Two calls??? (WARNING: Cancer and Feminine stuff)

[NotSoInnocent]

So I went to have my womanly bits checked out in my yearly exam on Monday.

Because of discussions about a long family history of cancer of womanly bits in the family it was suggested that I set up a consultation with an oncologist to run a couple of genetic tests to see if I'm genetically likely to develop certain cancers.

The way the military heath system is set up, I usually have to call to set up an appointment for a consultation a couple days after the doc ok's the consult.

This time, however, -they- called -me- the very next day. Ok. I can understand that. Oncology consultations are usually fairly important. I get it.

I would have been just fine if that had been the end of it. Instead, I got -another- call yesterday afternoon that went something like this:

Me: Hello?

Appointment Lady: Is this NotSoInnocent?

Me: Yep!

AL: I have an Oncology consult from Dr. ****** for you. When would you like to schedule your appointment?

Me: *confused* Umm... I already have an appointment for the 6th with Oncology. Is this a separate consult??

AL: Um... Erm... Uh.... I'll just get this paperwork to your Oncologist to look over before your appointment, then. Bye! *click*


So... I doubt that this is a mix-up. Seriously. The way her voice was at the end sort of freaked me out. And "paperwork"? What paperwork??? Initial results from my exam? What??

So here I am, freaking out because I may already have the cancer that I wasn't expecting to develop until after I turned 40...

*whimpers*

[TelephoneAngel]

It could just be that she confused herself when you said you already had the appointment scheduled and then didn't know what to say next, and meant to say your results needed to go to the oncologist anyway, without it being anything serious..

[r2cagle]

I agree, not to worry. Most specialist consults get set up one of two ways.. via phone call from your doctor, and via paperwork that your doctor sends over. Looks like your doctor did both, voila -- confusion at the specialist office. At least, this has happened to me before, so don't let it freak you out.

[trailerparkmedic]

When she says paperwork, it makes me think of your records. The only base I used my Tricare at was very large, but didn't have much of anything computerized so my physical file had to be sent from one doctor to another. I imagine oncology would need to see everything before seeing you, hence sending over your file now.

[NotSoInnocent]

I agree, not to worry. Most specialist consults get set up one of two ways.. via phone call from your doctor, and via paperwork that your doctor sends over. Looks like your doctor did both, voila -- confusion at the specialist office. At least, this has happened to me before, so don't let it freak you out.

With normal insurance, yes, that's how it's done. This is the military, though. Every department is in the same building (It's like a mall. A huge medical mall. With an ER and everything.) Consults get put into the computer at the doc's desk and go to a central agency to be processed. That agency is the one that sets -all- appointments for the military members, their spouses, and their dependents (kids). Generally Tricare (the agency) has the patient call in to make the appointment and checks to make sure that the consult/specialist has been approved by the doc in the system and then sets the appointment with the patient on the line.

The only time they call the patient is if it's something important and/or life threatening. (Seriously. It took 4 months to get an appointment for my youngest daughter to get her diagnosis of Aspergers With Autistic Tendencies.)

To get two calls means that -two- requests were put in. One of them had been discussed at my appointment to set up an analysis (which would then lead to other tests).

The second? With "paperwork"? Usually means that something was found at my last appointment that needs another consult.

The only thing that happened at my last appointment was a pap smear... and that "paperwork" probably means abnormal cells in the lab results. Which may or may not be cancerous, but I suspect that they are because she was calling to set up another Oncologist consult instead of just sending the results in the mail as usual.

[Amina516]

I still wouldnt freak just yet. The military messes up too. It may well have been that two consults for the same thing were put in and the Secretary got flustered when you told her the appt was made. Abnormal cells dont usually require a Oncologist anyways though...its just a monitor and biopsy every so often thing, that can be done @ the OB GYN. Youre doing well by trying to stay on top of things with the history you have.

Good Luck. Dont stress!!

