JO WEBSTERs Story Part 11

All this talk of periods makes me think I should mention my Mooncup. I got my HPV test first before anything else. They contacted me because my sister wrote to them and thanked them for helping to save my life. CA125 Ovarian Cancer test saved my life.

I decided to start using my Mooncup and got a bit of a shock.

Discovering the Unusual

I didn’t originally own a Mooncup, but my sister recommended it. When it arrived, I noticed in the instructions that they talked about how much a woman should bleed during her period. It’s not something that I had ever discussed with any of my friends. I didn’t know what ‘normal’ was. I was never ashamed of my period, but it’s not an easy one to compare with your friends. Often, I was thinking that my HPV experience wasn’t normal when I saw the test reports. However, I just told myself for an Ovarian CA125 blood test for cancer results that I was a drama queen and to get a grip; worse things can happen.

So, I decided to start using my Mooncup and got a bit of a shock. I was constantly emptying it. It was filling rapidly, and it got to the point where I still had to wear a sanitary pad. I didn’t like that the bleeding was the same amount in one morning as other women bleed during the whole of their period. I had never been armed with information like this before. This information helped me when I saw an HPV Specialist Gynae consultant later in the story.

The Quest for Answers: Clinic Visits

I shuffled off to the Family Planning HPV Clinic one evening before Christmas. I finally saw the doctor. And she told me that she couldn’t couldn’t a coil. And she didn’t know the reason for my heavy bleeding. So, she referred me back to another test with the CA125 GP. I felt frustrated but trusted that she knew best for a test for ovarian CA125-type cancer. I later wrote to this doctor and thanked her for doing her job properly. With a coil fitted, things may have taken a very different path…

Initial Consultation at the Women’s GP from the surgery phoned me, and I was referred to the Women’s Clinic at Wythenshawe Hospital. I attended my first ovarian viral cancer consultation test that February, where I explained that sometimes I felt overwhelmed by my hormones and that I was sure that my bleeding during a period was far too heavy. I even told him about my experience with my Mooncup and that this had convinced me that there could be a problem.

He asked me about pain. I had been used to pain. I had had very painful periods all through my teens and twenties. Having had children, the pain had reduced, and I was able to tell him that these days, I would have a bit of discomfort but nothing to worry about. I told him that during my period, if I needed to ‘do a poo’ that sometimes I would poo out blood and that I could have excruciating pain in the tummy following pooing, but this would ease after a few minutes, and then I would get on with my life again.

The Path to Diagnosis: Ultrasounds and Laparoscopy

I had a couple of different ultrasound scans and other HPV examination tests over the next few months. And it was discovered that I had a cyst on my right ovary that was growing. I was then booked in for an investigative laparoscopy under general anaesthetic. My initial appointment with the GP was the previous November so it had taken eight months for me to get to this point. July 4th 2013 was the day in question.

I gave the surgeon permission to remove my ovary. And the CA125-related cyst that tests found during the procedure if he felt it necessary. So, a ten-minute investigative procedure, under anaesthetic, became a slightly more major op. I’d never been to a hospital before other than to give birth and had never had a general anaesthetic. Very glad that someone was taking me seriously, although I didn’t. I didn’t like the idea of surgery – even a little one.

Post-Surgery Reality: Unveiling the Diagnosis

The next morning, still groggy from the anaesthetic, I woke up to be tested by my HPV Viral Surgeon doing his ward round. Smiling, he sat down on the side of my bed. He asked if I wanted to see the photos of what he had found. Yes, you heard me correctly. It took a minute for me to register what he was saying. I was squeamish but also curious, so I agreed. He then showed me the weirdest ‘holiday ‘naps’ I’ve ever been. Also, he pointed out what bits of my insides I was looking at.

He then asked me why I had not mentioned being in any pain. I didn’t understand but explained that I hadn’t pain; I had just bled a lot. He continued to tell me that I had what they thought was an aggressive form of endometriosis. This was what was causing my heavy bleeding, and my insides were bound together with scar tissue. He had removed as much of the tissue as he could, along with my right ovary and the large ovarian cyst.

All I had to do now was go home, get my hubby to look after me, take a couple of weeks off work, and come back in six weeks for an aftercare check-up.

A Sudden Turn: The Follow-Up Call

We finally discovered my problem, and it looked like we had a good result.

Ten days later, one afternoon, I answered my phone to a number I didn’t recognize; I was flustered and asked if I could come to the hospital to see my surgeon that afternoon.

I went to see my surgeon with my husband, and it wasn’t until I realized he wanted to see me himself because he had bad news. He drew me a diagram of the cyst he had found and explained something to me – I was trying to stay focused, but panic set in, and before I knew it, the room was spinning. Had my surgeon just told me that he had found ovarian issues inside the cyst?

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