Roll up, roll up and join the lacies for CANCER SUPPORT THREAD 59 - anyone with cancer is welcome (and those awaiting test results)

[WhatWouldLeslieKnopeDo]

Hello everyone,

This is the cancer support thread, which has been running for many years under different names. Most posters have breast cancer, but various other cancers are represented too! Whatever cancer you have, feel free to join us. We also welcome those who are awaiting test results to find out whether or not they have cancer. We know how difficult the waiting can be and we are happy to hold your hand. Hopefully you won't need to join us permanently

Feel free to ask any questions. There will usually be someone who knows the answer or will know where you can find it.

Whatever you do, stay away from Google!

You can post anything you like here. We don't mind swearing or complaining or angry ranting. We aren't brave or inspirational and you don't need to be either. Nobody signed up for this, but we support each other as best we can

The previous thread is here

Hi Wombat how are you getting on?

purple I hope you've been seen by now

We will actually need a new thread very soon so I'll get started on that today/tomorrow. Anyone got any links or anything they want to add to the top section?

Hi Leslie I am doing ok thanks. Feeling pretty calm about everything.
I hope things are ok with you. I keep thinking about having a look around fb but you know how reluctant I am.

Oh wombat pleeeeeease. It would make my day! :)

Purple another one thinking of you

Ok Leslie I have been and had a snoop look around. You look as lovely as I imagined you would 🧀

Thanks wombat, Twitter queen and Leslie. It is cancer, which I’m strangely calm about right now they think they’ve caught it early but won’t know for sure until I have an MRI scan in the next couple of weeks. They said I’ll need a hysterectomy. Right now I don’t care what they have to do to me, as long as they can get rid of it

I'm sorry that it's confirmed purple. I felt that calmness too. I think knowing bad news is better than not knowing anything. At least when you have some facts you can try and rein your imagination in a little. There was a bit of discussion of hysterectomies earlier in the thread, so hopefully others can advise a bit. I hope you get an MRI appointment quickly so you can get more information.

Oh purple There's not much I can say but you are in my thoughts I hope you have someone with you.

They said I should hear early next week about an appointment, then it should be the week after that I have the scan. I’m ok at the minute, just me and a bottle of wine that I picked up in my way back. The worst thing about all of this will be telling my 15 year old son and the rest of my family. Only my husband knows so far. Sorry Leslie and wombat I haven’t managed to find the beginning of your stories so I’m not sure how you are both doing, I will trawl back through this thread once I get my head around today

purpleunicorns I'm so sorry to hear of your diagnosis. I also completely understand the odd calmness - like leslie I have found knowing easier than suspecting, every time something has gone wrong. I got my husband to tell my family as I wasn't sure I could break the news myself ... then I talked to them afterwards. It was hard for him but made it easier for me. Good luck with it and hope the MRI brings a good scenario within the bad news.
I'm thinking of following wombat and having a fb snoop! Hope you are ok x leslie I'm flattered by the appointment to travel advisor, but I fear that when everyone sees my 'beyond Europe' credentials, I will be fired! I was saving S. America, Asia and Australasia for when the kids left home ... turns out that wasn't my finest plan! TQ well done on getting to the end of the weekly chemo; 3 weekly bevacuzimab will feel like freedom itself by contrast!! x

So sorry Purple. I was very calm for weeks when I was 1st told there was 'a big lump' down there. It was not a bad thing actually. It carried me though the two 5-day hospital stays for assessment and testing.

I had a hysterectomy and debulking on 7th July so can offer a sympathetic ear and a shoulder.

I'm on the whisky right now. My taste buds have disappeared with the chemo so much as I like red wine it's a bit wasted on me at the moment.

Thinking of you. This is the worst time - you don't know what's in store. You don't know what your treatment plan is. You don't know how you'll feel or what will happen.

It gets better. Honest.

Thanks Nicky, I think the possibilities in my imagination are much worse than reality, at least I know what I’m dealing with now. Ooh who’s on Facebook? I’ve probably already read the post about it 10 times but not much is sinking in at the moment

Twitterqueen although it’s rubbish I’m glad someone knows what’s in store.* As for the hysterectomy I told them to take out whatever they had to, I may regret that when I’m in pain recovering after the surgery.* I’m not sure if I’m having a debunking, I don’t even know what that is they’ve given me some information packs to read through so I’ll go through them tonight

I didn’t mean to type half of that message in bold...

