These words have changed my life in several ways since January of 2013. But this time it was personal.
In November and December of 2014, we had traveled six times in eight weeks to KU Med Center as they were trying to find lung cancer that a local practitioner thought was on Mike’s chest CT. After each appointment, we’d hear something like we have to wait on the pathology. Come back next week and we’ll discuss it.
What kind of pathology do you think is lurking in this water?
The first time this happened we had an oncologist who had grown up in Goodland. He was in the last few months of his fellowship at KU and would be moving to Hays. He did an excellent job of explaining the two types of lung cancer then set up a bronchoscopy to check for lung cancer. An appointment was set up for the next week on my birthday and we went home to wait for pathology.
I was leaving work a few hours early, so we could get to Topeka in time to have a birthday dinner with Roderick. I was packing up to head out the door and Mike called. The doctor called and told him not to come. It turned out the pathology results were negative for lung cancer and he didn’t feel like we needed to drive across the state for negative results. He would meet with Mike’s team and the thoracic surgeon to see what the next step would be.
Thus, started a journey of looking for cancer that was never found. I kind of thought that when we least expected it they would find it. I guess that’s what happened.
Monday came, and it was time to get my pathology results. Both Mike and my dad went along. I had emailed a couple of Mike’s doctors at KU to see who they would have their wives see for breast cancer, so I had the name of a breast surgeon there.
Invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) in the right breast. The tumor was small, .7 cm. We’d start with a lumpectomy and radiation or mastectomy with a sentinel node biopsy and then there would be more pathology that would determine the next step in treatment.
Same water – different pathology?
So, the next step was to set up an appointment with the surgeon at KU. The surgeon in Colby would get the ball rolling.
Because it was mid-November I would have to wait until after Thanksgiving to see the surgeon at KU. I was set up for yet another mammogram (oh joy!) and ultrasound, an appointment with the breast surgeon, and an appointment with the breast cancer oncologist. Mike was also seeing a surgeon, so we had a full schedule, as usual.
One Way Or Another they were going to find something.
Onward! On to KU Med Center.
Make a Connection in the comments below.
