Cancer Free

I was supposed to go in for my colposcopy today, but the doctor's office called on Wednesday and scheduled an appointment at UW Madison for the second opinion today. Drew and I had to be there at 8:45 AM. Once we got there, we registered, and then went to Radiology where they did another ultrasound. Both external and internal. Seriously, not fun!

After the ultrasound, we went to Oncology to meet with Dr. Rose. The waiting room was filled with people. And lots of them had on scarfs or hats. It was so sad. And I was terrified waiting for whatever news was going to come. We checked in at Oncology and the lady gave me a pager and said that they would call me back to do my labs in a little bit. Fantastic. Drew and I went out in the hallway to wait. After about 10 minutes, the lady came back and said that Dr. Rose decided to meet with me first and then do labs. Drew and I were then sent through a set of doors to another waiting room. This waiting room was also filled with people.

We were called back pretty quickly and were put in an examination room. A nurse took my vitals and a little information. Then, a physician's assistant came in and she talked to me a little bit more about what was going on. Then, as she was leaving, she told me that Dr. Rose would be in to do another pelvic exam. (BTW, I have decided to keep a count of the number of people who have seen my lady parts during this whole ordeal and my number has now reached 5. I'm a married woman who is not pregnant. That is way too many!!!)

So, I undress, for the second time, and sit and wait. He comes in and talks to me a little bit about what's been going on. He pulled up my ultrasound and told me that there are two cysts on my right ovary. One is 2.4 cm and one is 2.7 cm. Not huge, but not teeny either. He told me that they aren't cancerous and he's really not concerned about them at the moment. Dr. Rose said that the symptoms that I'm complaining about are pretty indicative of endometriosis. He says that they really don't do surgery anymore. They treat the symptoms. With birth control!!!!

My heart sank at that point. Yes, I am overjoyed that it's not cancer that I'm dealing with. But, I do NOT want to start taking birth control. I asked him if there was anything else that could be done and he said that there are hormone shots, but he doesn't recommend them. They would be on a trial basis and I would have to stop after no more than six months or I could risk damage to my bones.

So, he did another pelvic exam (where he pinched me with the speculum and stuck his finger in my booty. Is that normal? I think not!!) and told me that I should schedule a follow up with my doctor here. I guess that is the next step for next week. Maybe she'll have some different suggestions besides birth control.