One Year Follow Up

July 6, 2012 marked one year since my surgery. My one year follow up appointment came a week and a half later on July 17th. I did, however, have a party on the 7th to celebrate a year of cancer free scans. I was a little worried it might be bad luck to celebrate before I actually had results from my one year scans but it turns out there was no harm in celebrating ahead of time.

Not only were my CT, xrays, and blood tests clear for any signs of cancer, my oncologist has decided I can have my portacath removed. It's a small device that was inserted just under my skin, sits between my chest and collar bone, and has a direct line into one of the veins in my neck. This is how my chemotherapy was administered. It was left in for a whole year after finishing chemotherapy until I had established a record of clear scans. There would be no point in removing the port only to have to put it back in.

Celebrating one year feels great. It's hard to believe that much time has gone by already. I still have to continue seeing both my surgeon and oncologist every three months for the next two years though. Once I reach three years of clear scans I will progress to appointments every six months. I'm ok with the frequent appointments for the times being. It's extra assurance that everything is still going well. I have people keeping a constant eye on me with repeat scans and blood tests. It puts me in such a great mood the day after receiving positive news at a follow up appointment. I know that at least for the moment, everything is just fine.

The down side to having frequent appointments is the evening before. It's really easy to start wondering, "What if the scans show a new growth?" "How am I going to tell everyone that I have cancer, again?" "Who should I tell in person and who will I email?" "What if tonight is my last night being cancer free?" It certainly makes for a scary, stressful, sleepless night. I'm a positive, optimistic person too, I can't imagine what the night before a follow up appointment is like for a negative, pessimistic person. The important thing is, I got the all clear. So I'll try not to worry or stress about it for at least the next three months.

While at my appointment I showed both my doctors that I could walk without my crutches. I insisted on showing them at the same time, I usually see them each separately, but didn't say what it was I was going to show them until they were both there. My surgeon and oncologist, along with all of their residents and interns and the nurses who were around, gathered to watch as I took a couple steps down the hall. My surgeon wasn't quite as excited as I would have liked him to be but everyone was really happy. He seemed much more impressed when we told him I had recently climbed a fire tower without my crutches, but I'll get to that in another post.

At the very end of my appointment he said he'd be looking forward to hearing about what new adventures I'd been up to. I think I've gone from surprising and impressing them at each appointment with my accomplishments to everyone expecting me to tell them about something new and unbelievable that I've done or learned to do. Who knows what I'll be telling them I did or can do three months from now.