A familiar but undesired hallway.

Written Sunday 5/14 around 9 p.m.

 I apologize first off for being away so long.  Life has been pretty normal the last years since I stopped treatment for stage 4 Colon Cancer.  

I don't really know how to begin this post so I guess I'll dive into the details as I have them.  I had a Physical on April 15 with labs.  Those showed a high Liver Enzyme.  My Primary doc ordered an Urgent CT to see what was causing the Enzyme.  The CT came back with a very good report which made all of happy as I haven't had a scan in many years.  On May 3 I was experiencing new symptoms Like itchy skin and other things associate with Liver issues.  I saw my primary Doc again and after a short discussion he suggested it was likely a blocked bile duct.  He referred me to GastroEnterology.  I got a call regarding scheduling and the soonest appointment they had was Thrusday May 11.  I met with an NP and and ER Doc who was trasitioning out of the ER.  After a thourough review of my case they felt it best to order more labs and an MRI of the Liver.  So Friday I went and got my labs done over lunch.  Yesterday I started my day driving to Reed City Hospital for an 8 am MRI.  After completing the MRI, I got in the car where I had packed my Meds and Coffee.  I took my meds right away and sipped my coffee on the 1 hour and 15 minute drive back home.  

My girls were at a baby shower Saturday so I had the house to myself so to speak.  I finished one show I had been watching and was starting another when I got a notification in my MyChart app that I got a test result.  I looked and it was the MRI Report.  So just 2 hours aftert the test I read the full report.  Not once but several times.  The result was not what I wanted to read.  Pushing on my bile duct and Portal vein (which both sit under the liver) was a rather large mass.

We were on our way to meet family for dinner to celebrate my long delayed Birtday.  The GI doctor called Leah since he got the busy signal on my phone.  We talked with him about what the report said and next steps for the entirety of my 30 minute drive.  Consensus was for us to go to the ER and be admitted to the Hospital to get 2 things.  First a Biopsy of the Mass and Second a Stent in the Bile duct.  

This morning I took a picture of Leah and Lydia on the Front porch as Today is Mother's Day.  Then Lydia drove me and Leah to the ER for the beginning of this new Journey.  During our stay in the ER there were a lot of conversations Mixed with a lot of waiting.  Finally at 4 they had a room.  At the moment I was excited until we got off the elevator and rounded the corner headed to the wing I would be in and the words on the door read  "ONCOLOGY".  I have been here before and hoped I would never be back.  This was a familiar but undesired hallway.  I was wheeled around the entire wing to get to my room.

When we arrrived in the room My nurse was found relatively quickly and asked 101 questions (her words not mine).  I aksed about food since I was given the rights to eat just a little before leaving the ER.  I got a menu and had what I thought to be a delicous meal picked out.  I callled the number and gave them room info and verified it was me then told them what I wanted only to be told I could not eat that since I was on a low fat diet.  I wonder how that got in my chart?  New selection was made and I got dinner about an hour later.  I have 2.5 hours left to eat before they cut off my food supply.  Why you ask?

They are cutting off food supply at midnight due to a possible procedure tomorrow.  This procedure would likely be done by GI which is an endoscopy with Ultrasound and Biopsy of the mass while they are in the area.  I'm hoping it's tomorrow but at this point you learn in the Hopsital things move at the Hospital's pace....

All this to say when I get the biopsy done they will be able to tell what this mass is and what we need to do to treat it.  So for Now from the Oncology wing of the Hospital, Good Night.  More information will be posted here in the not to distant future.

Kent