I'm Medical Mystery Woman!

[knitter4democracy]

I'm so tired of it, but apparently, I've stumped the docs.

That tumor they took out of me (along with my right kidney, right adrenal gland, and all the fatty tissue around it)? Yeah, they don't know what it is. My surgeon called me at home today (on his day off, no less) to ask me how I was doing and to admit that, in over 30 years of practice, he's never seen anything like what he took out of me. In talking with the head of pathology, he also found out that none of the three pathologists had ever seen anything like my tumor, either.

Now we're waiting for the kidney tumor specialist they've sent everything to. We'll see what he says, but it could take as long as a week. *sigh* We'll see, I guess.

Last spring, they found out that, after ten years of pain, it wasn't endometriosis but instead acute appendicitis. Now they don't know what my tumor is. I don't want to be Medical Mystery Woman anymore. Why can't it all be simple?

[GCP]

1. Could it be a conjoined twin?

They've found tumors with hair and teeth which were the remains of a twin which was engulfed in the other embryo during development.
Just a suggestion. Hope you're feeling OK. :hi:

[knitter4democracy]

5. It doesn't look like it.

Apparently the tumor has stumped them because it's got differnt lobes and the inside of those looks benign but the leading edge is quite invasive. Weird, huh?

[Warpy]

12. No, teratomas are pretty easy to spot

What they're likely trying to determine is if the tumor metastasized from another location. In other words, when you find ovarian or lung tissue in a renal tumor, you can be sure there's a primary tumor lurking elsewhere.

It sounds like the cells don't belong to any organ system, including the kidneys, though, so chances are either the tumor is benign or they got all of it.

There are only a couple of other possibilities I can think of, and they're both extremely rare.

[Jade Fox]

2. Hope it all turns out okay.....

Sounds stressful. Take care of yourself, and get a lot of knitting done! :pals:

[soothsayer]

3. Alien implant? I've had a dermoid cyst (hair, teeth) but they're

common, so I guess you didn't have that. Sometimes it's good to be mysterious. Keep 'em guessing! Plus, maybe it will be something named after you? Immortality!

[knitter4democracy]

6. Nope.

They've cut it open, and it doesn't look like a dermoid. I might lean toward the alien thing if the specialist doesn't know and needs to do a DNA study. ;)

[kimmerspixelated]

4. Please try

alternative medicine with Goji juice from Freelife.com or FrequenSea Forever Green.com(It contains frankinsence) a known- anti-tumor aid. Best of luck to you.
PS.I am not the sellers of these products, but they are supurb!!!

[knitter4democracy]

7. Are they for after the fact?

What if I burn some incense with frankensence in it? Is it just the juice?

[Frustratedlady]

8. Was this originally diagnosed as an adrenal tumor?

I ask, because it was found 9 years ago that I had one, but the chances were good that it was benign. I went through CTscans every six months for six years with no change, so they have assumed it is benign. Your message jumped out at me.

I'm sure we are exposed to many strange elements and substances which will do very strange things to our bodies. With all the man-made chemicals put in our foods, it's hard telling what will pop up.

As it was explained to me, your type of surgery was extensive (which was another reason to be glad I had a benign tumor). I hope the news is conclusive, as worry is half the pain. Good thoughts and prayers going out to you for a positive outcome.

[knitter4democracy]

9. No, it's between renal cell carcinoma or invasive oncocytoma.

They've checked the adrenal gland, and it's not there at all. Now they're trying to decide what the heck it is that they took out of me. It was huge, so the surgeon had to remove 3" off the end of one of my ribs and move my liver all around to get it out intact. The CT had said it was a little less than 4" across, but it ended up being around 6" across. I really hope it's not the cancer, since chemo and radiation don't work on it, which leaves a newer drug that sounds icky.

[Frustratedlady]

10. You poor thing. That has to be scary, but you seem to be

handling it well. I assume they are in contact with other centers with more experience in such tumors.

Please keep us informed. Your story is a mystery and I'm sure many others would also like to hear the rest of the story. Good luck!

[applegrove]

11. Well good that they got it. I'm sure the kidney guy will be able to help.

So tiring I'm sure. Just be happy it doesn't look like a regular old tumour. Sending Vibes..

[knitter4democracy]

13. Update: I stumped the specialist!

Hubby and I went to the surgeon today for a follow-up appointment, and the first thing he told me is that the chief of pathology was asked to send the entire specimen to the specialist, as he can't figure out what I had taken out of me. So, now I'm going to have to wait at least another week or two to see if he can figure it out. If he can't, apparently he has someone he can refer to, so it'll get sent on to someone else, taking even longer.

I just hope this means that it's a rare benign thingy instead of cancer.