The Day My Life Changed

June 8th, 2015 – My journey begins  through diagnosis, surgeries, tests, trials, treatments, etc. of ovarian cancer, with the ultimate goal of being cured.

I’m not sure anyone can pinpoint when you get cancer, I know I couldn’t, never the less, it was a major surprize when I found out I had ovarian cancer. I was like “CANCER????” Wakeup! Wakeup! I must be in one of those nightmares…please wake me up, but this was no nightmare, it was real. Once it set in, I began to have unanswerable questions, “How did I get it?” ‘When did I get it?” “How could I have caught it?” scanning my brain for symtoms that I could have over looked …. oh my God, am I going to die? This would be the day that would change my life and how I lived it forever

2015, I was a healthy, active and living the life of a young 36yr woman. I went regularly for pap-smears, mammograms test, ate healthy, and continued my gym club membership so I could keep myself physically and mentally healthy.

It was all very subtle and gradual. February of the same year, I was just getting back from a 2 month long Indonesian trip to help my father recover from complication of prostate surgery, I began having pain in my abdomen similar to my minstrel cycle. Yes, it seemed to be early but stranger things have happened. Also my frequency to urinate became urgent and one other odd thing I noticed was, I got full really fast when eating. That was not a normal thing for me. I ate well, ate healthy, but after a few bites, I was full. A slight pain in my left side, feeling of fullness, and shortness of breath, oh yeah, there was unusual constipation too. With these symptoms and it being time for my annual ladies test, I made an appointment with my gynecologist*.

March, the appointment went fine but the pain complaints ushered up a host of test included blood work, an ultrasound and transvaginal. After several weeks for my followup appointment*, I received concerning news of my test results. My tests showed an elevated CA-125 at 56 (35 avg) and a cyst on my left ovarie. Another “OMG” moment for me, what happens now? My Gyno informed me that I need surgery because the cyst was 7.5cm BUT she wanted me to see an oncologist for additional opinion, giving me a few names to speak with. Now here is where my third “OMG” began…. ONCOLOGIST…. fancy name for a “CANCER DOCTOR” (remember, at point I was unaware of my cancer). Though I had my third “OMG” I told myself that it was just a routine 2nd opinion, so I should not worry to much about it* but there was the big “SURGERY” word.

After calling all the doctors recommended by my gyno, to no avail, I searched the internet for an oncologist in Las Vegas. My research took me to the best Oncologist in Nevada BUT….. he was not a surgeon! Luckily, his assistant mentioned that the best doctors for my type of surgery would be an Gynecologist / Oncologist* which by the way, her recommendation would lead me to the best Gynecologist/Oncologist Surgeon in the western United States which happened to be in Las Vegas.

April now is upon us and I’m still having the incredible pain. The appointment with the new G/O Surgeon went well, a family man with wife and daughters of his own. He was very good at explaining everything* and went over the surgery that was expected to happen. His opinion about my elevated CA-125 test was it probably was Endometriosis BUT.. he went on to say….. If he got in there and found cancer or scare tissue what was my desires to how he was to move forward it. its not like he could wake me in the middle of surgery to ask my opinion. My whole family* said “Preserve Life”

Surgery, a very scary word for me, my G/O Surgeon schedule only allowed him to book me for surgery August 15th… WHAT???.. that is over four month away!
My family went ballistic with the doctor’s office. Finally after dealing with the G/O office and the hospital several days, we were able to move the surgery to June 8th.* Now that doesn’t sound like much considering this was a routine surgery (cyst removal) but in hindsight*, it was a blessing in disguise. With cancer, every day you wait it can grow and get worse, so any signs or possibilities, you act… you attack!

June 8th, 2015: 6am: Again not knowing about my cancer, I arrive at the hospital, they ready me for my 45 minute surgery and I kiss all my close family members, hoping to see them afterwards. Here I come, surgery beckons…. out goes the lights!!!

5 hours later, I was a cancer patient with stage IIIc epithelial ovarian cancer with a full hysterectomy and oopherectomy performance by one of the most skilled O/G Surgeon in the U.S. I had graduated from a 36yr old woman at the peak of her life to a woman fighting for her life.

