Good news!

So here is where we are:

I had the test last week. It was long and extremely uncomforable. However, it is over and we are moving forward! I met with the doctor yesterday, and here's what we have:

I have a focal nodular hyperplasia. This is a confusing way to say a benign liver tumor. These tumors don't do anything (other than get picked up on random tests for other things and cause lots of mental anguish) and are most often asymptomatic (don't cause any symptoms). You don't have to have them removed (yay!), and there is really no kind of treatment for them. Hey, as long as it doesn't bother me, I'm not going to bother it. They are switching up some of my medications, as something I take apparently has been linked to increasing the size of these things and, in very rare cases, causing a hemorrhage. Obviously, I do not wish to antagonize the thing, so I am going off of that medication.

They are going to re-scan me in 3 months (ugghh, of course the awful test is the one they have me repeating!) to see if going off of the medicine has helped it to shrink any. Either way, it is definitely a relief to know what this thing is and to know that it is not kind of immediate threat! So THANK YOU for all of your prayers, positive vibes, optimistic thoughts, etc. They all worked!

Since I am a sciency research nerd, I spent some time looking up information and research that has been done on these hyperplasias. Interestingly, I found that some very recently published studies have determined an association between pediatric/adolescent cancer survivors and these tumors. I don't think anyone has determined a linked cause between the two, but it could be that something about the genetics of pediatric cancer patients or the type of treatment they receive can increase risk of developing the hyperplasias. As stated before, these are not dangerous or anything, but having more information about the cause of these (like if there really is a link between having had cancer in youth and developing these), then we might be able to quell the anxieties of future adolescent cancer survivors by making physicians (and patients) aware that sometimes these things do come up in this population.

I hope that made sense, I'm trying to kind of wrap my head around how to phrase it. Anyway, the point being, that these hyperplasias could very well be yet another, and somewhat unknown, long-term side effect of pediatric cancer. As you may remember, this is kind of my scene, so I may just have some further researching to do on this subject and perhaps some position papers to start writing. Maybe I could save some other young cancer survivors the stress and anxiety of thinking they might have a malignant liver tumor... God certainly does work in mysterious ways, doesn't he?

Getting ready for tomorrow

Hello once more. I am writing in a bit of a hurry because my evening doctoral course begins in about 15 minutes, and the instructor has made it very clear that he doesn't want us to be pursuing...outside activities during lecture. So I will try to respect his wishes and not email, text, blog, etc. until 8:30 when class concludes. Try.

I wanted to give you a quick update which is simply that I am returning to the hallowed halls of Kirklin Clinic tomorrow for this follow-up test of what is surely only a minor speed bump in an otherwise blissfully stressful and overworked "normal" semester. I am told that I am not to consume anything after midnight so you can imagine the anxiety snacking that will ensue before then! I wasn't nervous about this test until last week when I got a "pre-screening phone call" from someone at Kirklin who pretty much scared the crap out of me with his 8-900 questions ranging from "have you ever had an MRI?" to "are you claustrophobic?" to "do you have any tattoos, medical devices, body piercings, etc." They got progressively more strange and nerve-wracking until I was pretty much ready to sit in the floor and chew my nails off in Target.

SO! Please sent prayers and positive thoughts my way tomorrow and I will send you an update as soon as possible! Love!

C

Care to procrastinate?

So I woke up in the wee hours of the morning to go with my family to take little sister to the airport for her big Ireland send off. It was good, I was/am jealous, pretty typical. Then I came home to take a little nappy before really getting into the groove of the day. Well, the nap ended up taking longer than expected (yes, let's blame the nap; it's the nap's fault, not mine) so I got kind of a late start on the real day.

But now here I am. Laptop a-going, piles of work around me... And then I killed about thirty minutes checking email, making a sandwich, seeing what this new facebook is about... And here I am. Still with the books and such, but no progress seems to be getting made. So here is where you come in. I am writing under the guise of having a loyal, devoted public that I must attend to (talk about delusions of grandeur); however, we all know that since I have nothing very important to tell you that I am simply trying to force away the unforgiving and accusing stares of the pile of textbooks next to me with a distraction. Aren't you lucky to be that distraction?

The answer is yes.

Okay, well the guilt is killing me, so I will attempt to do some productive work now. In the meantime, I will leave you with this thought: I could use a big overstuffed chair for my study cave.

C

Here's where we are today

So... all of the crazy snow and ice weather in the Southeast this past weekend/current week has changed a few things. First of all, it allowed me some time to snuggle up inside with some hot cocoa and...study for comps. It also delayed my sister's flight to Ireland by two days :( And it caused my big test to be postponed. So sadly I have no wonderful news regarding the state of my liver as yet. However, they have rescheduled my testing for January 19th and my follow-up visit for January 25th. So now we have another week or two of some of that irritating waiting. But! Positive thoughts will be continued.

In the meantime, I am getting back into the full swing of classes and comps preparation and working on some really interesting projects. Lots of applications for grants (at least "mock" or "practice" applications) and some conference proposals. In other words, a lot of in-depth, intensive research on what's currently going on in the field of adolscent cancer. I'll keep you posted with what's going on and what I dig up.

Hopefully the snow and ice will thaw out pretty soon and I can emerge from hibernation and at least see some sun! Also, please pray for our close friends and their son who had appendicitis yesterday and is hopefully on the road to a quick and full recovery!

More Soon,
C

Back to the grind...

So here I am, back at it. As I replied to Ellen, I should have really enjoyed my week off more thoroughly because things are back to crazy busy and somehow I am already behind (or feel that way). The past three days have been all about buying books for my classes (rather trying to because they aren't in yet), going to meetings, prepping for TAing my first master's-level class (yay!), and doing other general awful errands (i.e. taking car in to be serviced, making returns, etc.). Yuck.

But now I am sitting and waiting for my first real course of the semester to start (Factorial Analysis of Quantitative Scale Development? Something terrifying like that). I am trying to utilize every spare minute of time to shout out to you since I have not found myself sitting still for the past 5 days or so. So maybe the next segment of my posts will be what I will later refer to as my "short but sweet" period. Famous painters get to have periods and moods and such, why not me too?

As an update on the other areas of life, I go for the follow-up testing on my liver buddy on January 11th. While I am sure it is nothing but a pesky little life-interrupter some prayers sent my way are always appreciated! They are doing an MRI with contrast to get a better look at the bugger (which hopefully is still little and hasn't moved or grown or done anything else nuisansome [new word of today]). I will meet with the oncologist on the 13th to discuss what they (hopefully don't) find.

In the mean time I am filling my days quite to the brim. With classes, teaching (me, teaching, what?), tutoring, prepping for COMPS (AAAggghhh, already have received some terrifying emails about them), and the like, I barely have time to create a mini-presentation about the muscular and skeletal systems for A's class and to watch Patrick and the guys move a clawfoot bathtub on Sunday... Don't be jealous. And by the way, Leslie, and Delia, this does not mean stop calling me. In fact, call me more. I could use the distraction!

Hopefully updates and a little fun Paint art soon!

C