Update on the C-word

I know many of you have been praying for me regarding the C-word (original post about it HERE... at the end)  I'm so thankful for all of the prayers, and emails and texts, and I've been promising an update.  There's not much new to report right now, but I did have an appointment with my GI doctor this week... the first time I've talked to him since that awful phone call.  He was very reassuring.  He said that the pathology report showed that the cancer "appears to be non-invasive" and that the cells originated in the colon where they were found, therefore they didn't travel from another place in my body.  He kept reiterating how fortunate we were to have found it when we did because if I had waited another year, "it would be a death sentence."  Scary stuff.  He's ordering some genetic testing on the sample so they can see what caused the cancer and give us an idea of how much our children and my sisters are at risk.  He says our kids will need colonoscopies every 3 years starting at age 22!  Sounds awful but colon cancer is hereditary, and at least we can use the knowledge we have to try to protect them.

So next up is a round of testing: blood work and a CT scan are scheduled for next week.  The good news is that if those come back clear then there's no need for me to see an oncologist.  I'll just need to have a colonoscopy every year.  I'm also scheduled for a sigmoidoscopy in a few weeks, which is similar to a colonoscopy.  The doctor will double check to make sure he removed every trace of the polyp from the colon wall and probably "cut more out."

I never really talked about what lead to all of this and I know that for some people this might be too much information.  The fact is that anything having to do with colon cancer is too much information!  There are a lot of "potty" words involved and usually I'm the one telling my kids not to say potty words and "don't be gross!" but I really feel like if I don't share everything, then I'm not doing my part in preventing this from happening to someone else.  Who knows, maybe you or someone you know could use this info.  So.  I went in to a have a regular check-up with a general doctor a couple of months ago. This was the first time in probably 6 years that I've been to a "regular" doctor because I've basically lived at the OB/GYN office through all of my pregnancies!  I mentioned to the doctor that I had noticed a little bit of blood after bowel movements.  Nothing major and not every time.  But it's been on and off for the last few years.  I did bring it up to my OB once or twice and they waved it off as hemorrhoids  which are very common during and after pregnancy, especially with twins!  But my twins are a year and a half old and it was still going on.  The doctor did a quick check for hemorrhoids and didn't find anything.  She said not to be alarmed, but that I should meet with a GI doctor.  So I set up an appointment, told him about my issue and his reply was, "I'm 99% sure it's just internal hemorrhoids.  We don't have to do a colonoscopy, but if you want to, we can.  No rush."  I put it off a few months but finally got it scheduled.  Oh how I wish I had done all of this sooner!  He said I did in fact have internal hemorrhoids, but of course I had this cancerous polyp also.  He also said it could've been the hemorrhoids that were causing the bleeding all along and how fortunate that it caused me to go in for a colonoscopy!  I didn't have any other symptoms.  So the moral of the story is, if there's anything strange going on, just go have it checked out.  Talk to a doctor about it and don't put it off.  Okay, getting off my soapbox and going to hug my kids.

Please pray next week that everything would go well with all of my tests!  I'm ready to have all of this over and done with.

Everyday when I wake up and feel this huge burden on my back, I remember to turn it over to God. He has offered to carry our heaviest burdens and our biggest worries. I am not weighed down by the "what-ifs", but I am covered by His peace.