THESE WERE NOT THE RESULTS I WANTED!

[baratron]

Well, the ultrasound yesterday entirely failed in the obvious and not scary categories. Need to talk to the doctor about it, but I think what I actually have is non obvious and scary. Bah!

There's no sign of any cysts in my ovaries. Apparently they look fairly normal. There are a whole load of small growths in my uterus. None of them are fibroids that should be big enough to be causing pain (I still remember the_siobhan's Killer Attack Uterus that was twice the size it should have been). However, small growths in my uterus are totally not what I need, given the family history of endometrial cancer which, if accounts from my grandmother are to be believed, may be in the process of attacking my cousin. Godsdamnit!

Endometrial cancer is not hugely terrifying by the standards of cancers, since it's slow-growing, and if it's caught early (and anything under the age of 60 counts as "early") you have a very high chance of recovery. However, my mum suffers horribly from the anti-estrogens and androgens she's on (given that many transsexuals feel better once they have the "right" hormones, it makes sense that the "wrong" hormones would make a cissexual totally miserable), and her thyroid has packed up completely from having her ovaries removed (and her doctors don't seem to be giving her enough thyroxine), and she has osteoporosis, and she's really not very happy or comfortable most of the time. This is not a future I want for myself.

I probably have at least 10 years before I have to start worrying, but it depends on how much pain my lovely uterus decides to give me. And I was really hoping that I hadn't inherited this particular set of genes!

I wish my old doctor hadn't retired. He was really good at putting things into perspective. The new one is nice, but doesn't know me that well. I don't need to hear that the current set of growths are benign because that's how my mum started too, so it's not reassuring.

Comments

[barakta]

I have no words left after today btu I wanted to say this sounds annoying and anxiety making and is stress you really don't fucking need.

[baratron.livejournal.com]

I almost didn't post it today because I knew some people reading it would be upset already, but it's a different situation. Possibly inheriting one or more genes that might make me get an easily-treatable form of cancer in a decade's time isn't at all like inheriting a gene that causes multiple aggressive cancers in any part of the body! I don't even need sympathy (yet). It's frustrating and annoying more than anything else.

[barakta]

Whatever shit Joan had doesn't make any shit of our own go away in the slightest. Sometimes it is six of one and half a dozen of another.

Also I think it's just as reasonable to be concerned about quality of life and your situation still sounds undesirable, worrying and unpleasant, especially in light of the myriad shit you already fight every single day.

Putting on my "eternal optimist" hat

[ryan tucker (from livejournal.com)]

Well, as cancers go, I suppose one optimised for maximum annoyance is better than most other possible optimisations.

*hug!*

Is there a next step for diagnosis, or is it just one of those wait-and-see things? (I suppose there's not exactly a wide variety of growths typical to uteri.) And I suppose the original problem is still under investigation... bleh.

Re: Putting on my "eternal optimist" hat

[baratron.livejournal.com]

There isn't a genetic test or anything like that yet. Being slow-growing, most of the time they don't find it until women way past menopause start bleeding through the vagina again. It's pretty much wait and see.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

Oh boo.

[yoyoangel.livejournal.com]

Sorry to hear the result was scarier than you'd hoped.

[ludy]

sorry you didn't get a helpful answer (although lack of ovarian cysts is prolly a good thing - i'm finding having one not-fun).

Are you sure you were scanned sufficient close to your mid-cylce that any small and temporary (but annoying!) PCOSy cysts would have shown up?

even small fibroids aren't great news though, much sympathy/empathy (my lkast scan found one which hadn't shown up on previous scans

My Aunt (dad's Sister) had endometrial cancer and everything i've been told and read about it suggests that it's not particularly hereditary (though one of the main risk factors, PCOS, is - my PCOS comes from the other side of my family which i'm hoping will make my risk a little less but obviously i keep an eye out for symptoms). I do hope your cousin is all right (i seem to remember your Grandmother isn't always the most reliable source of information - and also i remember some of my family members getting confused and concerned about the similarity in names of the two separate conditions when i was first diagnosed with endometriosis)

Fibrods are a pretty specific kind of growth - it's extremely rare for them to become malignant and if they did it would cause Leiomyosarcoma not Endometrial cancer. Are you sure your Mum didn't have fibroids and endometrial cancer concurrently?(fibroids are common enough that it's more likely statistically)

[memevector.livejournal.com]

::sends multi-purpose good wishes::