8cm ovarian cyst and travel to India booked

[starkadder]

OK - I have an 8cm cyst, which looks like an endometrioma, apparently, on my right ovary. It's been there for ages and I am on a bloody waiting list to get it taken out. A week and a half ago it leaked (or something) and I was in hospital for 3 nights. The hospital told me they'd take it out within a week or two.

They haven't given me an appointment yet and I am due to travel to India for the wedding of a very close friend on Feb 12. Apart from emotional reasons for wanting to go to India, flights and hotel have cost in the region of 2000 quid.

Hospital now says it would be better to do the op after I come back so I don't travel immediately after surgery.

I am SO upset...I don't want to go to India with this BASTARD cyst, which hurts, and makes me miserable, and which I feel is liable to flare up, or leak, or whatever it did a week and a half ago, again. But they won't operate so I am faced with the choice of travelling with the cyst (!) or cancelling the whole thing.

What would you do???

I have to be honest and say I would cancel

Is there any way you could get the cost of the trip back on travel insurance?

I don't know if I could I don't want to cancel....it's a very close friend and we've been talking about this wedding since we were children... Also, I originally thought I wouldn't be able to go because I'd be 8mths pregnant..had a miscarriage and the fact that I then could go was the (very flimsy) "silver lining"

but thanks for your reply! sorry to be so miserable...

Starkadder - feel REALLY sorry for you, but I also think you have no option but to cancel.. firstly if it turns nasty while you are in India you might end up in hospital over there which may or may not be ideal depending on how close you are going to be to a major hospital, and also if something does happen you may not be covered by medical insurance for your bills because you know now that you have the cyst so should declare it. A way round that might be for the hospital to certify you as fit to fly and then you tell your travel insurers but they still might not agree to cover you for that specific problem.

No need to apologise for being miserable, it is a miserable situation, so you're entitled.

Your friend would probably be horrified about you risking your health for her wedding?

If you've got a bit of time before the wedding have the op done over there privately!!

starkadder To be honest with you I'd have it done privately. I had abdominal surgery in the summer of 2008 (end of June) - unfortunately I got some complications.

My manager wanted me in India for business and I had to weigh up the odds - although it would've been great for my career - my doctor didn't want me going anywhere near India for 6 months and I could not personally take the risk of ending up in an Indian hospital or showering under "dirty" water.

I do realise that there are probably "better" facilities for westerners, but we're talking abdominal surgery here - not a cut in the finger.

Best of luck!

aaaaagh - what did I write???? Mind on mine and bartholomina's post and not thinking.

Please disregard my first sentence, it should've read:

starkadder To be honest with you I'd cancel.

Sorry, mind not on the job!

I'm at home recovering from similar surgery this week. I wouldn't be able to lift a case on or off the baggage carousel (i'm not even allowed to carry a handbag for a couple of weeks!) and I wouldn't be confident of havign a day out in town at the moment. So travelling to the third (or second?) world would be a definite no-no. So I can see why the hospital wouldn't want to do surgery if you are intending such a trip.

Whether you go before the surgery is up to you. Only yuou can decide how much risk you want to take. How likely are you to have a recurrence of the problem that landed you in hospital recently? And what would the standard of hospital treatment be in India if it does happen? If you are willing to take the odds of that happening, then you should go but if you aren't then stay at home.