I Grew A Tumor

After much strife, I received the results from my colonoscopy. The nurse from that doctor's office kept making missteps in her communications with me. She never had all her information ready when she called, she told me things that weren't accurate, she called on Wednesday after I had the procedure on Monday and told me to schedule the procedures. On that day, she told me I probably wouldn't get my results until this week, and she explained perfectly reasonable reasons why that would be. But then she called last Friday, and left a message asking me to call her, that it was about my results. Thirty minutes later I tried to return her call and could not get through to anyone. I finally called the number you use to make appointments and left a message there. 

On Monday morning, she called me, all bright and cheery, wanting to know how she could help me! I told her I had been returning her call on Friday and proceeded to tell her all about how thoughtless it was to call me and leave a message knowing I would not be able to get back in touch with her. It was a hot mess! She kept making excuses and explaining things. Finally I just told her "let's just drop all this and you tell me what I need to know."

She began fumbling around and said she had to find the results and did I want her to call me back. I told her no, that since we were connected, I would wait, if she thought she could get herself together and give me the information. She responded by telling me, "Okay, I'll call you back" and she hung up!

When she called back, she informed me that the tumor is malignant. My regular doctor had called late Friday afternoon and told me most of what was going on, so I wasn't surprised by the nurse's news, though I was still peeved at her for hanging up on me earlier when I had clearly said I wanted to wait while she got herself together.

Anyway, the gist of it is that he took out two precancerous polyps and discovered a tumor where my upper and lower colon join together. I did blood work this morning and I will soon be drinking a delicious berry barium smoothie in preparation for a cat scan tomorrow morning (Wednesday).

I have decided I am going to MD Anderson in Houston this time around, mostly in hopes that they can do laparoscopic surgery to remove the tumor. I worry about my stomach muscles and about scar tissue. But of course, I will go with whatever is best for my situation.

And so the next chapter begins. . .