery on a Monday and was discharged Thursday morning, so I really only spent 3 days, 3 nights in the hospital. My incision pain was easily manageable. I took Tylenol alternated with Celebrex in the hospital and haven't needed any meds since I got home (although I have been told I have a pretty high pain tolerance). If you have never had abdominal surgery before, be prepared for the chest/shoulder pain. It can be excruciating. It results from the gas they use to inflate your abdomen triggering nerves that cause "referred pain" to other parts of your body. It is completely normal and resolves within a few days, but if you aren't prepared it might be unsettling. It would sometimes feel like I couldn't breathe because of the pain, but it DOES get better. Getting up and walking as soon as possible helps it resolve faster, even if it is painful at first.

Bring loose pants and granny panties for afterwards to avoid pressure on your incision and to make the bloating/inflammation less uncomfortable. If you are not from Houston and will be traveling home, a pillow over the abdomen, under the seatbelt, was a life-saver, and traveling wasn't too uncomfortable.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask! I would be happy to share anything else that might help.

Best wishes, and I would love to hear how things are going if you feel comfortable!

NoTimeForCancer

buzymom3, like bibliophile, I wish I had checked on the Ovarian board sooner. I am a visitor from the Uterine/Endometrial board.

It has been a month since your post and I am not sure if you have had your surgery yet. I wish you local gyn had turned you over to a gynecologic oncologist, which Anderson has, and no doubt you are dealing with. It is sad that we have to be our own advocate, but again, I am proud of you.

Not living in areas like Houston for Anderson, or any city that has a cancer center, is difficult, but they usually have arrangements with local hotels to help those who need to travel in. At this point, you probably want to have the best, and breast and gyn cancers are often found to be "related". Anderson will be able to answer all the questions you want - and don't be afraid to ask them all.

Hugs dear one. Please let us know how you are doing.