Does Larger the Ovarian Cyst more likely Cancer

[Cindymcw333]

Friday b4 Xmas I went to General Doctor for what I assumed she was going to tell me was gas, that I had been experiencing for 32 hours.  She did blood work and a CT scan. And came back into the room with my husband that they called from work to come in when they gave me the news that it looks like ovarian cancer.  I was in total shock and heard nothing else.  Monday b4 xmas I was calm enought to call the dr office back, and asked a few more questions.  They said the mass/tumor/cyst is on my right ovary and is 21cmx11cmx11cm and that the radiology report said it was "complex in nature".  They had not gotten my blood results back yet.  On the first day they had immediately made an appointment for me to see an OBGYN/Oconologist.  Due to the holidays I don't see that doctor until the 2nd of the new year.  I have been a nervous wreck.  I feel totally fine, however every ache and pain worries me that cancer has spread.  A friend of mine told me without a biopsy there is no dx of cancer and i try to keep that as my mantra but I am still having trouble dealing with this.  I am 40 years old, with 3 boys still at home in school.  I have no family history of any cancer at all.  I am overweight with most of it in my belly.  I have had terribbly irradic periods all of my life, sometimes bleeding for a full 3 weeks and sometimes not having one at all for 6 months.  Sometimes extremly heavy sometimes very minimal.  Again I do feel good and until i went to the doc i never even thought i had anything wrong.  i do now have minimal pain/pressure on my right side but othere than that I feel great.  Except for the fact that I feel like I have been given a death sentence.  And I all I can think about is that I want to see my boys grow up.  I am reaching out for hope and strength.  I know I should stay off the internet, but I can't stop researching and trying to find answers.

[MeggieM]

Hi Cindy,

(First, Alex,it's so refreshing to hear your story; I wish I'd read it during the weeks I just spent googling.  It will make others feel so much better - so much terror surrounding how ovarian cancer is discussed, and your story helps me see what a myth so much of the info is.)

I just had a 9 x 7 x 5 complex cyst removed today.  It had every sign of being cancer on the ultrasound ( I reviewed images w/ my gyn/onc) and looked exactly like a Serous cystadenocarcinoma, with a huge solid area, papillary projections, uneven borders, everything. It was benign - an endometrioma.  The internet can't tell you anything and Alex is right that each case is different and that the o-cancer stats are old.  I know it's impossible to stay offline - I had panic attacks daily for 2 weeks because of googling - but really, you won't find anything that won't scare you to death, or that will give you the magic answer you're seeking. (I thought if I googled hard enough I would; I also thought I'd found my magic answer and was also convinced of a death-sentence.)

Although I did just complain about all of the statistics vs. individual cases, a stat I found that was comforting was that in women under 40, 2/3 of malignant ovarian tumors will be borderline (low-risk, slow-growing). And also I'll quote form this article "In actuality, various studies have shown that cysts found prior to menopause are benign in 87% to 93% of women" http://www.obgmanagement.com/index.php?id=20667&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=170920

Of course this wasn't completely comforting - we are all individuals, but it did give me a little perspective that helped get me through the hours before my surgery.

I've also read that blood tests can be raised by any very large cyst, as well as many other conditions in premenopausal women.

Go outside; go for walks; be with friends if it makes you feel better; don't sit in front of the computer googling if you can help it, or make a rule where you can only google an hour a day.  I made my boyfriend stop me if he saw me doing it; get people to help you.

Good luck to you.

Megan

[Cindymcw333]

Alex,
Thank you so much for your information.  I know I shouldn't be on the internet but I can't help myself, and it seems like everything I see/find isn't good news for ovarian cancer.  You gave me hope if in fact it turns out to be.  I feel extremely relieved by your info that they now call it a chronic illness like diabetes.  It gives me a new outlook on this.  I wish you the best.  And again sincerely thank you for your response.
Cindy

[HVAC]

First off they do not know it is Cancer until they actually get in there. There are many large cysts which turn out to be benign. I have had several friends who thought they had Ovarian Cancer but when they got in there the tumors were benign. If it is Cancer it is not the end of the world. The statistics on  Ovarian Cancer are old. They now call Ovarian Cancer a chronic illness like diabetes. You deal with it but you can live a fairly normal life. I am stage 4 Ovarian and I ride horses, hike, camp, train dogs, and have a happy life. Even with Stage 4 I am no where near dead.With the CT Scans and newer Chemo therapies they can keep you around a long time. There are new medications which are not chemotherapy which are about to hit the market. I am in a trial for one which will be out next year. If they were worried holiday or no they would have had you in surgery already.  My PCP looked at my ultrasound, I was at the oncologist the next day and in surgery in a couple more days and it was a holiday when I had surgery. Take it one step at a time

Alex