Matt Miller

Where to begin?  So much has happened in the last month and a half.  It all started in mid August when I developed a fever and had some abdominal discomfort on a Sunday afternoon.  Concerned that I might have Covid I scheduled a video visit with my doctor for the following day.  He did order a Covid test which I had done that day and the test came back negative the next day.  That was a big relief.  I was still dealing with a fever though and the abdominal discomfort.  My doctor was not available until the following week so I scheduled a video visit with another doctor at the clinic on that Thursday.  She ordered some blood work to be done and a CT scan of my abdomen.  I was able to have both done the same day.  I was actually feeling pretty good that evening so I went to watch Eli play his last t-ball game of the season.  While at the game at 7:30pm the doctor called me.  (When a doctor calls you at that time of day it is not good)  She said my blood work came back ok.  There were a couple of things off a little, but nothing real concerning.  The main issue was with my CT scan.  The radiologist found a rather large mass on my small intestine.  In the span of about 4 days I went from fearing I had Covid to the fear of cancer.  The doctor put in referrals for me to have a PET scan on my whole body and meeting with an oncologist.  Since all of this I have also had an endoscopic ultrasound (biopsy), CT of my chest, several other blood tests, office visit with a surgeon and video visits with a couple of other doctors.  Through all of this I have been diagnosed with a few things, but the main concern now is the mass on my small intestine.  Everything else can be dealt with later.  The biopsy I had done confirmed what the oncologist thought it was, a gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST).  I am scheduled for a fairly invasive surgery on Oct 5th to remove the tumor.  Once the tumor is gone all should be well.  My advice to anyone is if you feel off in any way to get it checked out.  Had I not had that second video visit  when this all started who knows if and when the tumor would have been found.  


Matt