PET Results

July 5, 2006 - I was scheduled to get my stitches taken out and was hoping to get the results from my PET scan. They told me it would take 24-48 hours so they should be in by now.

I headed to Dr. Hermansen's office during the lunch hour. Her office is very close to mine so it's convenient. Dr. Hermansen wasn't in since it was her day for surgery so her nurse practioner was going to take my stitches out. I met her once, briefly, prior to my surgery when she came in to feel the lump in my neck.

The nurse practioner was very nice but very new, and it showed. In fact, I later learned that I was her first patient. She apparently was literally right out of school. As she was removing the stitches, I think she nicked me with the scissors and caused me to bleed a little. I didn't mind. I told her I was sorry she was being thrown to the wolves so soon with a case like mine as her first and she replied that it was good. She of course amended her response by saying that it wasn't good that I had cancer but it was a good learning experience for her.

Once the stitches were out, I asked if the PET results were in and she said that they were and then got a copy of the report for me. I went into this appointment with two goals for the PET. One, that the cancer did not show up anywhere else in my body. Two, that they'd be able to locate the source of the primary tumor. The report stated that there was a large mass in the area of my surgery that showed hypermetabolic activity. It also stated that there was a spot at the base of my tongue on the left side that was suspicious as the primary tumor site. Finally it stated, and I will remember this clearly for the rest of my days, that there was no evidence of distant metastases. It graded my cancer as grade IIA which, all of a sudden, didn't sound so bad.

The results were as good as I could have hoped. I felt a great rush of relief and was overcome. I wept in front of this poor nurse practitioner and she sat silently wondering, I'm sure, what to do. So much for the "no more tears" promise.

As I composed myself, the nurse practitioner apologized for not knowing too much about how to interpret the results or the staging. She printed some information from a cancer website that helped explain what it all meant. At that point, it didn't matter to me. I felt like the weight of the world had been lifted from me and I was energized and ready to fight.

After thanking the nurse practitioner and office staff, I left Dr. Hermansen's office and headed straight for a Borders that was right around the corner. I purchased seven books to help me better understand what I have and how to beat it.

That night, I received a call at home from Dr. Hermansen. It was actually after 9:00 so I was surprised to hear from her, though glad and appreciative that she would take some time that late to call me. We talked briefly about the results of the PET scan and what I needed to do to plan for the next step. She referred me to one of her partners, Dr. Josef Gurian for a consultation and second opinion. In fact, my appt. with Dr. Gurian had already been scheduled for the following Friday afternoon. I was looking forward to meeting him.