You could tell this wasn't going to be an ordinary day from the moment I opened my eyes. After getting very little sleep last night, I awoke to the sound of Scottie's voice waking me up. I purposely shoved my phone under my pillows to ignore the alarms that ususally wake me up, I guess Barb had been calling repeatedly to make sure I was up and ready to venture to Moffitt. No, in fact I was ready to say f* it, I need more sleep!!! Instead, I threw on some clothes, dragged my butt out of bed to take my regimen of medications (yes, in THAT order... my clothes were on my bed, so there :P) and griped for the lack of coffee or mochas in the house.
Damon and Barb showed up, and we headed out... stopping at a gas station to fuel up, not only the car but myself and Damon as well (Barb had her coffee with her). Alas, Damon did not hear my request for a mocha and I didn't want to be a pest, so I remained quiet, cursing under my breath for lack of caffeine. I-75 was horrible! It took twice as long to get to Tampa as it normally did, so I was an hour late for my appointment. Damon called it "Lollygag Thursday" as it seemed more like a rainy Sunday drive on the interstate rather than the high pulse of traffic that was usual. Trying to find Moffitt was an adventure in itself! USF buildings were everywhere and Moffitt was scattered among them. Finally finding where we were to go, we stepped out into the cold, drizzling rain. I went inside to check in, while Barb waited for Damon to park the car and join us.
Free coffee, YAY! Nope, not for me, I was told... I might have to have a CAT scan. Ok, so add more points to an already crappy day, thank you. There it was, that beautiful, hot ,caramel-colored beverage within an arms length and yet I had to let it sit on the doctor's desk. Oh it was most definitely taunting me. Dr. Robinson was very informative, friendly and I found myself to be very comfortable in what should have been a most uncomfortable situation. I mean, who really wants to hear for the third time that you have cancer. I guess the more you hear it, the more you get used to the idea. He showed me my PET scan and the tumor and explained exactly what we were looking at: bones, blood vessels, organs... very interesting. He said he does about 10 of these surgeries a year and the patients have a high success rate (good news for me).
What's next you ask? I need to have a CT scan with contrast (iodine dye) done so that the blood vessels show a different color than the tumor on the scan. Once he sees exactly where this tumor is and what other organs it is affecting takes us to our next step. He said, from the sounds of it, it sounds like an invasive tumor to which chemotherapy would be the next step before surgery, then the surgery and possibly radiation afterwards depending how much they were able to take out. All in all, I am very satisfied with what I heard today. He knows his business and I trust him already. I informed my oncologist (he gave me his cell number to call him after the consultation) of what happened and he said let's get it going. So tomorrow I am to make my appointment for the scan, and once the scan is done, to call my doctor on his cell, so he can make sure the images are over-nighted on CD to Dr. Robinson.
Hmmmm... doctors that give you their cell nuimbers, doctors that make sure your films are over-nighted, doctor's that educate their patients, doctors that make you feel at ease, doctors that waive their fees for you.... Please don't ever let me hear any of you complain about money-hungry, could-care-less doctors anymore, for it seems I have been blessed with the the ones that care and are the best!!!
Oh and that cup of coffee? I did get to taste it, but I didn't drink it. I couldn't do a CT today because my hives were popping out again, unfortunately Barb drank MY coffee (the one with sugar) and left the one with Splenda for me (YUCK!). It's ok though, I got a mocha for being a good girl on the ride home :D
Damon and Barb showed up, and we headed out... stopping at a gas station to fuel up, not only the car but myself and Damon as well (Barb had her coffee with her). Alas, Damon did not hear my request for a mocha and I didn't want to be a pest, so I remained quiet, cursing under my breath for lack of caffeine. I-75 was horrible! It took twice as long to get to Tampa as it normally did, so I was an hour late for my appointment. Damon called it "Lollygag Thursday" as it seemed more like a rainy Sunday drive on the interstate rather than the high pulse of traffic that was usual. Trying to find Moffitt was an adventure in itself! USF buildings were everywhere and Moffitt was scattered among them. Finally finding where we were to go, we stepped out into the cold, drizzling rain. I went inside to check in, while Barb waited for Damon to park the car and join us.
Free coffee, YAY! Nope, not for me, I was told... I might have to have a CAT scan. Ok, so add more points to an already crappy day, thank you. There it was, that beautiful, hot ,caramel-colored beverage within an arms length and yet I had to let it sit on the doctor's desk. Oh it was most definitely taunting me. Dr. Robinson was very informative, friendly and I found myself to be very comfortable in what should have been a most uncomfortable situation. I mean, who really wants to hear for the third time that you have cancer. I guess the more you hear it, the more you get used to the idea. He showed me my PET scan and the tumor and explained exactly what we were looking at: bones, blood vessels, organs... very interesting. He said he does about 10 of these surgeries a year and the patients have a high success rate (good news for me).
What's next you ask? I need to have a CT scan with contrast (iodine dye) done so that the blood vessels show a different color than the tumor on the scan. Once he sees exactly where this tumor is and what other organs it is affecting takes us to our next step. He said, from the sounds of it, it sounds like an invasive tumor to which chemotherapy would be the next step before surgery, then the surgery and possibly radiation afterwards depending how much they were able to take out. All in all, I am very satisfied with what I heard today. He knows his business and I trust him already. I informed my oncologist (he gave me his cell number to call him after the consultation) of what happened and he said let's get it going. So tomorrow I am to make my appointment for the scan, and once the scan is done, to call my doctor on his cell, so he can make sure the images are over-nighted on CD to Dr. Robinson.
Hmmmm... doctors that give you their cell nuimbers, doctors that make sure your films are over-nighted, doctor's that educate their patients, doctors that make you feel at ease, doctors that waive their fees for you.... Please don't ever let me hear any of you complain about money-hungry, could-care-less doctors anymore, for it seems I have been blessed with the the ones that care and are the best!!!
Oh and that cup of coffee? I did get to taste it, but I didn't drink it. I couldn't do a CT today because my hives were popping out again, unfortunately Barb drank MY coffee (the one with sugar) and left the one with Splenda for me (YUCK!). It's ok though, I got a mocha for being a good girl on the ride home :D
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