Response Darlene updated:2005.9.2

START here thymoma.de

Diagnosis:
1. How was your cancer detected?
Answer: I was having chest pains so my husband took me to the emergency room. I was told I had pleurisy but I have had that and this did not feel the same. The Doctor ordered a CT scan which came back with a mass in my chest. Was admitted to Brandon Hospital in Brandon Florida. I met the most wonderful surgeon, Dr. Michael Siegman, who took control of everything. On March 2, 2004 I had surgery to remove the tumor. I also had my Thymus gland removed as well as the heart sac. The tumor was attached to the sac but had not yet invaded the area.

2. Did you feel any kind of pain or did you notice a change of your body?
Answer: Yes, I had a pain in the central part of my chest.

3. Do you know your staging?
Answer: Yes, Late stage II

4. Do you have a family history of cancer?
Answer: Yes, my Grandmother had Lung Cancer and my Grandfather had Prostate Cancer

5. Did you have any kind of surgery before?
Answer: Yes, I had an appendectomy, ankle surgery, and I Lypoma removed from rib area.

Treatment:
6. What kind of treatment did you receive (be as specific as possible)
-surgery (was your cancer invasive? which organs where involved?)
Answer: 24 rounds of radiation. I was suppose to have 28 but the doctor stopped at 24 due to he did not want me to get Fibrosis.

-chemotherapies ( name the chemo and write down how many rounds you received)
Answer: My oncologists suggested we have chemo due to my being 45. He wanted me to get a second opinion from Moffit Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. At Moffit the staff said that since the tumor was removed that they would not recommend chemo since there was nothing there to monitor.

-radiation (what doses did you receive)
-or a different kind of treatment
Answer: I'm sorry I do not know.

Where there any kind of side effects involved in your treatment?
Answer: Did not have much of an appetite. I was very fatigued.

7. Feelings - Emotions
What was your feeling when you heard your diagnosis?
( The answer to this question might be very helpful for all new patients!)
Answer: When I was told I had a Thymoma I did not realize that it was cancer. I thought that it was like the Lypoma I had removed. I thought it was just another mass and that they would remove it and life would go on as normal. My Doctor did not tell me while I was in the hospital that it was cancer. I am extremely grateful that I did not know this going into the surgery. I was very positive about the surgery. I knew that God was there to watch over me.

How did you feel during your treatment
- For example: During chemo you might have felt nauseated
Answer: When I had to go through the radiation I still was very positive. I was having the treatments to make sure that this never cam back.

8. What was the most difficult part during your treatment
Answer: 8 weeks after the radiation treatments I started coughing all the time. I was Diagnosed with Radiation Pneumonia. This was the worse part of everything that I had been through. I could not breath good, was coughing all the time to the point of throwing up. They put me on 20 mgs of Steroids a day for 1 week and then 10 mgs a day for 4 more weeks. The side effects of the steroids were the worse than anything that I had been through yet. After the steroids were finished I was still coughing. I had a brochoscopy done in January 2005 which settled the question about Fibrosis. My left lung as lost about 20% of its capacity due to the Fibrosis.

9. Where were you treated (name the hospital with the full address )
Answer: Brandon Hospital
Oakfield Drive
Brandon, Florida USA

10. If you can recommend your doctor let us know his/her name.
Answer: Dr. Michael Siegman

11. What tip could you give a new patient?
Answer: Take control, do your on research so you can ask your Doctor questions. I have learned that Doctors, hospital staff, techs, etc. are all human and no one cares as much about your life as you. Do not be afraid to ask questions, get second opinions.

12. What bothered you the most during your treatment?
Answer: Always being told that there is not much data on Thymomas. That they are rare.

13. What helped you most during this period?
Answer: My faith in God. I also have a wonderful Husband and Daughter that were with me the entire time and still are. My friends and church family are always here for me.

14. How're you feeling today?
Answer: I am back to coughing a lot. We are in the Summer months in Florida and the humidity makes it hard for me to breath.

15. Tell us a bit about your check-ups?
- Where do you get your check-ups. My oncologists sees me every 3 months. I also have to have CT scans every 3 months for 2 years (1 year is done). Then I have to have CT scans every 6 months for 3 years. After that CT scans annually for the rest of my life. Which I am determine to be a very long one.
- How often do you go for a check up? 3 months
- What do they do at your check up? Compare my current CT scans with the previous CT scans.
Answer:

16. How do you feel before you have to go to a check up
- Are you nervous, relaxed .....
Answer: I'm nervous. In February 2005 my CT scan showed that I had soft tissue growing where the tumor was removed. I immediately went back to my surgeon. He ordered a PET scan. They said that it is scar tissue that has formed but we will keep an eye on it.

17. What do you do to make this time as easy as possible?
- For example: You take a friend or relative with you
Answer: Turn to God. I pray for peace. I usually do not take anyone with me to the CT scans or doctor appointments. If I feel extremely nervous my Husband comes with me.

18. Do you take any precautions to prevent the recurrence from cancer?
Answer: Eating more fruits and vegetables. I take Juice Plus more vitamins.

19. Have you made significant changes to your life after you got cancer?
Answer: No

20. How 're you feeling about the disease
- are you optimistic about outcome from your cancer.
- are you more afraid that it might return
Answer: If it returns we will fight it again. You see I know that my life is in Gods hands and he will take care of me. These little bumps in the road build character. I told my Daughter before my surgery that "God did not give us things that we can not handle". That helped her through that period.

21. Status - how is your progress?
i.e.. chemo didn't work, don't want to do surgery or radiation since it is too invasive at this point.
Answer: I am fine. I am not back to who I was before the surgery and I realize that I might not get back there. But where I am at is wonderful. I enjoy my family, friends, work and life. God is good.

22. Ideas/recommendation ...
Answer: Thank you so much for this site. During the last year I have received most of my information from here. I always check for updates. To see what other people have been through. I would recommend that everyone keep coming here to see if there are any new break throughs.

23. Leave your e-mail address in case you want to get contacted from other thymoma patients. dmcfarland@micfl.com or ronald.mcfarland@verizon.net.

Sincerely,
L. Darlene McFarland