Journal entry by Joyce Njeru —
Hi everyone. This my story. A story I never thought I would ever wright. In my mind I thought it was so far from me. I used to watch and listen to people suffering from cancer and I would say a little prayer in my heart for their recovery. Little did I know one day, I will be telling a similar story. I hope someone out there will say a little prayer for me☺.
It all started last year 2019 around May. I was about to prepare dinner for my family ( Am married with two lovely boys age 13 and 5) and all over sudden I had this excruciating pain in my left hand. It was so painful that I could not lift my hand. I took some pain killers and delegated the dinner thing to someone else. At the moment I didn't think much about it. The next day as I was taking a shower, I noticed a lump on my left breast. That alarmed me and I decided to go see a doctor.
My first visit to the Doctor.
The doctor did a physical exam and he recommended I do an Ultrasound. The Ultrasound results confirmed that I had the lump and it was of a minimal size. So he concluded that it was a fibro-adonema. Which according to him was nothing to worry about. So I left went back home. After a few days, the pain was back as severe as the first day.
Second Doctors appointment
I went see the Doctor the next day. This time around he did another physical exam and noticed that now they are two lumps. He recommended I do a FNA. He took the samples and I waited for the results for about 10days. By then I was getting more en more worried. Then I got the call. The FNA results are ready. I went to collect the results. According to the Doc, the pathologist did not get any abnormalities though he had recommended for a biopsy of which the doctor decided it was not really important since the FNA results did not show anything. He sent me home with some painkillers. So every month after that I kept going for check up. Until September when the Doctor said that he is noticing some growth in the first lump and he decided to send me for further investigations. I did an MRI . The results showed that I had multiple lumps and was suspicious of malignancy.
At this point, I decided to consult another Doctor. She was so so concerned about the MRI results. She immediately sent me to do a Ultrasound guided biopsy. I waited for the results for about 10 working days. By this time, I was scared and didn't know how to react to the results if they came back positive. 10 days later, the results were out. My new Doctor called and booked me for the next days appointment.
My Husband Elisha
Let me tell you a little about this wonderful superman I have for a husband. Through all the above, the doctors visits, the test the pain etc, he has always been there with me. I remember when I was sent for the MRI, he said" swry, no matter the outcome, we will handle it as a team. Me and you will concur anything. It is not your results, it is our results " those words right there made me feel like whatever the out come, I will face it. He is the strongest person I know and I love him even more for showing me that we can handle any situation through Christ who strengthens us.
The Biopsy results
My husband and I went to collect the results. In the doctors office there was a team of Doctors. They all took turns talking and encouraging us and now my Doctor dropped the 💣. "Joyce, you are sick. You got cancer. "..... Am not really sure how I felt at that moment but I remember tears running down my face, my mouth went dry. I was not sure what I heard was correct so I asked the Doctor to explain how, why?. I guess I cried for like 5min then I realized that crying will not help the situation. The doctors explained that I had micinous carcinoma stage 3. She explained that it has spread to the niphnodes on my left armpit. She said that we need to act quick so she ordered for further test to determine whether it has spread further to distance organs. So I did the Chest and abdominal CT scans. Thank God the results were good. It had not spread to any other organs or part of the body. She explained that the type of cancer I have is very very rare. So rare that only 1% of women get it. As a matter of fact, there has not been anycase of a black woman below the age of 35yrs reported. Only white women over the age of 60 have been reported to have the same. At this point, we din't know what to think we did alot of research on the same so as to understand exactly what it meantS. The Doctor then told us the treatment plan.
Surgery
Chemo
Radiotherapy
Hormonal therapy.
Will stop hear for today.........
It all started last year 2019 around May. I was about to prepare dinner for my family ( Am married with two lovely boys age 13 and 5) and all over sudden I had this excruciating pain in my left hand. It was so painful that I could not lift my hand. I took some pain killers and delegated the dinner thing to someone else. At the moment I didn't think much about it. The next day as I was taking a shower, I noticed a lump on my left breast. That alarmed me and I decided to go see a doctor.
My first visit to the Doctor.
The doctor did a physical exam and he recommended I do an Ultrasound. The Ultrasound results confirmed that I had the lump and it was of a minimal size. So he concluded that it was a fibro-adonema. Which according to him was nothing to worry about. So I left went back home. After a few days, the pain was back as severe as the first day.
Second Doctors appointment
I went see the Doctor the next day. This time around he did another physical exam and noticed that now they are two lumps. He recommended I do a FNA. He took the samples and I waited for the results for about 10days. By then I was getting more en more worried. Then I got the call. The FNA results are ready. I went to collect the results. According to the Doc, the pathologist did not get any abnormalities though he had recommended for a biopsy of which the doctor decided it was not really important since the FNA results did not show anything. He sent me home with some painkillers. So every month after that I kept going for check up. Until September when the Doctor said that he is noticing some growth in the first lump and he decided to send me for further investigations. I did an MRI . The results showed that I had multiple lumps and was suspicious of malignancy.
At this point, I decided to consult another Doctor. She was so so concerned about the MRI results. She immediately sent me to do a Ultrasound guided biopsy. I waited for the results for about 10 working days. By this time, I was scared and didn't know how to react to the results if they came back positive. 10 days later, the results were out. My new Doctor called and booked me for the next days appointment.
My Husband Elisha
Let me tell you a little about this wonderful superman I have for a husband. Through all the above, the doctors visits, the test the pain etc, he has always been there with me. I remember when I was sent for the MRI, he said" swry, no matter the outcome, we will handle it as a team. Me and you will concur anything. It is not your results, it is our results " those words right there made me feel like whatever the out come, I will face it. He is the strongest person I know and I love him even more for showing me that we can handle any situation through Christ who strengthens us.
The Biopsy results
My husband and I went to collect the results. In the doctors office there was a team of Doctors. They all took turns talking and encouraging us and now my Doctor dropped the 💣. "Joyce, you are sick. You got cancer. "..... Am not really sure how I felt at that moment but I remember tears running down my face, my mouth went dry. I was not sure what I heard was correct so I asked the Doctor to explain how, why?. I guess I cried for like 5min then I realized that crying will not help the situation. The doctors explained that I had micinous carcinoma stage 3. She explained that it has spread to the niphnodes on my left armpit. She said that we need to act quick so she ordered for further test to determine whether it has spread further to distance organs. So I did the Chest and abdominal CT scans. Thank God the results were good. It had not spread to any other organs or part of the body. She explained that the type of cancer I have is very very rare. So rare that only 1% of women get it. As a matter of fact, there has not been anycase of a black woman below the age of 35yrs reported. Only white women over the age of 60 have been reported to have the same. At this point, we din't know what to think we did alot of research on the same so as to understand exactly what it meantS. The Doctor then told us the treatment plan.
Surgery
Chemo
Radiotherapy
Hormonal therapy.
Will stop hear for today.........
Patients and caregivers love hearing from you; add a comment to show your support.
Help Joyce Stay Connected to Family and Friends
A $25 donation to CaringBridge powers a site like Joyce's for two weeks. Will you make a gift to help ensure that this site stays online for them and for you?
