DnAzMama

Hey, I saw your name and was wondering if you are from AZ?  Anywayz, I read your post..and just wanted to give you some comfort.  I am 24 and in Sep.  I woke up at 4am in the morning, urinated and then was in the worst pain in my life...it felt like a labor contraction, I went 6to the ER and they said I had a 4cm complex cyst on left ovary with some fluid...well, I went home and did some online reasearch..everything pointed to ovarian cancer, i was  BASKETCASE.  I also have 2 young children, 1 and 4..and i was always kissing them, and planning to write letters for them when they grew up without me, my primnary care DR even had me taken to a hospital in an ambulance becuase i was such a wreck he thought I might kill myselg....got me nowhere.  I went to the GYN and he sat me down for 45 minutes and explained to me that at my age, with no family history of having OC, i had less then 1% chance of hacing it, and he would take that to the bank, well 6 weeks later i had another ultrasond...and it was gone.  Now of course i have ANOTHER cyst, but i believe that i have reoccuring hemmoraghic cysts, that while very painful..are benign, the odds you have cancer are slim, I read on here a few months ago...while you are concerned, and rightfully so just know that the odds are on your side...sorry this is so long, just want to help.
Toni

[nursepatient]

I really hope your story helps DzAzmama.  I don't have kids and I just cannot imagine the compounded stress and anticipatory grief you had gone through.  Makes you stop and (pardon the cliche') count your blessings.  I am happy your problems turned out OK.

[DnAzMama]

Thanks Toni, that is encouraging.  I hate to get false hope, is the problem, but I need at least enough of both (hope and fear) to keep me "aware", yet sane.  I just went back to school to be a nurse and I have been asking "why now?  why when I went back to school and have so much going on?  why now when I have so much I still want to do?"  It's very depressing.  But I have to keep going because if it turns out to be "nothing" I will hate myself for wasting the last 6 wks or so for nothing.  And I have to keep going for my family.  And if it is "something", I guess I will just have to deal with that then, and I suppose I should try to live happy while I DON'T know, right?  I suppose if it's bad, there'll be plenty of time to be sad and scared then.  In the mean time, I just hope each day I don't get worsening or new symptoms.    
This is all easy to say right now, but I'm bound to have another crying spell by morning!  (haha?)
But already this has all taught me that yes, one should always  remember to stop and count their blessings.  It makes it harder to think about losing, but sure makes you see what you have.    

[DnAzMama]

Sorry, I forgot.  Yes, I am actually in Arizona.  But the A in my nickname actually stands for the first initials of my sons' names, D and A (D and A's mama).  Coincidentally, it says Az, too. ;-)

One question for you or whomever, if malignancy is rare in the young and those w/out history of OC in the family, why did my doctor want to re-scan in 6 weeks, and why wouldn't they tell me it was nothing to worry about?  In fact, I couldn't get much of any info at all from my doctor's office...didn't even get to speak to the doctor in fact, just a nurse.  Makes it even scarier when noone seems to want to help you...or reassure you.  :(

[ziggysgrl0724]

not that this is any consultation, and I definatly dont wanna downplay whats going on with you...but it seemed like with me, i was 100% healthy feeling until my cyst was discovered, then i had EVER single OC symptom there was.  That itself made me even more nuts, however, when i started my medication for anxiety all the symptoms went away.  I have heard many woman on here say go with your gut instinct, and I agree with that.  The only thing is, at your age, with no history, you'll have a hard time getting a dr to say anything other then  "wait 6 weeks, rescan"...thats the depressing part...cause i didnt care what it was, i wanted it out of my body, and i did feel like i wasnt being seriously because of my age.....but ultimatly you have to try to trust what ur dr says, and if you truly feel like u dont, maybe get another opinion, but like nurse said...if to them it looked like cancer, they would take it out ASAP

[DnAzMama]

