A Chapter In The Book of Life....My Life

September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and in honor of this month, I want to share a chapter of my life that was affected by this disease.

In addition, I have included some very important facts, risk factors, and signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer. At the very least, please go to the bottom of the page and click on the link.

A Chapter In My Life

Unfortunately, Ovarian Cancer was not my first go with cancer, when I was pregnant with my son Nicolas, I was diagnosed with Cervical Cancer....you might want to read THIS post, I will be picking up where I left off.

It was July of 1999, I was 26 years old and life was good. I had a beautiful boy who was a year and half old, I had been given a clean bill of health from my previous cancer and life seemed pretty normal.

Things changed in an instant as I walked in for what I thought was my routine check up and was told immediately that I needed more tests. The doctor felt a mass in my abdominal area.

The next week was like a blur...I had every test known to man kind to see if this was in fact Cancer, the only thing we could conclude from the tests was that it was a tumor and it needed to come out. I was scheduled for surgery within two days and pretty much signed my life away in case something happened to me while I was in the operating room.

My surgery was not scheduled until after lunch, it seemed like forever and nerves were getting the best of me and my family. It was a long day.....

I woke up about 7 hours later to find myself hooked up to a morphine pump and an NG tube....when I opened my eyes, I saw about 10 family members standing around the room with the look of pity in their eyes....I knew the prognosis was not good!

After everyone said there goodbye's....my husband at the time had walked everyone out....my Mom and I were the only two in the room....I looked at her and said..."It's Cancer, isn't it" She put on a brave face, but I could see right through it....it was back and it was a whole different ball game.

We had confirmation that it was Ovarian Cancer, but had to wait 2-3 weeks for the staging. Also, we needed to know if it was a regrowth of the first cancer or a new cancer. The doctor prepared us for the worst case scenario....if it was regrowth of the first cancer, it had probably invaded my lymph nodes and blood stream. We would be looking at a Stage IV cancer and preparing for an uphill battle.

I was eventually sent home from the hospital to recover and await the final pathology report. About 2 weeks after my release we got the phone call to come in and discuss the results.

To our surprise, it was not a recurrence of the original cancer, it was different...still cancer, but not the worst case scenario we were prepared to deal with. It was considered a stage III Ovarian Cancer.

At this point we were ready to start my treatments. We scheduled a surgery to have a port implanted in my chest to make my chemo treatments a little easier.....we also went to see a local girl who specialized in making wigs for cancer patients. I was told that within two weeks of my first treatment, my hair would start to fall out.

The week after my port was implanted, I started my chemotherapy. I was frightened and did not know what to expect. My Mom dropped me off at 10:30am that morning.....I watched the toxins drip into my veins for 6 hours wondering what they were going to do to my body and my spirit. My mom packed me a lunch and had included a special book about Mothers and Daughters....till this day, I cannot read what she wrote in the inside cover without shedding a tear. It was an emotional day...

I got extremely ill within 2 weeks of my treatment and was placed in the hospital.....I had a staph infection...it was during my hospital stay that my hair started to fall out....I woke up lying in a white bed surrounded by my beautiful hair.....it was devastating....a day I will never forget.

I was eventually released from the hospital and sent home. Upon my arrival at home, I was visited daily by home health care nurses....I needed daily treatments, but was to weak and sick to go into the doctors office.

My second treatment was put on hold until I fully recovered......but soon enough it was time for round two. Exactly two weeks after the second treatment....I became very ill again and was placed back in the hospital.....my blood was septic and I had a temp of 105...I honestly thought I was going to die that evening.

The port in my chest was infected, every time they gave me chemo or IV fluids, they pushed the infection further into my body and bloodstream....thankfully the infectious disease doctor on call that evening, knew enough to pull the line from my port immediately. They were concerned about heart valve damage, but by the grace of God, I escaped it.

The very next day, they surgically removed the port and gave me a pic line for future treatments......

It was a very long 9 months.....we were in the heart of the winter season when germ counts are at their highest...I was continually sick because my immune system was so not kicking in to fight off infection.

There were days that I felt I did not have the ability to fight this disease, I was sick and tired all the time. I would find myself at family events and holidays thinking....Is this going to be my last Christmas? Will I ever get to plan another birthday party for my son?

As the days passed, I kept wondering what the man upstairs had in store for me....was this going to be a happy ending? or was this going to being the final chapter in my life?

Time went on....I started to feel a little stonger and the glimmer of hope came back....I can do this, I can fight this.....I am not ready to give up.

Although I was determined to win this battle, I had a lot of unresolved issues and questions running through my head......I resented God for putting me through this....why me?....I asked myself this question daily.....I needed to understand.

Today I understand......I was given my given official remission in May of 2000..It has been 8 years and I am still here.....just when I thought my life was going to end....it began.....I was given a second chance and life is better than ever....I am a survivor....and I have a story to tell!

If I can educate just one person about this disease, then I know I have done my job. Please take the time to read and share the info below.....it can happen to anyone at any age....



Ovarian Cancer is one of the most deadly of women’s cancers. Each year, approximately 21,500 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer. In 2008, approximately 15,500 women will die in the United States from ovarian cancer. Many women don’t seek help until the disease has begun to spread, but if detected at its earliest stage, the five-year survival rate is more than 93%.

Please click HERE to learn about Ovarian Cancer, it's risk factors, and signs and symptoms.