Category: symptoms

Sharing my cancer story. It might be helpful, it might be interesting, it might be informative.

  • The decision to stop working

    Ever since my metastatic diagnosis almost exactly a year ago, the idea to stop working has been in the back of my mind, but I just wasn’t ready to make the leap. In the two months between my diagnosis and the Big Surgery I was in crisis management mode, focusing on tying things up, both…

  • I’m looking at you, lymph nodes

    It’s been a mostly relaxing four months since I’ve been back at work. We’ve been ramping up for a big event that took place this week, and I’m excited I got to be a part of it. In the meantime, I’ve been going in for my monthly Sandostatin shots. I’m continuing to have flushings, so…

  • Back to work

    I’ve been back at work for two weeks now, and it’s going really well! My abdomen is all healed up; I’m not having pain any more. I’m really glad I was able to take three whole months off work to recuperate; I needed it. To illustrate, in early December when my family was dressing the…

  • The Big Surgery has happened!

    Ten days ago, on September 21, I had the big one. The best news to share is that although there was a possibility of a sigmoid colon resection, the surgeon didn’t end up needing to do that. YAY! There was a large walnut-sized cluster in that area that was able to be “peeled off”. Five…

  • Exercise and carcinoid syndrome

    Last summer, in 2021 at the age of 43, I decided I needed to do something to be in better shape. I was feeling flabby and tired, and although enjoying the long golden afternoon of adulthood, being very aware it is a one-way street. That November I found a used treadmill and TV on Craigslist,…