[42_42_42]

Don't freak out. Even if you did have abnormal cells in your pap it doesn't automatically = cancer. Next step is an HPV test and possibly a colposcopy. The HPV test is done w/ the original sample and the colposcopy is no biggie (as long as the doctor sprays the numbing spray in the right area that is ). As with anything, early detection is always the key and there's several things they can do to get rid of abnormal or precancerous cells long before they cause real trouble. I went through all of this when I ws 19, had the freezing procedure and then a laser ablation. One word of advice, if they do do the freezing procedure, DEMAND that they numb the area first and give you a strong pain releiver, much much stronger than Aleve, before-hand. They say it isn't supposed to hurt, but everyone I know who has had it agrees that that's a load of horseshit. Sorry, hope that's not too much info. Trying to help, not scare.

[NotSoInnocent]

And now I'm slightly more freaked. Yesterday I got -another- call. This time was for the GYN/Oncology.

So I've got an Oncology appointment on the 6th -and- a GYN/Oncology appointment on the 12th. So only one was for what was discussed in the office. I triple checked. The first and second call were related to lab work.

Great.

I'm trying not to stress, but there's a -very- long history of cancers in my family. I haven't told my kiddos (and don't plan on it until after my appointments), but there's a very good chance that I already have cancer and they just caught it.

It doesn't help that I didn't get a pap for over two years... so who knows how far along this is.

I knew two years ago that I have HPV, so that's not going to have changed. *sighs* I really don't want to have cancer already. I feel lucky that I've made it this long without anything (My baby sister had a brain tumor when she was 10. It became malignant when she was in her late teens.), but I -really- hoped to get to 40 without it.

[TelephoneAngel]

If it helps at all i have been at the stage of having a colposcopy, and told it was abnormal, but after that had more regular smears and they were normal again after about four of them, but i still get nervous as to what the results will be every time i have one.It could be that you will need one but it's nothing to worry about, it was more uncomfortable than painful, although when i had mine i did have to ask them to stop before they really wanted to as I couldn't stand it any longer, and yet i cnnot honestly say i was in great pain, i just.........didn't like it.

[42_42_42]

It will be okay! If it's something that's only showing up on lab work at this point and wasn't obvious during your physical, that means what ever it is, they caught it early and with this stuff, if it's early, they can knock it out and you'll be fine!

[NotSoInnocent]

For most women, yes, the doc would have seen something if it were obvious. But my cervix is tipped so far back that my doc couldn't see anything at all. (She had to work by feel and even made the comment that she couldn't see my cervix.)

Some women have a slightly tipped cervix. Mine is so tipped so far back that doing any sort of exam requires me to be a bit of a contortionist. (Lift your hips this way. Tip that way. Arch your back. Can you even relax in this position? Maybe if we fold you in half and push on your bladder at the same time? ... Ok, maybe that last was a -slight- exaggeration.) So anything unusual could go for a fairly long time without being caught by anything but the lab.

Having a cervix that is so retroverted (and a uterus that is the same way) is probably one of the main reasons that I have such a hard time carrying a baby past the first 6 weeks. After my first two paps (at age 14) I was told that I would probably never be able to have kids because of the way my insides were shaped. After more than 25 pregnancies and only 4 live births... Yeah... it's a bit of a mystery.

[crazylegs]

Might I be so bold as to suggest that you contact you OB/GYN if this is causing you so much worry? I'm sure the wait on the phone will be better than the wait before your next appointment.

Other than that, how about bringing your appointment forward so it happes sooner so it relieves some of the stress this is causing you?

[trailerparkmedic]

I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty sure that cervical cancer is one of the slower growing ones. Even if you have cancer, and even if it's 2 years old, that doesn't mean it's lethal.

[Mikkel]

I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty sure that cervical cancer is one of the slower growing ones. Even if you have cancer, and even if it's 2 years old, that doesn't mean it's lethal.

Yes, my cancer is in another place, being male , but remember that there is progress made every day. Cancer isn't necessarily the end of your world anymore. I really think you should save some worrying for when you know, it may not be needed yet (or at all).

[Ree]

I'm assuming you had your appointment on the 6th.

Any news, or are you waiting for the other appointment on the 12th?