Actually, I was already on an anti-depressant for anxiety disorder, and hope it helps me get through this.  I am starting to notice everything.  I feel like my chest and lungs are hurting, it's harder to swallow and to breathe, my muscles feel weak...like cancer is eating away at my innards.  Is this really happening??  I can't even tell!  
I was sick a few months ago and noone could figure out what was wrong...nauseas, just general ill feeling.  I keep thinking "maybe that's when my cancer was starting".  Gawd, am I overreacting, would they have seen it already in my pelvic u/s if it were a spreading cancer??  Or is the worst already there, and yet to be discovered?  I can't stand it anymore, already.
I think I will go take an anti-anxiety pill (or two) and try to rest.
Thanks for all feedback.
J.

p.s...I'm in Gilbert, not far from you in Glendale.  ;-)

[nursepatient]

You will be a stronger woman for this.  And, you will be a better nurse!  The nurses give little info to you because they simply cannot speak for the doctor (although some try) and have limited information about your case.  It puts a nurse in a difficult position to give too much information without the medical background to support it and answer your questions.  If you want to learn the ins and outs ask the med records person at the docs office for copies of your labs, transcripts and imaging reports.  You might get yourself psyched out learning this stuff.  But, if you want to be in charge you should get the tools and equip yourself. Ziggysgrl is right, they recheck to see if it is growing or resolved.  If it is going to resolve it will likely do so within that amount of time. If it's growing and compromising your reproductive organs after that time, they may want to remove it.  Or, they may still want to wait and recheck again later.  Part of it depends on what YOU want.  If they suspected cancer they would have it out right away.  Hope that helps you.

[ziggysgrl0724]

I'm in AZ too, thats cool..I live in Glandale.  Anywayz about your post, while yes it is rare, it can happen and the rescan is just a precautionary measure.  Even thought it is most likely benign, they have to make sure it goes away, because other bad things can happen in there besides just cancer.  If your cyst got big enough it could cause a torsion and kill your ovary from lack of blood...so saying they want to rescan you isnt saying they think you have cancer..but like my doctor said "no, I dont think this cancer, but should it be there? no it shouldnt so i want to keep an eye on it".....you know, at the risk of making myself sound crazy, during my whole 1st cyst fiasco, i actually ended uop taking anti dperessents for anxiety disorder, and it works wonders, maybe that is something you should consider, cause if you feel anything like I do, I dont wanna fall apart everything something gets a little too real you know what i meam?  Hope this helps and feeel free toask me any questions on the subject, or anything.
Toni

[mir02]

My doctor was a little surprised that I had a cyst while on BC, but only a little. He said women on BC shouldn't have cysts, but it happens sometimes anyways. I don't think being on BC and having a cyst means the cyst isn't "normal" . Mine was a fluid filled, functional cyst that got to 10cm, filled with mucuous(sp?), and shrunk to 8cm when they took it out. Yeah I know, that's pretty gross, but it was normal. Path came back benign, so just because you have a cyst while on BC, doesn't seem to mean that the cyst will be abnormal. I actually think my cyst had been there since around the time I got pregnant, or even before. I had a cyst on my ovary during pregnancy, but they didn't worry about it because it was so small. It's my belief that it never went away and grew larger. Hope this helps some.
Miranda

[JGMom]

You have a right to see all your medical records. You can ask for a copy of the radiology report from the U/S.  You can also ask for a copy of the clinic notes. That's what I do so i know I am getting all the info. Even though mine didn't totally comfort me this time, I would rather know more now instead of driving myself over the edge with what-ifs while waiting for the Drs to rescan and remove it.

One thing good to know is that a fair amount can be seen on U/S: t hey can tell if it is a simple cyst, if it is fluid filled or more solid, etc.  They are also less likely to do the wait and see through a cycle if it doesn't look like a functional cyst.  I had an endometria (ovarian endometriosis cyst) several years back and after they (finally) saw it on U/S, they operated a few days later because it did not look like a functional cyst.  Endometriosis is not cancer, but it can be quite painful and destructive and not good to have.  Of course I would take it any day over OC.

