I was always a major procrastinator about going to the doctor. Kind of ironic because at the time I wanted to become a doctor. I was always the one to push off appointments, if it wasn't urgent then "I'll get to it". Trying to find a doctor in Tallahassee that was covered by my insurance was a whole other mission. However, I knew enough was enough... I needed to figure out what was going on with my body.
During the month of August (2019), I started to notice my lower abdomen/pelvic region was distended (bloated), and hurt upon palpation. I just attributed it to gaining weight. At the time I just started working full time as an EMT, I worked 24 hour shifts and would have 48 hours off. Some days were super busy, so a lot of the time I would grab something fast (usually from a fast food restaurant). So it made sense to me that I was gaining weight (my work pants started to not fit to the point it was uncomfortable), but I wasn't, I was actually losing weight which made no sense. Also, when I would palpate my abdomen it was rock hard, not like fat which is squishy. I was unusually fatigued, but I just blamed it on working 24 hour shifts and studying for the MCAT. I blamed my back pain on stress, blamed urinating frequently on drinking more water, ignored my bowel changes, and ignored that I got full fast.
January, 2019 vs. August, 2019
These symptoms sound super insignificant and minor right? The symptoms were so easy to ignore and shove off, "I'll get it checked out later". Anyways I finished taking the MCAT, so I finally decided to schedule an appointment, August 15th, to see an OBGYN.
At my appointment my OBGYN did a pelvic exam, where she then explained to me I wasn't just "gaining weight", that there was "something" in my lower abdomen that I would need to have surgery to remove, she just wasn't sure what "it" exactly was. Since it was so large she believed it was a dermoid cyst, also known as a mature teratoma, which is a benign tumor that is composed of two or three germ cell layers (endoderm, mesoderm, and/or ectoderm). My OBGYN then proceeded to tell me how it could be comprised of hair, teeth, cartilage, fluid, thyroid tissue, etc. I know gross right! She seemed super excited about it too! She stated that she had never seen one with teeth, but mine was so big maybe she would get the chance to see some. I mean as an EMT, if I had a patient with a dermoid cyst and the possibility of it having teeth I would think that would be super cool too. However, I'm the patient and it's in me! Of course she had to advise me there was a possibility it could be cancerous, but she reassured me multiple times that at 23 years of age it would be so rare for it to be anything serious (aka malignant). However, still taking the right precautions she scheduled me to get an ultrasound in her office the next day, August 16th.
Alright, here we are the next day getting an ultrasound. All I can hear during the procedure is a bunch of clicking, so I knew the ultrasound tech was taking a bunch of pictures. Me, being an impatient, nosey person asked the tech if everything was okay. Her response was "um, not sure I can't see any of your anatomy in your abdomen or pelvic region... I'm going to go get the doctor right now". So next thing you know my OBGYN comes in and starts to examen all the pictures the ultrasound tech captured. She then looks at me and says well this mass is so big we can't see where it's originating from and can't really tell what "it" is. So next step was to schedule me for an MRI, do a stat read, and come back to her office right after to discuss the results. She still believed it was a dermoid cyst, however she didn't want any surprises during surgery and just wanted more evidence and proof of what she was dealing with. Once again she reassured me that at 23 it would be so rare for it to be cancerous.
So I get the MRI done, first time ever. Super weird feeling when they injected the contrast dye, if you know you know. Went back to my OBGYN's office and waited to hear my results. She walks in and gets down to business. She says she doesn't feel comfortable performing the surgery herself, that based on the MRI results the mass isn't taking on the appearance of a dermoid cyst. What she said next made my heart drop..."I'm going to refer you to see a gynecologist oncologist".
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