So here is a bit of background for you. I'm going to go back to about 6 months ago, but I don't honestly know how much of what was occurring then is directly related to my current diagnosis... and to to be honest there is no way of knowing 100%.
June - I was having some stomach problems, you know the usual gassiness, upset stomach, and some back ache. Most of the pain was centered on the right side ribcage area. It didn't go away so I finally made an appointment with my Dr. He suggested some routine blood work and of course my gall bladder came up as a source of this pain I was having. My blood work came back with a positive reading for a stomach bacteria called H. Pylori and Vitamin D deficiency. The fix was easy... heavy antibiotics with an ant-acid chaser and some supplements. I did opt for an ultrasound though to rule out gall bladder issues just in case. Scan came back clean.
After the meds, I felt fabulous. Lots of increased energy, I vowed to refocus and start exercising again and I did great for a while. Then, I started slowing down... I just didn't have the umph to get on that treadmill every day, so it turned into every other day, then every couple of days, then maybe a couple times a week and then nothing. I attributed it to my just being kind of lazy and lack of initiative. During this whole time, I continued to take my ant acid medicine because I would havee a stomach twinge here and there, but decided it wasn't anything to really worry about.
Now, it is heading into November and the twinges are getting more frequent. I considered that maybe the bacteria wasn't really gone, but the only way to find out for sure was through a stool sample because once you test positive for the bacteria, you will always test positive if you use a blood test... Well, let me tell you... I was very squeamish and didn't want to do it.. that is the honest truth. But, I did finally make an appointment with a Gastroenterology Dr in late November. The appointment was for the 23rd of December and it was the 1st one that was available with the Dr. that had been recommended to me by my friends.
It is now December 1st and my symptoms have gotten worse and its becoming more and more intolerable. I'm feeling full all the time, its uncomfortable to sit, I feel like my stomach is being squished, I'm burpy, etc.
December 4th is the first day that I vomited. I can keep some food down, but I have to start eating less and less because it doesn't take much to feel extremely full, the kind of feeling you get after that big Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.
December 7th, couldn't take it anymore so I called up after hours and got an appointment to see a Dr. the next day.
December 8th, went in and discussed my symptoms with the Dr. and to this day I feel like he completely advocated for me. He immediately went downstairs to talk with the gastroenterology specialist that I had my appointment scheduled with and they moved my appointment up to the following Monday. He believed that I had an ulcer or extreme gastritis.
December 13th, visit with my GI doctor and it was determined that I would go the next morning for an upper endoscopy which is the tube down the throat where they can take pictures of what is going on in your stomach. Up to this point, I'm still vomiting daily and feeling very ill.
December 14th, Upper Endoscopy done. Yes, I had a bleeding ulcer but that was the only result I knew for a fact. I was scheduled for an appointment for the 16th with the results of a biopsy. I received a phone call that afternoon with some blood test results and was told that I needed to go the very next day to have 2 units of blood. My red blood counts were 1/2 of what is considered normal.
December 15th, Blood Transfusion... took a very long time!!! I spent a total of 9 hours in the hospital, mind you there were a couple of paper errors that slowed the process down a bit.
December 16th, we meet with the GI Dr. and he tells us that yes there is a bleeding ulcer, but unfortunately, the biopsy from the bleeding ulcer is MALIGNANT... THUD! What had happened was that a cancerous tumor had formed and then ulcerated and then started to bleed.
December 17th, a CT scan is scheduled and we receive more bad news... it is clear that the cancer is beyond just the ulcer, but no real details other than that.
Here comes the longest weekend that we have ever experienced.... seriously excruciatingly long.
December 20th, we travel to Seattle to Virginia Mason hospital to have a PET scan and another endoscopy done as well as to consult with a surgeon. We learn that the results aren't good. Surgery isn't an option for me and that the cancer has spread to my ovaries, adrenal gland and there are lymph nodes found around my neck. Surgery is only done if it is considered to benefit one's overall quality of life and in my case it wouldn't.
The tumor board down at Virgina Mason would meet on Wednesday evening, discuss my case and then give us what they considered to be the best course of action.
