The Diagnosis

In September of  2011 I went in for my usual yearly physical and had expressed to my family doctor that my left side was sore to the touch because of the location he felt it might be water cysts again on my ovary.   He ordered an ultra sound.  I went for the test not suspecting to be told anything else but you do have water cysts.  So you can imagine my shock when my doctor told me that yes I had a water cyst but that was not what he was concerned with it was the fact that my right kidney was enlarged. my doctor had already set up an appointment for me to have CAT scan to see just what was going on. 

In October of 2012 I had the scan done and was called back to my doctor's office for the results.  There was a tumor on my right kidney just above where the ureter comes into the kidney.  It looks to be of solid mass, size irregular shape which in all likeliness is cancer.  I was reeling at this point, all I could think of not again.  I am so glad my husband Doug was with me for this appointment because I know I had not heard anything after hearing the word cancer.  Although I had heard the words "you have cancer" before it does make it any easier the second time around. 

Lucky for me I have the best family doctor in the world because he was able to get me in quickly to see the best Urologist in the country.  So in November of 2011 I went to see the best Urologist and once again Doug come with me.  I was shown the scan and the tumor that was growing on my kidney.  I was told that there was an 80 percent chance it was kidney cancer and that in all likeliness they would have to remove the kidney.  They wanted to do a biopsy first to determine if in fact it was cancer or not.  I was told that they would get me in for the biopsy by the end of the month and that I would be in having a right nephrectomy (right kidney removal) in December or January.

The hardest part of this news was having to confirm our fears to our children (20 year old daughter and 18 year old son) and my family.  It was especially hard because my dad had just passed away this past summer and we were still dealing with his passing when we are hit with another blow.  Our children were shaken by the news but said I wasn't going anywhere because I had to much bitching and complaining to do yet.  My mom and sister took the news very hard.  I remember telling my mom and her saying why you and why now haven't we have enough shit to deal with this year.  My sister called me and was crying before I even answered the phone thank God for caller id because I would have thought it was an obscene caller.  All my sister could say was "I don't know what to say"  I had assured her that everything was going to be okay because the kids told me I had too much bitching and complaining to do, she actually laughed at this.