Hey Purple. I can also understand your strange sense of calm. Being in the position of wondering what is around the corner, with cancer a distinct possibility I can sort of envisage confirmation being a brief moment where your fears are realised and you feel sort of in control because it’s what you knew might happen. I’d be the same Re. Hysterectomy. Whatever it took. Thanks for being welcoming everyone. I am in a lot of pain with the DVT but trying to force myself to walk as it should help in theory. I am also very scared of the side effects of my anti coagulation meds. GP phoned me while out yesterday (decided to go to Ikea to take my mind off things!!) so I sat at an Ingatorp digninv table in store whilst she asked me about pain after sex, bleeding and breast exams. The upshot is that she has gone from wondering why the A&E Doc was so insistent on an urgent CT of abdo/pelvis, to now askingme to book a breast exam AND a chest X-ray I top of the CT. all in all this has really put the wind up me.

Purple do you know if it's ovarian or cervical? I'm ovarian so only qualified to talk about that.

Love your freudian slip - debunking is much better than debulking! Debulking is when they scrape out the cancer that's spread, so in my case my ovarian nastiness had spread to liver, small bowel, stomach lining, lung lining and diaphragm. They took it all out with my lady bits.

Am envious of TwitterQueen’s whisky. I can’t drink, smoke or anything exciting. Also concerned that a snag might create an intercranial bleed or something...such is my paranoia.

*shag not snag

Shag! I should be so lucky... it's been years.

Haha yes debunking sounds much better! Debulking sounds bloody painful Ah it’s cervical I have, fingers crossed it hasn’t spread and I have no other cancers

Well that was not far from my response to GP on the phone. First of all she was asking if I could be pregnant so I said no and that DP had had a vasectomy. She pressed me though by saying that vasectomy isn’t 100% guarantee so I was sat at the Ikea display dining table going “look, I can’t remember the last time I had sex, I never have sex really. I’m tired. I have 4 children and two of them are autistic. I’m really tired and my leg hurts”. I think she got the idea.

Ahardyfool I can’t bear the thought of a shag after all the prodding and poking the doctors have done, and that’s before treatment, although I have been given a book by the doctor today titled “cancer and your sex life” I should probably give it a read

purple it's really tough telling people. I don't have any children, just my parents and sister. I got my mum to tell wider family. And I wimped out and did a Facebook post for most friends. I found it hard to handle others' reactions. I am not a very emotional person and I never really know what to say when others get upset. I didn't cry at all about my diagnosis so frankly was a bit bewildered when other people started crying. I think I might be a bit of a robot, but it works for me :) if you need somewhere to scream or swear or whatever so you can handle real life a better more easily then this is the place! I'd also recommend telling your son's school ASAP in case he needs any support.

Anyway, wine seems like a good companion right now. Enjoy. I don't drink anymore so I'm raising a glass of apple juice to you instead

nicky pah! You had me convinced by the breakfast. I made my family look at all the photos on trip advisor

Enjoy your whisky Twitter my taste buds are on holiday too. Thankfully it's only a few days each cycle for me. Hopefully yours will be back soon when you switch to just the bevacuzimab?

wombat I would make a lovely Facebook friend if you would just join up :) but I shan't mention it again

I hope everyone is having as nice an evening as can be. I'm trying to take it easy as I'm going to a wedding reception tomorrow evening so want to be on reasonable form. I might take my steroids a bit later in the day to power me through they can't possibly make my dancing any worse

Good advice about telling the school, I hadn’t even considered that. I hate the thought of people worrying about me as then I’ll spend all my time worrying about them worrying about me I’m going to at least wait until after the scan before telling anyone

Should've pressed refresh before I started typing :)

Ahardyfool I firmly believe knowledge is power, though I know others prefer to know as little as possible. I'm sorry your GP has added to your worries. I hope you can get the rest of your tests as quickly as possible. What medication are you on? I have a pulmonary embolism. I'm currently on Fragmin (dalteparin) injections, and was previously on rivaroxaban tablets. Neither caused any major side effects for me. Just bruising/bleeding a bit more easily than before. The leaflet is scary though!

Gosh purple that sounds like interesting bedtime reading