lots of people have asked,
how did you know something was wrong?
it was a process. almost a year ago i was having lots of stomach problems and some heart burn and such. i went to a doctor and he sent me home with antacids. it didn't help. i held out for about 3 months. then we had a busy summer of our trip to ecuador and going to live in arkansas with the patterson's for a couple months. through all the adventure, i just didn't feel good all around. my appetite was gone, and when i did eat it was in small amounts because it made me feel even worse. i was dropping lots of weight, but felt like CRAP. amidst all this, my stomach kept growing - similar to when you are pregnant. i couldn't 'suck it in' and it was hard and uncomfortable. i knew something wasn't right. i 'self diagnosed' myself (by reading things on the internet, of course!) with an ovarian cyst. the symptoms lined up.
when we got back to UT, i went to an internal medicine doctor, who referred me to an OB who did an ultrasound and discovered a cantaloupe size cyst on my ovary. he scheduled surgery and took a cancer blood test just to be safe. when those results came by high, he referred me to SLC to an ovarian cancer specialist. the blood test didn't determine that i had cancer, it just raises concern.
surgery was scheduled and the doc was fairly certain it would be benign. the larger tumors usually are, they say. so i didn't worry too much and just was grateful to get that thing OUT. i felt like 100 bucks once i had recovered. it took about 3 weeks after surgery for all the lab tests to come back. they discovered that the cells on the outer edge of the ovary tested positive for cancer. they were fairly confident that they had 'gotten it all' since surrounding organs and tissue tested negative. BUT - no one wants to have another tumor grow from any possible cell floating around in there, or worse, its spread to another part of the body.
HENCE, chemotherapy is to ensure that all cancer cells that could have remained are killed. i should be 'cured' and be back to normal in no time!
well...that was the long version. be careful what you ask for :)
Thursday, January 7, 2010
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8 comments:
Jaci, I am so glad that things are getting a little better for you. When I read your blog or talk to your family, I am astonished and amazed by your incredible example and faith. You are a wonderful person who I honestly have looked up to for many years. Thank you for taking the time to keep everyone updated on your status. I can only imagine how difficult that can be, but I have been anxious to see how you are doing.
Thanks for answering. I cannot believe you had a cantalope sized cyst. Holy cow I bet it was so painful. I've had a small cyst before and it hurt enough. I hope that you are doing ok and feeling good. Thanks for sharing with us!
Jaci - you are so brave, strong, and upbeat. I truly admire you and think about you often. Congratulations on being half way through your chemo! We hope 2010 brings you peace and healing. xoxo Marci & Dan
I'm so glad you are starting to feel better. Britt told me she is going to visit you next week and I wish I was there to come and hang out. Call me soon! I miss you and hope you guys had a great Christmas and New Years!
Jaci - I really appreciate how you've openly addressed this for the rest of us so we can follow it! When I first read about what happened, I couldn't believe it and I just felt so much for you. You've been in my thoughts.
Thanks for the congrats! Happy new year to you too!
Love you Juicy. You are my heroine! xoxoxo Mom
You are amazing! Good luck with everything.
Jaci,
I am glad to hear that you are not sick all the time from your treatments! What a blessing!:) You have touched the lives of many individuals with your up-beat, positive attitude. Thanks for keeping everyone posted about this trial in your life. I will have to come visit with Tyler soon!
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