A Compelling Message from an Ovarian Cancer Survivor

Don’t ever ask if someone is pregnant. They just might have a cancerous tumor!

Off and on, over a course of probably 6 months, I felt bloated.

Honestly, I thought it was probably just signs of peri- menopause. Nothing hurt. I was still having normal periods. I didn’t feel bad. I asked friends if I looked okay, and all I heard was “you look the same to me.”

Fast forward now to the end of the six month period. In a week’s time, my body changed dramatically. My stomach changed. I’ve had 2 children. My stomach now looked like I was in my ninth month. I’m not exaggerating. It happened that fast. Suddenly, when I ate something, I felt instantly full. I took an anti-gas pill thinking that might help. My stomach stayed the same. No relief.

I was at work the next day when the secretary told me that I needed to go to the doctor. I couldn’t get an appointment to the clinic that I normally went to. So I ended up going to a clinic where no appointment was needed and just walked in. This probably saved my life. The first doctor I saw thought it was definitely some kind of tumor, but we would need more tests. This became the first of many appointments over the next couple of days. Not once did I think that it could be cancer. Heart disease runs in my family, not cancer. At the end of an eventful week, I had surgery. My surgeon and his team removed a cancerous basketball sized tumor from one of my ovaries that was too large to weigh. They had to leave some cancerous lymph nodes because of where they were positioned. The day after my surgery, the surgeon came in and told me the news. I had ovarian cancer and it was

stage 3c. Not knowing anything about cancer, I thought there were probably at least 10 stages right ? Wrong. I cried a little, but I didn’t lose it. I thank my faith in God for that.

The next step was to make a plan. This meant finding the right oncologist for me. When I met with my doctor the first day, it was obvious that she was the one to be on my team. She never sugar coated anything from the very beginning. I needed this. Tell me what I need to do, and I will do it. This made going through cancer easier. I always knew where I stood.

I did six cycles of chemotherapy and can proudly say that I am cancer-free! My chemo nurses were incredible. Since chemo became a weekly ritual, I was determined not to let it get me down. I went to chemotherapy treatments with crazy socks on one day and a Batman cape on another. Attitude is half the battle.

Ovarian cancer is a tricky one. Not a lot of warning signs. It literally will sneak up on you. Listen to your body. When you get diagnosed, assemble the team that will work for you. This is your battle, and you need to feel comfortable with the people around you. Don’t be scared. Fight it! Let your faith carry you through. It will. I’m proof.

Ovarian cancer…make some noise!

Amy, New Braunfels, TX