The following are words that were said to me when I had my bout with Cancer:

Dr. #1: Let’s not put our head in the sand about that pain in your side. I want to make an appointment for you to have an ultrasound.

Dr. #2: Your ultrasound shows a mass on your ovary. It should be a size 4, but it’s a size 26.

Jan. 14

Nurse #1: What is your name and date of birth? We need to put you on this table and take you to the operating room.

Anesthesiologist: Give me your arm.

Nurse #2: Do you know where you are?

Dr. #3: We found a mass on one ovary the size of an orange, and it has a malignant center. Also, we found spots on your appendix, so we took it out.

Nurse #3: We won’t make you get up today, you are too dopey from the drugs.

Jan.15

Nurse’s Aide: What’s wrong? It could be the medication in your IV. There are no such things as pink leg wraps, they are all white. You were imagining that. But, there was someone who was hooked up to a breathing tube, but got out of bed and wandered into your room last night. She won’t bother you any more.

Woman sharing my room: Help me. Help me. Get me out of here. Help me…!

Jan. 17

Student Nurse: I will help you take a shower so you can get ready to go home today.

Jan. 22

Dr. #3 : You have two rare forms of cancer. Ovarian is Granulosos and Appendix is Carcinoid. I have only seen one case of each in my 15 years as a surgeon. Not both in the same person. You are a very good case of being positive for healing quickly.

The cancer in your appendix was easy to find. We laid all your internal organs out on the table and looked them over. It was easy to get it all, so you won’t have to have any treatments for the cancer that was in your appendix. Now, make your next appointment for the specialist for your ovarian cancer.

Dr. #4’s receptionist: Come on Feb. 14 to our office at Central Ohio Gynecological Oncology.

Feb. 14

Dr. #4: It would be very hard on you to have treatments. I wouldn’t recommend for my mother to take treatments. The cancer grew inside the ovary in a capsule. It was the size of an orange, but did not break through to the outside of your ovary.

Most cancer starts on the outside and is bad. It’s rare to be inside and not get out. But, since there is no proof that it got out, you won’t have to go through treatments with the “Just in Case” theory. Just get another blood test at the lab before you leave, and go home and get some rest.

The above words were said to me during the months of January and February, some years back. This is a rare thought, but, “I didn’t know I had Cancer until I didn’t.”

And, I have been very fortunate to be fine ever since.