U/S seems "fairly normal", what now?

[jjsmama]

I've had leg and lower back pain, irregular periods, heavy periods, pain in my right ovary and sometimes left ovary, constipation and bloated feeling and appearance. Went to the gyn for my annual exam and told her about the ovarian pain and period symptoms. I had an ultrasound, including transvag, today.

The ultrasound tech showed me the images and said everything looked "fairly normal". She also told me that the doc doesn't see the image directly, but is just sent a report by the lab tech and analyzes the report. Should I have another ultrasound done by a doctor who regularly screens for OC? I'm 43 and have one child who is 3-1/2 years old.

Thanks,
jjsmama

[jjsmama]

So, reading some of the other posts here, it seems as if U/S doesn't always catch OVCA even at later stages. I've had these symptoms for more than a year, so I wonder if there is some other test I can ask my doctor about that might reveal something the U/S doesn't see. What other imaging tests are used to see a cyst or tumor?

Thanks in advance,
jjsmama

[jjsmama]

I appreciate your advice. I have a son, rather than a daughter, but your words of wisdom are appropriate anyway -- I need to be here for him.

I want to believe that everything really is normal, but the written report I received from my doctor is so vague that I don't find it all that reassuring.

I don't have it with me to quote exactly, but it said something like, "ovarian structures present as expected". I mean, that tells me nothing except that I have ovaries, of which I am obviously already aware. (I suppose it's possible that "present" means that they appear to be normal.) During the scan, I could see the left ovary, which looked like an oval-shaped black space with clear boundaries, but the right (where the pain is) looked obscured or misty. I asked the technician about this, but she wouldn't move the image viewer/capture thing on her screen back to show me the image again. Frustrating!

I'm also supposed to see my regular family doctor, so I will probably bring this issue back to her to talk about what I can do next. I am tired of being in so much pain. Basically, I wake up, feel fine, get up and walk around the house for a few minutes, and within 10 minutes or so, I feel like my hips are trying to descend down a set of stairs that isn't there. (That sounds weird, but I suppose some can relate to the sensation.) After breakfast (which causes the area around my RLQ/right ovary to hurt, as do all meals), I either go for an Advil (usually the 2nd half of the month when the pain is worse) or just deal with it for the rest of the day.

jjsmama

[dian07]

I would be anxious as well if only the tech read my ultrasound....."fairly normal" would not be good enough for me.....if my physician was not interested enough in me to look at the pics he/she would no longer be my physician.....especially with your symptoms....with your symptoms you need to see a specialist....I wouldn't waste any time either...you should probably see a gyn/oncologist.....not because you have cancer but because this is their arena of expertise...also because you have a little girl and you want to be around here for a long time!  You need to get to the bottom of this as soon as possibl...see a gyn/oncologist.
Peace.
dian