Cancer-surgery & afterward
I had my surgery Monday. My parents drove me to UC Hospital & I arrived to check in at 5:45am. Well, that was first problem. Woman told me I was in wrong place (I wasn't) & somewhat stressed, we headed to Radiology. That was wrong place too. I looked at my notes that I'd taken when nurse called week before to tell me what to do, & it said Nuclear Medicine after I checked in. So, finally after going to two wrong places, nurse took us to Nuclear. That was my first procedure. It was obvious that everything was in transition (it felt like we were headed through a bomb shelter-it was in basement) & the area I was taken for test was separated by rest of open office by just a curtain, so I was now even more stressed! But, on to procedure. I was given 3 somewhat painful, although bearable, injections which burned for just a few minutes. Once the dye was spread, pictures were taken so that my surgeon would be able to locate my lymph nodes. This process took about 45 minutes, & the only discomfort after the injections were just some of the positions I had to hold to get the pictures clearly. As I was lying there though, I heard a man say-"She needs to get to "check in" in the lobby before going to next procedure, so you need to give her another gown" or something like that. So now as I'm lying there, I'm thinking about how I'm going to look going back to that lobby filled with regularly dressed people. That may not bother others, but it really bothered me going bra-less under a hospital gown in front of everyone. However, nurse did give me the second gown, which I put on backwards over other gown, & she suggested I wear my little denim jacket that I thankfully had brought with me. So, it wasn't as bad as I thought. Also, several people in that office & in the offices I was in before had all apologized for the mix up at check in (although it wasn't their fault at all). So, my parents & I walked back up to lobby, & a new woman there & she still didn't think I should be there! Yea, I'm having these procedures done, but I'm not checking in? Anyway, I think she could tell I was upset, & she took care of it & sent me to a cubicle to finally check in. After that was finished, my "ride" came & it included some much appreciated heated blankets. Very nice attendant wheeled me to the Barrett Center where I was to have the wire inserted. The doctor (not my surgeon) spoke to me first to let me know everything that was going to happen, & happily, she informed me that I would indeed receive a numbing shot. (I had been told previously that I would not get one for this procedure). So, I was sent to a small room, with quite a few nurses & doctors actually, & got to get into one of those lovely vise things where you have to remain still. Although I couldn't see it, I was then given a shallow numbing injection, which hurt a bit, then a deeper one. After that, the doctor inserted the wire. I didn't feel that until it hit the other side, or at least that is what it felt like. Everyone in the office was very nice & there was a nurse right next to me the whole time who held my hand. I had been told this procedure could take just under an hour, but it actually took only about 10 minutes, much to my relief, especially since I couldn't move. I had to be very careful as to movement & with my left arm as there was a hook at the end of the wire so that it could be located once in surgery. The wire, by the way, had to be inserted so that my surgeon could find the tumor as it couldn't be felt. Next, I was wheeled to an area that had several private cubicles, each with a bed & TV, etc. That's where I was prepped for surgery. The nurse who inserted the IV (I'd say she needed a bit more practice-that hurt a bit) noticed how nervous I was (I was shaking the whole time) & put something in the IV to calm it. It helped, & I stopped shaking. My mom was with me during this time. Anyway, now I'm in bed & on my way to the surgery. Once I got there, they realized that I still had on the double gowns! But, couldn't take anything off due to IV, so they cut the left side off. The only thing I remember is getting to that room & seeing everyone in surgical masks & then nightie night! I awoke in recovery, at first not remembering what the heck was going on, & then realizing where I was & noticing how much my throat hurt. That was due to the breathing tube, which thankfully was both inserted & taken out while still sleeping. My blood pressure was being monitored during this time, & I had those pressure things on my legs. My bp was low, & the light & beeper kept going off, but I guess it was okay, as no one seemed concerned about it. (It was around 98 over 45) I do think I remember someone saying something about bp problems around when I first awoke, but now I'm not sure if that was about me or someone else. I'll have to ask my surgeon when I see her next Thursday. The surgery took about 2 1/2 hours, which was a little less time than anticipated. After about 45 minutes in recovery, I was wheeled back to the private cubicle & my mom came in. I was able to get dressed after a short while, with my mom helping me as I think she thought I was going to topple! I guess some people have done so, as there was a sign in the cubicle about what to do if you feel woozy. But, I had no adverse reaction to the anesthesia luckily, unlike my sister had had recently. (she ended up having to stay overnight after her procedure for growth in ear). We left the hospital around 3pm, & actually I felt pretty good on the ride home with mom & dad, & it took a while to get home, about an hour, due to rush hour. Oh, & before I left, the nurse gave me a Percoset for pain, & a prescription for that, to be taken every 4 hours. Once I got home, just sat down to watch some TV, but was suddenly very tired, & went to take a nap. I got up after a short sleep, & felt okay, & mom had fixed me a nice light dinner. Afterward though, I started feeling bad (I had taken a second pain pill by then) & was exhausted & had some nausea. My mom stayed all night (actually she's still at my house) & made sure to check on me every 4-5 hours & had cold water, my pain pills ready to take, & fresh cold packs. But, I was feeling horrible with an awful headache. So, the next day, Tuesday, she called the Pharmacist to see if I could take a Tylenol along with the pain meds, & he said okay. But, it didn't seem to help much. I was feeling worse, & now was feeling not only nausea & had a horrible headache, but also was getting woozy feelings. Now my mom was afraid for me to go up & down my steps, which are pretty steep. I just couldn't understand why I was feeling worse & worse, when I'd felt rather good for several hours after surgery. I finally decided it was the Percoset. I stopped taking it that night, & luckily, I was not in so much pain that made that decision difficult. I started taking just Tylenol. I have taken pain meds quite a few times before (two times had infected tooth-pain from HELL & some other minor surgeries or procedures) but I have never had an issue with pain meds. But, once I was off those things, I started feeling much better & the nasty symptoms went away. My mom has been wonderful in taking care of me, fixing all my meals & cleaning things up & always checking on my when I was in bed. Now, the thing I was worried about most was the call I was to get from Cathy (my surgeons nurse) regarding the results. Well, that call came today, & I found out the lymph node they examined was BENIGN. The tumor was 1 centimeter, & they took 8 centimeters. I think they said something about a clear margin of .5 centimeters, & my nurse said that was good. I had my mom talk to her though, because she's a nurse & understands all that stuff! So, no way to know for sure (without cutting the rest of them out), but they think I'm cancer free. Still, I'm pretty sure that I will still have chemo & radiation, which I believe is standard, & it's what my surgeon had already told me. I will know more next week when I see her, & I think they have further tests, including a genetic thing. I've decided to aggressive action to fight this due to the chances of it coming back, or possibly still being there. (I sure hope it's not that, & they're pretty sure it's not). So, guess I'll be back here to update next week. I will say this; I have always been very leery of hospitals here in Cincinnati (I couldn't get a surgery appointment at the Cleveland Clinic until October!), but everyone at UC Hospital was wonderful, from the attendants to the nurses to the doctors, & I liked my surgeon from the very beginning. My surgeon will be advising me Thursday as to which Oncologist I should see for the rest of my treatment. So for now at least, I am happy with the results I received today.