One day I was basically fine, the next day I was looking at chemotherapy, hair loss, menopause and all the “fun” things that come with the diagnosis. I had six cycles of chemotherapy. I lost my hair; not only the hair on my head, but my eyebrows, eyelashes, arm hair, leg hair…uh….hair everywhere!

Oh, I forgot something. If all that is not enough… throw in that I tested positive and discovered I have a BRCA2 gene mutation. So now I have a 90% that I will get breast cancer in my lifetime….. “OMG” (forth) … what else can they throw at me….

There comes a point when you know you are in for a fight, but now what? I think the next choice is to laugh at and embrace the crazy changes. So much is out of your control. Though I was scared, I chose to laugh, and continued to laugh at everything that was thrown at me. I am now eight months in remission and my hair is growing back. It is growing back straight up and out. Can you visualize a chia pet?

I want other woman to understand the symptoms of ovarian cancer, which are listed below, as the symptoms can be so subtle.
Be aware of your body. Some of these symptoms are so similar to other maladies, and some are the body changes that women experience. Just be aware. Don’t dismiss the warning signs, don’t talk yourself out of what you are feeling. If it doesn’t seem right, doesn’t feel right and your instincts are telling you that what you are feeling is not your normal, listen. We hear about a woman’s intuition. We need to embrace it. If your instincts are telling you something isn’t right, it probably isn’t.

DO NOT tell your husband or boyfriend about how you feel, expecting a correct answer… THEY DON’T KNOW! They can only answer you from their own experience with their own bodies. When a man has the same feelings, it’s usually a burp or a fart or to much beer etc… Their bodies are not as complicated as ours…… listen to your instincts.

I look back at some of the symptoms;

More than Usual Menstral Pain;
Lower Back Pain;
Frequency to urinate becomes urgent;
Feeling of fullness very quickly when eating very little;
A slight pain in your left side;
Unusual constipation too.

I feel lucky to be still be here. I try to value the relationships I have with family and friends and don’t let things go by without fully experiencing them. The irony is that here I have cancer, but someone who thinks they are perfectly healthy can suddenly drop dead of a heart attack. So, valuing each person in my life and each experience is important to me now.

June 8th, the day my world changed forever….

***************************************************

June 8th, 2015: Surgery – My Life Changed

June 18th, 2015: Released – Headed Home

June 25th 2015: Post-op Doctors Appointment

July 6th 2015 (Monday): Chemotherapy Class: Understanding

July 7th 2015 (Tuesday): Cat Scan

July 8th 2015 (Wednesday): Port Catheter Implant (Highly Suggested)

• Very small 30 minute surgery, worth it.

July 9th 2015 (Thursday) : First Session, Part 1 Chemotherapy

• Felt fine after my first Chemo Therapy Session

July 10th 2015 (Friday): First Session, Part 2 Chemotherapy – Hydration Therapy

• Felt fine after Hydration Therapy

July 11th 2015 (Saturday): Began to feel fatigued and sick. Diarrhea. …nausea and vomiting

• Spoke with Doctor and they scheduled me to come in on Monday for more Hydration Therapy

July 13th (Monday): Additional Hydration Therapy

• During and after Hydration Therapy, still feeling weak and sick

July 14th 2015 (Tuesday): Admitted to hospital

• My first chemotherapy was the hardest, I had to be hospitalized, I spent 10 days in the hospital from having diarrhea, Norovirus infection, CDef infection and Colitis. I was in a high level of pain and miserable.

July 25th, 2015: Released From Hospital – Going Home.

July 29th, 2015: My hair begins to fall out.

August 6th, 2015 (Thursday): Second Session, Part 1 Chemotherapy

August 7th, 2015 (Friday): First Session, Part 2 Chemotherapy – Hydration Therapy

All this in just 14 days after first chemotherapy session.

• My last Chemotherapy was October 28th, 2015

Note: I don’t blog my experience to scare anyone but in truth if you have been diagnosed with cancer and you’re not scared already then there is something wrong. Everyone’s experience will be different, but don’t hide from it. Challenge and fight, research as much as you can and know your opportunities to win each battle.  “Fight Like A Girl, Fight Like A Warrior”

***************

I listened to this song everyday while I was going through the rough and tough days. Hope it empowers you as it did me.

Fighter (Kane Roberts):