A Not Planned Adventure

First of all THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for your prayers, love, support, and well wishes during this extremely difficult time. Which leads me to write a most difficult post....

In early June I had a routine colonoscopy. It found some polyps and a mass of polyps-not cancer but at risk for cancer, so nothing to mess around with but not an emergency either. They referred me to a larger hospital, I chose Gundersen in LaCrosse.

Two weeks ago I went into the hospital for the fairly routine procedure...Did all the things that we had to do for the surgery. Had really good news as I went to surgery that the mass was located in a place where they could do an appendectomy, so it would not be such an invasive surgery. As they began the surgery they found two large masses, one blocking the path to the colon. So the surgery then became a very different one.

Samples of the masses were sent to pathology who confirmed they were cancer. That afternoon I had a CT scan that indicated the overys were inflamed. But the good news was that other major organs looked ok. The doctors ordered blood work to look for markers to determine where the cancer had started. Last Friday they confirmed that I have Ovarian cancer that had spread to the belly. The doctors believe that it is contained, but did a CT scan to confirm. Still waiting on those results.

Friday they will install a port and I will begin chemo treatments....they are in three week cycles (so one every three weeks). If all goes as planned, and we pray that it does, the masses will shrink and after 3 cycles (9 weeks) I will again go for surgery, this time they will remove my 'lady parts' (complete hysterectomy) and do the appendectomy. One surgery. After recovery from surgery, we will finish the last three cycles.

Physically I am fine, no pain or issues that slow me down. Emotionally I am positive relying on the gift of faith and prayer, I do have ups and downs and find that it truly helps to both laugh and cry. I am thankful for the examples of faith from my brothers and sisters in Christ who have faced down cancer and the other tough things of this life and have overcome.

While this is not the path I would have chosen, I shall approach it as yet another adventure in this life....I am thankful to be a child of God blessed with an incredible family and friends..... Blessings, Elayne