I can't stand the waiting though.  I also have 2 young children and the possiblity of OC especially scares me because of this.    It's difficult to try to stay sane not knowing what lies ahead.

[DnAzMama]

Well I certainly had plenty of symptoms that led me to see the dr. in the first place (pain, spotting, all-over cramping, bladder pressure, constipation), but I know what you are saying, I am certainly noticing even more "symptoms" now that I am worried.  I'm just glad I went ahead w/ the u/s and didn't chalk it up to "spastic colon" like the n.p. I saw first diagnosed.  This doesn't sound like anything to mess with, no matter what the end result.
Regarding what you said, mir02, about the birth control:  That's another question I had.  I've been on birth control, and I was told and read several places that you are not supposed to get cysts when you are on the pill.  So the way I see it, this can't be any kind of "normal" cyst because I supposedly don't ovulate.  Isn't that true?

[DnAzMama]

We actually have a copy of the u/s report because my mom works for a Dr and got the results sent over to him.  Kind of weird, but they did it.  
My report seemed vague.  It didn't state whether the cysts were fluid-filled or not, but said "cysts" and possible "thick septum".  So I assume that means fluid-filled w/ a thick solid wall.  The nurse on the phone wouldn't even tell me for sure.  The only other thing it said (I think) were 2 cyst measurements around 2.5 cm each (or 1 large septated), and the ovary is enlarged.
Not sure what all that means, but I think I do.  I've been doing lots of reading and asking lots of questions.  The thick septum is what really scares me.  I've read that is what makes the "scariness" in some cysts.

Having kids definitely has a rough impact on things like this, especially little ones.  It's bad enough to have to deal with this kind of thing without having them, but when you have to worry about them, too...it's almost unbearable.  

Thanks for everyone's help.
J.

[ziggysgrl0724]

Hey mama, if you would like, my email address is ***@****, if you would like to chat some more on this, i have done TONS of research on this since my expeirneces....and also, i too am on birth control, and its kind of a catch 22, yes BCP are supposed to make you not ovulate..but nothing is perfect, my doctor has talked about switching me to a higher dose if my problem persists, but on the other hand..the fact that you are even on birth control, and the fact that you have children lowers your chances even more for having OC.

[Gatsby]

It is normal to worry when things suddenly go crazy on you.  I thought my lower back pain was from stress, the weight gain from the snickers bars I love so much.  I did not realize I had cysts until my yearly checkup and let my gyn know these problems and the fact that my period had gone wacko.  Well, after the u/s, I just knew this was it.  I worried myself into oblivion.  We were all walking on egg shells.  Suddenly I just had all the symptoms of ovca.  Well, turns out even benign masses on the ovaries can cause the same symptoms.  You are young and healthy and like the ladies before me said, 99% of these cysts are benign.  So, take a deep breath and try to relax.  We are here and we will listen and keep you company while you wait.  Sending you prayers.
~Tascha

[PPhelps]

I just want to say worring is what we women do best. I can tell you not to worry, but you will. I went through the same last month. Once I stopped worrying so much some of the symptoms went away. I read here everyday. I don't always post cause I feel these woman express themselves so much better than I.

Also depression can hurt. You can have headaches, stomach pain, neck pain all because of depression. And worrying can aggravate this. Just something else to consider.

[mir02]

My doctor told me to wait for at least a month before coming back in for a rescan because he wanted at least one menstrual cycle in between scans. Something about the menstrual cycle can sometimes reduce cyst size or something like that anyways. Also, he wanted me to keep taking my birth control pills while I was waiting, actually said that if I hadn't been on them, he would have prescribed them, to keep me from ovulating and in turn possibly making the cyst larger. I think I've got that info correct. Feel free to correct my mistakes girls! Hope this helps in understanding the wait period Mama. I'm praying for ya!

Miranda

[DnAzMama]

Thanks everyone, glad I found this site.
;-)