Abigail Update

[telerib]

So I eventually got to see the gastroenterologist - on MLK Day, so I didn't have to take off work again, yay.

He doesn't think it's cancer. Neither do I: I've looked up liver cancer, and it almost never appears as a primary cancer. (That's why they CT'ed my whole abdomen - to make sure this didn't spread from something somewhere else). When it does, it appears in a) old, b) men who c) have extensively damaged their livers via lifelong alcohol abuse. This is not me on all three counts.

But we all want to make darn sure of what it is or is not, so biospy ho. The durn thing is on the wrong side of the liver for the easy biopsy, so I have to make an appointment with the hospital to have the thing done under imaging - either ultrasound or CT, I'm not sure which.

He also recommended, as preventative procedures, that I get a colonoscopy (oh boy) and my moles removed. Mom started colonoscopies when she was 40, and I remember the prep needed rather well. Oh, so not fun. But he said if I get one done now and there are no irregularities, I wouldn't need another one for 5-10 years. In 10 years, I'll be almost the same age that Mom was when she started getting them every 3-5 and when I was planning on starting to get mine. One or two extra procedures over the course of my life isn't that bad.

This afternoon I check in with Dr. Rosenshein, the gyn-oncology specialist. This is just a consultation, to see if there are any other tests, procedures, lifestyle changes or what have you I should be doing, given my family history, and is totally unrelated to Abigail.

Comments

[aemccurry.livejournal.com]

*hugs* My mom has to get colonoscopies every 2-3 years, she's got a history of miscellaneous lumps and bumps all over the place tht they like to keep a close eye on. 'Taint pleasant, but better to watch closely than ignore, as you know. If there's anything ya need, just give an e-holler.

[curiousangel.livejournal.com]

I'm certainly glad to hear that Abigail probably isn't cancerous. I have a friend who underwent a colonoscopy earlier this week, and she described the whole process as "not so bad as I had been led to believe". She also pointed out these new guidelines for preoperative fasting, which aren't quite as restrictive as some of the old rules.

Let us know if there's anything we can do for you, even if it's just getting Moe out of your hair for a while. :)