Hospital Day

Today is 27 Feb. I saw Dr. Chahal at 10:15 a.m. She was very nice. She took a thorough history and reviewed my diagnostic work done in the Quad Cities. This was the first time I saw the most recent diagnostic work done in November 2007. I read the reports myself. I am concerned that the lack of fatty hila in the lymph nodes is indicating recurrent thyroid cancer. I have my needle biopsy in half an hour. The doctor said if the needle biopsy is clear and my blood work is good, we may or may not order a chest CT to see what's happening in my lungs. I'm to call her Friday. So, I don't really know anything definitive.
More later...
1:20 pm - Had my ultrasound of the neck. The student technician was excellent. Her name was Pasque (pronounced pas-KAY). We had some great conversations about having interesting first names. Her fiance's surname is Six. I told her she should name a boy Sven. Anyway, she did the ultrasound and called in a more senior tech to check her work. Then the general surgeon came in and explained that she would be doing a needle biopsy, one on each side of the neck. One means three to four sticks with a needle. She said there were two lymph nodes that met the criteria of suspicious. I took a break, swallwed an Ativan (anti-anxiety med) and came back to the room...it was getting crowded. The tech, the surgeon, the radiologist and two dudes from pathology. First my neck was sterilized with blue stuff and it was numbed with lidocaine (thank you Jesus!). Then the nodes were mapped (magic marker on my neck). Then the doctor put the needle in while I was told to not swallow, not breathe, not talk. She passed the needle to the pathology team and they added stain and did lots of stirring. I could not look up at them, so I only know it sounded like they were making cocktails. They gave feedback on if there was enough tissue or not. Then another needle, etc. They took 3 "core samples" from the right and four from the left. During this process, I got some very good news. The radiologist shared that the two nodes were very healthy looking, just slightly enlarged. She said that in another patient without my cancer history, they would not do biopsies. She also shared that the large number of lymph nodes seen back in November were gone. Also excellent news. I asked if the two lymph nodes being biopsied each had a fatty hilum and they did. Also excellent news. Cancerous nodes tend to lose their hila. Another good thing was that the nodes were bouncing around when the surgeon was trying to stab them. Cancerous nodes or tumors tend to be "sticky" to their surroundings. So, I left feeling good about the event. It was uncomfortable, a few painful moments, but not too bad, considering.
My neck looked like a blue smurf thanks to the disenfectant applied. I'm supposed to try to not wash it off for 24 hours. I'm to "rest" for 24 hours but I can go to work.
So, we'll see where the biopsies lead...hopefully nothing! The results will determine next steps. I also have to follow up with the nodules in my lungs. My scan in 2004 indicated they were stable. My most recent chest X-Ray in November 2007 shows perhaps a new nodule developing. So, Dr. Chahal is ordering up the films so she can compare for herself. This has not yet been done. She is very thorough.
I will talk to her Friday afternoon and update this blog.
I'll have biopsy results next week some time...