A Lump in My Throat

My dearest acquaintances and other fellow humans:

So a lot of people have asked me how I discovered that I have a cancerous nodule on my thyroid.  I didn't. I just got lucky that Dr. Loree Cordova saw it during an annual well-woman checkup.  She asked me, "has anyone ever told you that you have a nodule on your thyroid?"  She placed a mirror in front of me and showed me the lump in throat.

That led me to an ultrasound, then a biopsy, and then a consultation with an Otolaryngologist, which is fancy speak for an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor.  The ultrasound revealed two nodules, one of which is calcified, and the biopsy showed that the calcified nodule has signs of papillary carcinoma. I've seen three ENT doctors now, and the third one at KU Med center ordered another ultrasound to examine my entire neck area.  She also had the actual slides from my biopsy sent to her pathologist, who confirmed that I have papillary carcinoma in that one, calcified nodule.

The second ultrasound helps to determine whether the lymph nodes are involved.  After a visit to KU Med Center yesterday (a long drive that could have easily been a phone call),  I learned yesterday that my lymph nodes do not show any sign of enlargement, so unless surgery shows otherwise, there seems to have been no spread of cancer to the lymph nodes.  This is good news!

The KU Med Center doctor is a faux red-headed eastern European (as far as I can tell from her strong accent), who has the opinion that the lymph nodes should not be removed "prophylactically."  She gave me documentation to back up her opinion, which differs from that of the Lawrence ENT doc, who may not have read this professional document yet, since it is fairly new.  So now I'm debating which doctor will do the surgery, and will probably have a conversation with the local ENT, who I like a lot, about avoiding prophylactic removal of lymph nodes.

So those are the facts.  I'm really doing very well with this news, and have found that it is sometimes difficult for me to speak to people about it because they are more upset than I am.  Then we get into the realm of only being in control of one's own feelings, but also wanting to be compassionate about other's reactions to some bad news.  I have cancer that is super curable!  It isn't in my lymph nodes! It's not an emergency!

Now, I want to gently turn my attention to the next thing, like picking my kid up from band camp, which is where I am headed now.

Love to you,

Angie