Hip Hop Sunday

Today I will enjoy my Sunday - It looks like I have some kind of medical appointment every day this upcoming week - so must make the best of this glorious day.

Riley (& Emma) are in their final recital of the year for Hip Hop today - It should be quite entertaining - Riley being a tweenager, thinks her costume sucks (which it does) so is embarrassed to be wearing it in public - but I think they have had a good time putting the routine together -

My rock, my claw.....

Nothing to update today, so this is my ode to my biggest supporter, the one who grounds me and makes me laugh daily - CMG, my rock - thank you for being there....

Lobsterfest is happening tonight in Thornbury - a big party in the local arena with 1500 of my closest friends - This is probably the first year that Colin and I haven't gone for at least 7 years - very strange... but I will say that that gives me something to look forward to next year, and I won't have a big fat head tomorrow - I look forward to a few stories tomorrow!

Bone Marrow Biopsy...good times

This is a procedure that I would not highly recommend to anyone that I like. I did not actually have a visual but I'm having a hard time shaking the sensation of what I believe looks
like this manual drill, boring into the back part of my hip and removing various samples - that again will hopefully help put this puzzle together - Unfortunately, the doctor did not get a good sample the first time, and had to do it again - I am being a little bit dramatic, but it really was not that fun - More tests and appointments for next week - I need a little assistant to keep my appointments organized!!

I'm a mystery.....

Well.... I did get to meet with an oncologist today, whom I quite liked, but...It appears that my pathology report is not complete... and that they have not quite made a diagnosis (It sounds like it is a lymphoma of some sort though...even though they told me it was Hodgkins initially..) I am the mystery of the week. However, there is some urgency to my situation being where the mass is, so we are now doing all the fun tests that I would have to do anyways, even though they don't know what I'm going to be treated for yet... So here comes a week of bone marrow scans, heart and lung tests and a little nuclear medicine...
Colin and my Dad came with me today and they had strict instructions to listen and take notes - no talking. I asked them on the way home to look what they had written and neither really had written a thing - because they talked too much!!

Thanks for all the comments and a few lovely blasts from my past... a WOW factor that certainly makes me smile :)

The details up to now... (May 22, 2010)

I woke up on April 25th (after a smashing party @ our friends Mac & Donna) with a very uncomfortable swollen neck) Prior to that week, I did feel that something was brewing (sore glands etc), but never had I experienced the swollen neck - I felt like a football player. Colin and I did go to the walk in clinic when we arrived home - only to get a puffer, and go for blood tests the following day. I again went to my Doctors office a few days later, where the nurse practicioner was "stumped" - She scheduled a thyroid ultrasound. A few days later, my blood work returned "normal", but the pressure in my neck and head were unbearable - I went to Emerg in Meaford, where they gave me intervenous steriods to help with the swelling - 3x over 24 hours - along with a variety of other tests - On Friday April 30, the Doc @ emerg ordered a chest xray, and thats where it was discovered there was something abnormal - needless to say, my blood pressure was somewhere in the 200/120 as well... So off to be admitted to Collingwood Hospital - I spent the next 4 days in the Hospital (excellent care by the way) having tests, monitoring vitals etc. Through a CAT scan, it appeared I have a mass in Mediastinal area (upper chest), which is putting pressure on my heart, causing Superior Venacava Syndrome -

All very scary, and quite a shock -

I was able to go home after the w/e when I had stabalized, and had been referred to a thoracic surgeon for a surgical biopsy for the following Friday - He would remove some of this mass and then a course of action would be established from there.

On May 7, 2010, I had the biopsy @ South Lake Regional Health Center in Newmarket - I had to stay overnight (not my favorite experience to date due to a very chatty and annoying roommate... oh and I was STARVING!)

I have a little scar, which I find quite unsightly, but in the big picture of it all... its not so bad

The surgeon called a few days afterwards and indicated that it all points to Hodgkins Lymphoma, but several other pieces had to be further tested, so it has been a bit of a long wait over the last 2 weeks to get the final pathology report.

Tommy (my dad) this week has taken it upon himself to try to get to the bottom of this waiting game, and make some headway with coordinating all these doctor's offices and information (and I do thank you dad!) So, it appears that I will have a consult appointment with an oncologist on Tues (may 25) providing that the rest of my pathology report is delivered (fingers crossed)

This is where I think I will start to get scared... I have spent the last 2 weeks feeling not too bad, enjoying the weather, having lunch with friends, shopping and my favorite 3 days were spending the w/e at Jen's cottage enjoying Georgian Bay, hanging with the kids and playing games (that by the way, I did not lose one game of dice or backgammon - I was unstoppable) - So these weeks, have been quite pleasant, but reality will start to set in soon.

I will be able to get through all of this, I have no doubt, but it won't be alone, or without the support of all my "peeps" -

End of April 2010

So.... It is amazing how life can change in a heartbeat with little to no warning... One month I'm having a fabulous ski vacation with family and friends in Vermont and Quebec, and then a month later, I'm in the hospital with a crazy swollen neck, later to be diagnosed with Hodgkins' Lymphoma. Over the last 4 weeks, I have been through a rainbow of emotions and overwhelmed by the support from friends and family. Inspired by a friend/neighbour on my street who has been maintaining a blog during her battle with breast cancer over the last year - I thought that this might be a great way to keep in touch & it can be a way to keep anyone who is interested in keeping up to date with information and a great way for me personally to keep a journal to this crazy ride that I'm going to have to go through - So, my plan is to try to update this fairly regularly, and I hope that you will all keep me entertained with humour throughout -