Update

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Update
2
Thu, 04-19-2007 - 2:00am

Yesterday was a long, long day. The cancer clinic is a self-contained clinic within Vancouver General Hospital. The only thing that isn't done there is surgery, but they have surgeons who specialize in cancer just across the street. That was good news.

When we arrived, he had to go through admitting which meant going to two different places before we found out that's what he had to do and find where it was. Then we were told to wait for the volunteer to take us to the lab for a blood draw. Got there, gave them the paperwork, and had a seat. Well, when people who arrived long after we had began to go in and we had been sitting there for quite some time, dh went and asked if he'd been forgotten. Well, duh, he had. The woman who was in charge at the desk there left right after we got there, telling another woman to do whatever it is they do with his paperwork. She didn't do it. When the first woman came back, she was sighing, rolling her eyes, and all but silently cussing out the other woman for everything she had and had not done in her absence. That made me feel better. LOL

We then went down to meet with the doc. She had two med students with her which was unexpected but okay except for one thing which I'll get to. They took a history. Well, asking my dh to provide a history means that they got a HISTORY, an autobiography. He LOVES to talk! LOL So they were able to pull out the useful information and leave the other. Then it was on to the physical exam. She checked his BP, pulse, neck, abdomen, and asked him to drop his shorts. Well, that was my clue to exit the room. When I announced that I would be leaving now, the three women looked at me first in surprise, then in amusement. LOL Apparently, here's the part where three of them became a little bit of an issue, the doc did her digital exam, then one of the students did. When the third one was going to, my dh said no, he'd pass on that one. LOL

They all left for him to get dressed. A few minutes later, they all arrived back in the room. The doc then talked to us about the options. The last two we had on our list of treatments of preference from the research we had done before the appt turn out to be the two that are now on the top of the list. I'm pretty sure that we will opt for surgical removal. However, he has lots of time to make his decision and get treatment. We have an appt. to see this doc again in late June. In the meantime, he's going to go see his GP and talk to him about it at this doc's suggestion. After seeing this doc in June, we'll make an appt to talk to one of the surgeons and, if that's what we choose, he'll book his surgery probably for January.

Then we get home. No power. We paid our bill. Why is the power out? DH calls the power company. Well, it's their fault, their error, but they can't guarantee that it'll be turned on tonight. WHAT????? Anyway, it's back on after being off for several hours.

Check the phone messages. I had my annual exam recently. I have a message that my doc is VERY concerned about me, and I need to make an appt ASAP. I have an appt for this afternoon. Now what?

I need an endometrial ultrasound at this time. If it's inconclusive, on to a biopsy. I'm just leaving it at that for today. I just can't talk about it anymore right now.

 


 
 

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
In reply to: amcanmom
Fri, 04-20-2007 - 1:26pm

I would say you need giant


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Okay first I missed something.........why are they waiting or would wait until January to do the surgery?

Hope everyone has a great Summer!

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
In reply to: amcanmom
Fri, 04-20-2007 - 5:06pm

His prostate cancer is a slow growing kind at the beginning stages. (For those who know about the Gleason score, his was 3+3.) It would actually be about five years before they would actually say that they need to do some kind of treatment "NOW*. He could live another 10-20 years with the cancer and no treatment. If he is treated now instead of later, we have several treatment options. If we wait three or four years, we have one option. Basically, that means we can pick and choose when we want treatment to begin. The reason we are looking at January is because January and February are my dh's two slowest months of the year in his practice.

If his cancer was a faster growing kind or in a later stage, they would give him hormone pills to take in the interim. Since it's not, he doesn't need that. TG! The side effects are very similar to perimenopause/menopause in women, hot flashes and all. We don't need two of us doing that! LOL So no treatment is necessary in the interim.

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