By Sarah Pants
On July 19, 2011, I was diagnosed with cervical cancer.
It was a Tuesday and I received a call from my gynecologist asking me
to come in that afternoon to discuss the test results from a recent
biopsy.
After an abnormal pap test, I knew the news couldn’t be
good. So, I called my mother and asked her to meet me at the doctor’s
office for moral support during the appointment.
I wasn’t expecting the diagnosis I got.
I tested positive for the HPV virus years ago, but I never had any symptoms, and at times my exams came back with no evidence of HPV.
I’d
undergone cryocautery once to freeze out some abnormal, pre-cancerous
cells soon after the initial HPV positive test results. But my doctor
informed me that those cells would need a decade or longer to become
cancer cells.
I figured my test results consultation would be
along these lines, perhaps one or two steps beyond this stage. I hadn’t
had a well-woman exam in a few years, but it hadn’t been anywhere near
the 10 years my previous doctor said those cells would need to become
cancerous.
The ‘C’ word
I joked with Dr. Brian Blonder
about being OK with the idea of never having to deal with another
period. But I was confused when he replied that I’d never have to worry
about that again. Then, he said the word: cancer.
At that point, my mother took over. My body went numb and everything sounded like I was underwater. I retreated into myself for several minutes, trying to make sense of what the doctor had just told us. My mother took notes, asked questions and looked at the lab results that Dr. Blonder provided.
