Well, making progress here on determining what kind of cancer I have. Had 6 nodes removed from left side of neck yesterday, the biggest one being about 4cm. They say it shows to be cancerous. Will find out more next week. The surgery went well, haven't had to use pain meds yet after leaving the hospital. Slept in the recliner last night, my neck only hurts when I start to stand up out of the chair.
Sorry to hear of the diagnosis but glad you're feeling okay after surgery. Please keep us posted as to what you find out and how things are going. Good luck!
Thank you, outlook1!
Yes please keep us posted on your results. Sounds like you are doing well on your pain management. Best of Luck!
My neck hurt also after lumph node removal for biop. Healed quickly...Nothing is going to change the DX at this point, so stay calm, upbeat, become familiar with this new twist, and keep posting. We are here for you.
Geri
Thank you all for your encouraging words. Geri that is a good way to think about it. I'm hanging in there. I did have a bad dream last night that the cancer had spread everywhere, jumped up out of bed on that one.
Hi Pumpkin, glad to see you're posting. It helps to keep your spirits up. Know the waiting for news can be a little un-nerving. Is anyone going to be able to go with you to your follow up? It is usually good to have another set of ears and that they are willing to jot down some notes of what you will be told. It's amazing how two people can listen to the same report, but hear something completly different. I found having my husband there to jot down things, allowed me to focus on the doctor and ask a few quick questions. After the visit though, a ton more pop in your head, some of which are general information about your subtype that can be found online or on this support site. Ross has written some great posts about questions to ask which you may find helpful. The best to you, post when you can, Kathy Beale
My husband and a friend will be going to the appt with me. I know what you mean about hearing things completely different. It helped to have a couple people with me on the last two appts, we would talk it over with each other afterward and there were different interpretations of things and it helped to understand it better. Thank you for your post and all the information.
The prelim report shows that I have B-cell lymphoma. They have sent it off for the second opinion. That's all I know for now. Kind of a relief to be told something after all the waiting for the appts, etc. Now I'm going to veg and unwind, I feel like I've been all tensed up waiting and wondering.....
Seems like a long time to wait for a better diagnosis. maybe you should push them along a little for a more definite diagnosis?
Hi pumpkin1959, hope you feel better (with the pain) soon, and you are in my prayers, please keep us posted.
Daynal
Thank you, Daynal!
Hi Pumpkin-
Not that this has anything to do with anything, but one nickname I have for my doggies is Big Pumpkin, and Lil' Pumpkin. :)
Once you find out exactly what type of B-Cell you have, you will feel a sense of relief. And of course, you are tensed up waiting and wondering. We all have been there, and are here for you now. Let us know....
Geri
LOL, Geri! Can I be Medium Pumpkin? :o) I know I keep saying this, I sure am glad to have found this site. I didn’t freak out when they told me that it was B-cell Lymphoma, I know that isn’t all of the diagnosis but at least I had an idea of what it was by reading up on this site. You all have been great support to me!
Hi Pumpkin, know this will be a long weekend waiting to hear what the subtype is and your treatment path, stay as busy as you can, no real way to stop the thinking about it, but keeping busy will help somewhat.
I got back from MD Anderson yesterday with great news, my SLL is actually reversing itself. Nodes that were called pathological 6 mons ago have now shrunk down to pre cancerous stage. I have now been on the "Watch & Wait" for 6 mos and if I had stayed with my first Onc. I would be in Chemo treatment now for my SLL/CLL. I am sure it would have created a remission but at a cost to future treatment choices down the road. We are going to do a bone biopsy in Feb. because like I wondered, there is no way of knowing the progress of the CLL in the bone until the numbers get higher and symptoms increase. My new Onc. is great, and really listened to my concerns. My other one just retired and was very nice also, but his PA had really bad bedside manners and caused extra stress. Now I have a new nurse who does the interviews and she is a Godsend. My numbers and scans were very good with only a slight increase in spleen size. The Onc told me that sometimes when they see a patient early and the DX is SLL/CLL, over time they will see the desease choose one or the other. In which case the SLL is no longer the issue (Lymphoma) of concern, but the CLL (Leukemia) becomes dominant and what you need to watch. He did say that one of the problems with the "Watch & Wait" for this subtype is you could have only 2% in the bone and then down the road the number increases to 80% leaving the patient questioning what happened!? and why hasn't the blood work picked it up. I had read an online journal about a girl this happened to, so thats why I asked him if I should have another bone biopsy. (something I would never request otherwise) He agreed and we will do one every 6 mos for a couple of years to keep an eye on any changes. I am sharing all this with you, and I hope it doesn't add any confusion when it comes to planning out your treatment, even though you may not have any choices, but if you do, I wanted you to know some additional info that may help, esp if they suggest the "Watch & Wait". May you have an easy weekend with much peace. Take care, Kathy Beale
Thank you for the information, KBeale!
Diagnosis, (definitive diagnosis) is really important, Lymphomas behave so differently, in PARTICULAR the DLBCL ABC subtype
let us know as soon as you find out - Ralph thanks, good luck