Surviving Cancer
The last year, in short.
SYMPTOMSHEALTHOVARIAN CANCER
So, I haven't been posting much. And there's good reason.
On December 31st, after a mass was found November 30th, I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer during surgery.
It was a shock, of course. I think no one wants to find out they have cancer. I was 45 at the time, and you really don't expect it to happen that early. In fact, a month before the mass was found, I had my first colonoscopy and was ecstatic it came back completely clear, with no polyps or anything. They said come back in ten years for the next one.
So, I was happy. Then I started having sudden pain in my pelvis from hip to hip. The day before, I'd done twenty minutes on the treadmill and thought maybe I pulled something. But it didn't go away, and when I had to have my son help me up from lying down on the bed, I went to the ER.
They found the 5 cm mass hanging out on my right ovary, and the next day, the whirlwind began. My city has a cancer center, but not for gynecological cancer. That is a highly specialized field. They sent my records to the nearest one, an hour's drive away. I got in there pretty quickly, and got my surgery scheduled for the 31st of December.
My doctor thought it might not be cancer. She said maybe an infected ovary despite my cancer antigen being almost 3000. Lots of things raise it, so it could have been inflammation. So, almost two weeks of waiting.
At surgery, they took the mass to pathology and confirmed cancer, so everything came out. Ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, cervix, omentum, and pelvic lymph nodes. Que immediate menopause once I was out of surgery. Didn't hit hard at first, which was nice. So, then I had to wait for pathology to stage it. I had no idea what to expect. The tumor burst during surgery, which meant cancer cells could have spilled. They do a pelvic wash afterward, which they test for cancer, too.
I'll tell you, the waiting is the hardest part. The wait between finding it and the surgery about killed me. Then, knowing it was cancer, and waiting for pathology to come back was another hard one. Two weeks post surgery I went in for followup and her to explain the pathology. I'd already read it, of course, so I was tentatively hopeful if I was reading it right.
Stage 1C1. Would have been 1A if the tumor hadn't ruptured during surgery. However, it was clear cell carcinoma. Only ten percent of ovarian cases are clear cell, and it is an aggressive form of the disease. Because of that, despite having all things come back negative for cancer (including the pelvic wash and lymph nodes), I had to have chemo. Generally, clear cell always gets chemo to try and clear up any microscopic cells they can't see yet.
Three weeks later, I started Paclitaxol and Carboplatnin. The Paclitaxol is one of the ones that causes hair loss. Chemo itself isn't that bad. Chemo days were long, about seven hours. First, they give you pre-meds. Pepcid, Benedryl, steroids, and another anti-nausea med I can't remember the name of. That takes about an hour. Then, the Paclitaxol runs for 6 hours the first two times, and 4 hours the last four. Then the carbo is about half an hour. So, the last four sessions were a bit shorter. They have to run Paclitaxol slow because it can cause severe allergic reactions to the carrier and preservative since it is actually a natural substance (from the yew tree, I believe). The carbo is man made.
The reason you lose your hair on chemo is that chemo attacks rapidly dividing cells like cancer. Hair is the fastest dividing cell in your body, so it is a goner. The side effects can be debilitating, but the day after chemo is always great due to all the steroids they put in you. I had my infusion on Wednesdays, and on Friday it started to wear off and the incredible fatigue set in that stuck around until Monday. I managed to work most the time, just had to be off on chemo days and some on Fridays when I just couldn't do it. Of course, the side effects get worse the more chemo you have, and you don't bounce back as much the longer you're in there. So, session five was rough, and six was the worst. I did miss both Friday and Monday that session. I didn't get much nausea, but they load you up on anti-nausea meds when you start. I took a shot of a growth hormone the day after chemo that was to increase the amount of white blood cells I made, and it usually causes bone pain. Strangely, it has to do with histamine, so you take Claritin or Zyrtec to avoid it.
Overall, sheer exhaustion was my problem. And it's still pretty present after four months since my last chemo. Chemo brain is a thing, too, because the chemo causes inflammation in the brain that makes you have brain fog.
So, now, four months from my last chem on May 20th, 2025, I'm growing my hair back and it's super soft and curly. I'm trying to get back in the swing of writing and working on stuff for my publisher, but it's hard to do.
Well, that's really the story. If you read through all that, thanks for hanging around for it.
© 2024-2026 to Beverly L. Anderson. All rights reserved.
website@beverlylanderson.com
Get a free ebook of Walls when you sign up.
Get book news in your inbox every month, including release information, visits from my cats, and behind-the-scenes info!