I had a sinking feeling from the very beginning that I wouldn't get the all clear from my Mammogram. They found "A concentration of calcification" and they "want to rule out anything abnormal". I should preface this with exactly what the doctor told me. That 80-85% of the time it turns out to be nothing. But the other 15-20% finds either pre-cancerous cells, or early stage cancer.
My appointment was this morning. They had me scheduled for a mammogram and a breast ultrasound. They told me the appointment would run about an hour and fifteen minutes or so. Within 15 they had me in the room and undergoing the mammogram. I thought it seemed odd when several of the other women I had come in before, had already come and gone. Then the technician came back and told me we needed to take some more pictures. And my heart sank. After they got the extra shots they immediately took me back for the u/s and the technician did her thing (they of course, can't tell you anything) and when she finished she didn't tell me to get dressed. She said to stay put and that the doctor would be right in. The tech noticed me trembling and brought back a warm blanket, while I starred blankly at the ceiling.
When the doctor came in she was smiling and very perky. Which at the very least distracted me for a moment. She said "Okay, you look terrified so let me first say.... I did not see anything in your xrays that screamed CANCER, or anything big bad and scary. What I did see was a concentration of calcification." She went on to tell me that I would need a "Stereo-tactic Core Needle Biopsy". She said that she had had one herself and it turned out to be nothing, she does them on a dailly basis and most of the time they are nothing. I asked her to clarify, if it is SOMETHING, what's next. She said it could be pre-cancerous, which is technically not even cancer. Or it is in the very, very early stages of cancer.
I know that the odds are descent that all of this will in fact be fine. But I can't help but feel terrified and completely out of control. My immediate thoughts go to anger and death. The anger part of me says "FUCK YOU CANCER, and immediately makes me want to sign up for a double mastectomy with reconstructive surgery. And the other part says, I cannot leave my daughter and husband. I cannot fill her early years with me in the hospital, and sickness. What the fuck???? I don't mean to come off dramatic, I am just really really scared. The doctor was the head of the department and she will be doing the biopsy herself. She was really nice and very clear about how scary it feels. How the next few days might be rough ones. She said the worst part is right now, when you have no answers. And I thought, Fuck, I know. I've been there before...
10 comments:
Oh Melissa, I'm so sorry you're going through this! Not knowing is the worst feeling. I hate the waiting game. I will be thinking of you & praying for you (really, I mean that) and I hope you'll update us when you know something. I'm happy to hear that odds are in your favor but I totally get the "what if" game that happens when your mind starts to wander. Big hugs. xoxo
Oh Melissa I am so sorry you are dealing with this! Try to be distracted and not let your mind do those what its! I will be sending very positive thoughts that it is nothing!
Well that f'ing sucks. How soon will they do the biopsy? I will put all my energies into the 85% chance it is NOTHING and then if it is anything, it is in situ. So sorry you are having to go through this kind of waiting.
I am so sorry you are going through this, and while I am totally sure NOTHING is going to come of it, I think it is normal to have these kinds of anxieties.
When I was 20 I had HPV and I had severe dysplasia, or whatever the term was, basically it was pre-cancerous cells, and I was terrified. I thought I was going to die of cervical cancer. It was horrible and I was so anxious while I was going through it, and that was before I was a mom. But they were able to laser off the cells and it was no big deal at all.
Take deep breaths and hold on. It's all going to be okay.
Uh, you are not being dramatic! I am so sorry to hear you are in a waiting game. I hope you get an answer, a good one of course, very soon!
Oh, Melissa. I am so sorry that you are stuck in the zone where you don't know what this is. That f-ing sucks. I can only imagine how super scared you are right now. (And I don't think you are being overly dramatic because I would be having the exact same thoughts.)
D and I will definitely be keeping you in our prayers and thoughts.
Try to concentrate on that 85% for now...big hugs and lots of love.
thinking of you and hoping so hard that things are nothing as expected xoxox
Ugh, I know that this is SO scary, but try to remember to take a step back, take a LOT of deep breaths, and to take it one day at a time. Hang in there hon - praying for an all normal Dx ASAP for you. ((HUGS))
I'm so sorry! I had a vulvar cancer scare over the summer and know how hard that kind of waiting between "something", biopsy, and results can be. Thinking of you!
If they only knew just how little the stats helped an IFer. Thinking of you.
Post a Comment