Tumor on ovary
I just went through a pretty stressful time and hoped my experience may encourage others. It's long but hope it helps.
My name is melanie, I'm 29 years old. My husband and I were trying to conceive for about 6-7 months with no success. I hadn't had an annual pap exam in awhile so I figured I'd go, get checked out, and see if he had any advice to help conceive....
Well, during the exam the doctor told me my uterus seemed enlarged and he wanted to run more tests. He said he thought it could be one of two things, either my uterus was slightly turned or something was behind it like a cyst. I left the doctors office overwhelmed and confused.
He had me do blood work to check my levels, and scheduled an ultrasound that next week to take a look. Long story short they found something. A mass of some kind by my ovary, about 8cm long. He wasn't sure what exactly it was, but saw it did include a solid portion. He said due to my age, health he didn't think it was cancerous but hard to tell for sure without seeing it. I said, "what now?" He suggested a ct scan to learn more and more blood work.
Leaving the doctors office I was scared to death, but hoping for the best. I didn't even have any symptoms!
The ct scan was scheduled for the following Tuesday so a few days before on Friday I did another blood test for my hCG level. Monday they called me and said they needed another blood test. Then on that Monday they told me I was JUST pregnant. Like it just showed up that day.
Wow. The thing I had waited for, for what seemed like soo long but now at the worst time?! I was so happy but scared since it was all happening at the same time. I felt irresponsible. We had to cancel the ct scan (since I was pregnant) and they tested my hCG levels for the next 2 weeks to make sure I stayed pregnant... And it was all good.
So what now? They decided to watch the mass over the next few months to see any changes, growth etc. it did grow 3cm by my next ultrasound. The doctor told me his recommendation was to do an exploratory laparotomy at 15-16 weekS (second trimester) to remove and test the mass, being that it is safer during that time as the baby would be further along. He didn't want to wait until the baby was born in fear the mass would twist or rupture.. Or cause issues as my uterus got much bigger. I debated over the decision for weeks, even talking to an oncologist, but finally decided it was the safest all around option. It was scheduled for June 23.
I was scared. So scared. I could lose my baby. That was a risk. I could (potentially) die myself too. But it needed to be done.
My surgery was almost 3 weeks ago now, my incision was down my stomach slightly above my belly button down to my pubic area. Probably 8inches long. Staples. It hurt, bad! But... Me and my baby made it through. The tumor was called a durmoid, benign non cancerous! The baby's heartbeat has been strong at 3 appointments since the hospital and thank god I am back to normal. The recovery was hard the first few days, first week was a challenge, but after that it just got easier. We find out the sex of the baby next week (I'll be almost 20 weeks!)
For anyone who may be in a similar situation, have faith. Not all circumstances are the same, not all doctors are the same, but trust your heart and your decisions. It is amazing what your body can endure, especially with willpower, good doctors and support of those around you. I had never been through any real pain before, no surgery, no broken bone, nothing, and I fought through this for my baby. It was easier than I thought, even through the incision pain, nausea from medicine, all issues from medicine, walking... It was worth every bit to hear that heartbeat.
Anyways it was a tough thing to go through so if anyone may be in a similar boat, feel free to message me. Good luck :)
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