April 15, 2010

Had my appointment with Dr. Chang, an Oncologist, at Ironwood Cancer and Reserch Center. There are like 10 doctors at this center, so the waiting room was packed……with OLD people! No one was under 80 years old, well, maybe 75. I am 52. This is not a place to feel proud about being the youngest one in the room, and I certainly did not want to be a member of THIS club! I insisted Dave not go with me to this appointment because I knew she would just send me for a blood test, and maybe (my worst fear) a bone marrow test. I really like Dr. Chang. She told me I needed to go for a blood test, a PET scan, a bone marrow test, and do a 6 month series of Chemo. CHEMO???? I questioned her on that. She said regardless of the results of the other tests she recommended chemo and proceeded to tell me the side affects, listing losing your hair and eyebrows as nonchalantly as if it was going 6 months without nail polish! (And you know I would NEVER do that!) Boy, did I wish Dave was there! Dr. Chang was as nice as a person could be that has to deliver news like this. I didn’t cry or anything, just shocked to the core. In my mind I decided I wouldn’t do the chemo, I’d hide. I’d go live in Heber, happy as a lark for another 30 years.