SURVIVOR

So this is not a particularly Texas thing, but it's a thing that happened to me in Texas and I'm a Texan. This is my blog, so I can post what I want. 

As of August 2020, I'm an ovarian cancer survivor. 

With my family history, cancer was a matter of "when," not "if." So I've always been proactive about my health. When the signs and symptoms of something being wrong with my lady parts first showed themselves at Thanksgiving in 2019, I wasted no time making an appointment with my doctor who referred me to a wonderful obstetrician/gynecologist and my life has been prolonged for a while longer, which I hope means at least 30+ more years of living.

The timeline of events went as follows:

Thanksgiving 2019: first symptom made itself very clear. It was similar to what my mother experienced when she had uterine cancer (also a survivor and she had it successfully treated). Made my primary care physician appointment THAT day online.

February 2020: finally saw my PCP who referred me to my OBGYN. Met with the OBGYN and scheduled several tests.

March 2020: surgical biopsy, blood tests, and sonograms showed no cancer. So we waited. Sonogram did show an ovarian cyst on my right ovary. It merited watching for awhile, but no panic.

May 2020: the symptoms returned. I immediately contacted my OBGYN and saw her within 48 hours. We opted for a total hysterectomy/oophorectomy.

June 24, 2020: laparoscopic surgery for a total hysterectomy/oophorectomy. Tissue sent to MD Anderson for further pathology testing.

July 23, 2020: my OBGYN called to tell me that the ovarian cyst completely contained a 6.5mm cancerous tumor. Surgery got all of the tumor and there were no signs of spread. Stage 1A/grade 1 cancer. Early. We got it all.

August 2020: A trip to an oncologist. CT scan of abdomen. No sign of any other cancer or spread of cancer. Completely clear.

August 31, 2020: 12:56 p.m. got the call from my oncologist. NO more cancer detected and an oral immunotherapy drug prescribed. Officially an ovarian cancer survivor.

What I've learned in my journey is that ovarian cancer is the one of the hardest to detect and most women do not survive. Only about 15% of women who have ovarian cancer survive. I am now in the 15%. 

I was told my case was pretty unique. Only every decade or so does a case like mine come up. I am one of the lucky ones. But I think luck was only part of it. Vigilance and self-care made up for the larger percentage. I figured into my own physical salvation. That really mattered the most.

What's the point of this story? Take care of yourself. Male, female, whatever you happen to be, see your doctors regularly. Do NOT ignore unusual symptoms or signs your body is trying to tell you something. Go. Get. It. Checked. Out. Your life depends on it.

Every cancer survivor says that cancer changed them. In my case, it made me more of who I already was: a person with a thirst for life and experience. A celebrator of Tuesdays because they only come once a week. A woman who loves deeply and well. A mother teaching by example. A human being with a touch more zest for staying on the planet. 

Go to your doctor. Get your annual physical. Get regular cancer screenings. Life is worth it.