We go home to regroup and to find a local oncologist
December 22, we have a meeting with my oncologist and of course things are grim. All you have to do is google and to realize what statistics say about stage 4 gastric cancer. We have no recourse except for Chemo... it is our only option and of course it is the one we'll take. We schedule a couple more tests and prepare for chemo to start on Jan 3rd. At this point, chemo will be every 3rd Monday for 8 hours. We take a tour of the infusion area, talk with nurses, and get lots and lots of information.
Way back when, we had planned an extended family vacation to Disneyland, but it was clear after this turn of events that Kevin and I wouldn't be able to go with the uncertainty of tests and scheduling. It was absolutely my number one priority to get my boys to Disneyland though... we made arrangements so that they would fly out with my sister and her family. We had originally planned on driving so it was just a matter of purchasing tickets and getting the boys to my sister's.
After talking with the oncologist on Wednesday, we decided that we would keep the boys for Christmas instead of sending them with my sister back to her home across the state. We would meet her on the day the plane was to leave instead.
Plans seem to be unraveling all around me though...
December 24th, I am suffering from excruciating stomach pains and nausea and wake up at 6 am and tell Kevin that I really need to get to the ER. I am admitted and end up with another blood transfusion... this time 3 units of blood.
A CT scan is done later that morning and it is basically showing that the tumor is trying to squeeze my poor stomach to death. The reason why I had been having such problems eating is because the tumor had taken over the lower part of my stomach that normally contracts and moves food down to your digestive tract. This muscle is no longer working and any food that I eat is essentially just sitting there. Some makes it through, but not much.
The next thing I got done was a brain MRI just to make sure that there was no cancer in my brain. Whoa, this was tough. Begin nauseas, drugged up and then being wheeled around in a hospital bed was not good to my equilibrium. I barely made it out of that brain scan before throwing up all over the place.
December 25 until today, I'm still in the hospital, but it looks like chemo will start as soon as possible in the hospital. Chemo should start shrinking the tumor enough that my stomach should be able to get some of its function back and food won't be such an issue. I hope so!
Its going to be a juggling act though since the side affects of chemo can be devastating to one's appetite. I don't know how this will play out, but I want to catch a break and be on the positive side of this food battle.
December 27 is the day that I got a biopsy. They went in from the lower back just to make sure that all the cancer was stomach cancer that had spread versus ovarian cancer that spread to my stomach. This is important because all cancers are treated differently. We were also looking for a specific protein that cancer cells emit that would also affect what type of drug that could be added to my drug regimen.
Right after that, I had the port placed onto my right collar bone area. This is to make it easier to administer the chemo drugs. It is much less harsh doing it this way than trying to administer drugs through other veins.
December 29 is the the day that my first chemo is started. This was very tough and I was definitely not able to keep my nausea at bay. It took me an entire week to start feeling a little bitter better.
I ended my December with a loss of 15 lbs as well as a loss of what my life used to be.
January 1st was the day that I got to go home.
December 27 is the day that I got a biopsy. They went in from the lower back just to make sure that all the cancer was stomach cancer that had spread versus ovarian cancer that spread to my stomach. This is important because all cancers are treated differently. We were also looking for a specific protein that cancer cells emit that would also affect what type of drug that could be added to my drug regimen.
Right after that, I had the port placed onto my right collar bone area. This is to make it easier to administer the chemo drugs. It is much less harsh doing it this way than trying to administer drugs through other veins.
December 29 is the the day that my first chemo is started. This was very tough and I was definitely not able to keep my nausea at bay. It took me an entire week to start feeling a little bitter better.
I ended my December with a loss of 15 lbs as well as a loss of what my life used to be.
January 1st was the day that I got to go home.
Wow, I've been working on this post for a while now because I did want to share some details and catch you all up on what's going on. I so appreciate you "listening" to me and it is easier on me to be able to write about it and share it with my friends. I feel like it empowers me to be stronger. It is hard... I had a "moment" today where I felt terrible both emotionally and physically, but it passes and the fight continues. Thank you for fighting with me.
-Katie
