Fast forward... from the Lone Star state

The past three years have both flown by and were agonizingly slow. Here’s a synopsis:

• I retired May 2017
• We sold the ranch and all of the alpacas in December 2019
• Brad retired!
• Moved to Texas mid-December 2019
• Selected a new Doctor March 2020. Described to him the GI tract discomfort I was experiencing 
• He sent me for a CT scan
• Discovered I have an incisional hernia from all of the abdominal surgeries I’ve had
• And... discovered a cluster of nodes very near my previous cancers

I’m writing this on March 15, 2020. I am scheduled to have a PET scan Tuesday and we’ll see what we see. 

A year later...

The biopsy was negative. Joy! Interesting that I overall feel calmer. Not so much like the other shoe is about to drop. Time will tell, yes?

I retired in May of 2017. Joy!

Life is good.

Follow up

1. The nurse was awesome and easily started the IV.
2. The surgeon said she found the lumps. Oh joy!
3. Too soon to tell if there was collateral damage but... nothing obvious for now. My neck is mostly numb but I was warned this might happen and should resolve within a couple of months.
4. Now I wait... for the pathology.

I'm feeling pretty ok. My throat hurts from them jamming a tube down it. The incision site is painful and I just took something for pain- 1st time since the surgery.

Fast forward

So. After two more conversations, the surgeon and I have reached a slightly uneasy truce. The biopsy will take place tomorrow. She said it will take from 1 - 3 hours, depending upon how difficult it is to find the lumps. This is intended to be an outpatient procedure and I'm hoping that is the case.

I've gotta tell you; I'm pretty darned anxious. Specific worries? I'm glad you asked!

1. Will the nurses be able to start an IV?
2. Will the surgeon be able to locate the lumps?
3. Will there be "collateral " damage from the surgery?
4. Will the pathology be unfavorable?

Shall I go on? Honestly, I'm not trying to be dramatic. I recognize this is just a biopsy but whenever general anesthesia and CUTTING ME OPEN is part of the deal... I worry. 

The surgery is scheduled for early in the afternoon. Tomorrow is gonna be a long day. 

Fingers crossed. 

Good news and bad news...

I guess it's time for an update. The nature of this sort of blog, for me anyway, is that it draws me back to report bad news. So, let's go with the bad news first.

A couple of months ago I noticed a painless lump on the left side of my neck. While it wasn't very large, I called Dr. Mehta's office for an appointment. They got me in right away. Dr. Mehta ordered an ultrasound and the tech discovered, not one, but two lumps. Next stop, an ENT surgeon. I wasn't crazy about her so I won't mention her name here. She told me the lumps were small and it was unlikely there was a problem. We discussed a biopsy but she expressed doubt about being able to locate them. This concerned me because they are very superficial and Dr. Rau found masses of a similar size in my abdomen, no problem. She suggested a PET/CT and I was agreeable.

The results of the scan didn't make me any happier. Both masses had SUVs, higher than the ones that led to my follicular lymphoma diagnosis. Great. Now I have to go back to the ENT to make an appointment for her to biopsy the very same lumps she said she might not be able to locate. I'll let you know how that goes.

Now for the good news. I have retired, effective June 30, 2017. Whew, 30 years! It's been great and I will miss it, of that I am sure. I am excited though and hope my health doesn't rob me of this opportunity to enjoy this new chapter in my life.

Surgery #8

I had a routine appointment with Dr. Kubba last week. We'd not managed to see each other since my scan... Geez, last October?? Anyway, that scan was good. Dr. Kubba told me I no longer require scans. At all. Unless I have symptoms. Wow, huh? I will continue to see him every 4 months.

I also decided to have my port-a-cath removed so I saw Dr. Rau too. I am scheduled to have the port removed on July 9, 2015. 

Just trippin' along

Hi there,

I hope all is well, whoever it might be reading this. All is well with me. The spring 2015 semester begins next week. I've had the last few weeks off and it's been glorious but I'm ready for a new group of students. I think that's the best thing about my job: twice a year I get another opportunity to "get it right," so to speak.

I had another clean CT/PET scan in November 2014. That's a relief. I've been feeling well so I wasn't nervous but the validation of a good scan is always appreciated. I have been seeing Dr. Kubba every two months and I was receiving a rituxan treatment on the same schedule. The two year maintenance program ended in August. It's funny, or maybe it's actually normal, but I have mixed feelings about ending treatment. ABVD sucked, big-time but rituxan never bothered me. Other than the time spent "in the chair." The thing is that both treatments worked. They literally saved my life and I'm so grateful to have received such amazing care. Thank God for insurance. And Brad. And Dr. Kubba. And Dr. Mehta. And Carole. And, so on.

Anyway, I'm babbling. What I mean about mixed feelings is that maybe the cancer will come back now that I won't be receiving rituxan. Maybe it would anyway. Experiments without controls are so irritating. Sigh. Please don't think I spend a lot of time worrying about cancer. I don't. I must admit though, I know it will be back. I just hope it will be a very long time before that happens.

So, done with rituxan for now. Also, I'll be seeing Dr. Kubba every three months and again, mixed feelings. It made me feel "safe" seeing him so often. Four times a year is still good and it will do. I know I can see him anytime I want, if I need him. Dr. Mehta too.

I'm going to try to return in a few days to write a bit more. I'd especially like to talk about my wonderful oncology nurse, Maria.

Thanks for reading.

Lisa