The C Story

I guess I will just start this and be up front about it all, because as you read on I am very honest and up front. I'm just going to give you all who are new to me the skinny on a large part of what has recently changed my life and made me appreciate life so much more.

November 4th, 2008 was the day that will forever live in infamy and I coughed up blood. Yes, you read that right blood. For the next 13 months I would under go tests, blood work, x-rays, biopsies, and 2 count them 2 wrong diagnoses(pleural of diagnosis?).
December 10th, 2009 my lung Dr put me on steroids to shrink my lymph nodes around my lungs. Within two weeks I had a lymph node the size of a golf ball on top of my left collar bone(tell-tell sign of Hodgkin's Lymphoma). I told my Dr and in March I started going off the 'roids and found the surgeon that would then change the course of my life.
May 8th, 2010 I graduated from The University of Alabama.
May 17th I went for my biopsy.
6:45pm Wednesday May 19th my Dr. called to tell me I had Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Yep the big C, 22 years old, college graduate and diagnosed with cancer.
June 2nd port was implanted.
June 4th First PET scan, echo cardiogram, lung function test and bone marrow biopsy(aka the day from Hades)
June 17th chemo started
October 5th third PET scan
October 7th start round 5, PET scan resulted in CANCER FREE!
November 18th LAST CHEMO!
December 6th PET scan showed some lymph nodes on my left side
December 9th Bronchoscopy/biopsy
December 16th Dr. appointment: biopsy was negative for HL, so with 2011 will come with more tests and possibly scans
January 6th, 2011 CT scan was not good
January 7th Bronch/biopsy-non diagnostic
February 10th VATS biopsy
February 18th Hodgkin's is back
February 22nd  meeting with the fertility specialists to rescue eggs for later
April 1st Egg Harvesting
April 4th Starting ICE Chemo
May 16th Harvested Stem Cells
July 1st Stem Cell Transplant
August 18th Started Radiation
September 12th Ended Radiation
November 9th Second VATS procedure
November 28th Hodgkin's is back again
December 6th Meeting with MD Anderson in Houston

To see a lot of my blog and story go to My Caring Bridge