Latest messages for CancerCompass discussion http://www.cancercompass.com/message-board/message/all,30510,0.htm Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT Tue, 24 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT http://backend.userland.com/rss RSS.NET: http://www.rssdotnet.com/ Your totally right.. I am clueless as to what is really going on..im pretty much leaving all my trust into my doctors hands and just nodding my head to everything she says. I had a leep done..and i had a follow up...then i had my paps within the 3 months and thats when they said the problem is back. I go in monday for a biopsy.. and when i called today to confirm it they called it a procedure which kinda threw me off.. but im actually going to print out all those questions you asked me and bring them in with me for monday. I am going to get my stuff together and educate my self more on this because i feel completly lost. but thank you so much for helping me out~ Danny, how comfortable are you with this doctor? It doesn't sound like she is taking the time to educate you, which is a requirement. You might want to get a different doctor. A caring, ethical doctor wants you to be fully educated about your condition and your options so that you can make an informed decision. Your body is too valuable to not have that kind of doctor.In the meantime, get copies of all of your lab reports for your records and look at them. They will tell you what has been happening all along. The current lab report will tell you what you have, where it's located, how extensive it is, how many cervical quadrants are involved, if it's in the endocervical canal, and if you have any glandular involvement. That will determine if you need additional surgery, and if so, which option would be the best.In addition, per regulations, your doctor was required to discuss the alternatives to LEEP before recommending it to you. There is crysurgery, laser, LEEP, and cold knife cone biopsy. If you do require additional surgery, make sure your new doctor goes over all of this with you.Right now, there is a lot you can do to boost your immune system so that it can fight off HPV. Tany01 and Chemiszt24 are two of them. If you need any links to see what women have done, I can post them.Last but not least, see if you can get the HPV DNA test by Roche, called AMPLICOR. Insurance companies don't like to pay for it, since it's new. So, your doctor may not have access to it. Or, the doctor may have it but can't offer it to you unless you know about it. Or, you may have to go to a teaching hospital to have it done. You may also find yourself paying for it if the insurance company decides to be difficult. In that case, see if you can arrange for a monthly payment-installment plan, should you decide to do this. I had the DNA test done to see which strain I had. It made all the difference in how I set up a strategy to protect my health. I certainly respect your choices in what you decide is best for you. But for me, it was worth it to know what I was addressing.I definitely hope everything turns out well for you. herenow Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT hey i went in on that monday and they actually told me that it was for this monday.. so I walked out kinda upset because it was another 2 weeks of waiting..but this monday is when i go in. I had a good thanksgiving tho i ran a 5 mile run with my father..send me your email address threw the private reply!danny AngelDanny Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Your totally right.. I am clueless as to what is really going on..im pretty much leaving all my trust into my doctors hands and just nodding my head to everything she says. I had a leep done..and i had a follow up...then i had my paps within the 3 months and thats when they said the problem is back. I go in monday for a biopsy.. and when i called today to confirm it they called it a procedure which kinda threw me off.. but im actually going to print out all those questions you asked me and bring them in with me for monday. I am going to get my stuff together and educate my self more on this because i feel completly lost. but thank you so much for helping me out~  AngelDanny Thu, 04 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Hey again, Are you still there?  Hopefully you had a good Thanksgiving.  We went from 70 degrees on the beach to 3 inches of snow when we finally made it home.  Were you able to find out anything over the past week?  I was finally able to schedule my leep for next Tuesday, but...my Dr. is on call that day so it may or may not happen.  My luck, it will probably have to be rescheduled.  I guess we'll see.  Keep me posted :)  Also, my email is --Message edited by CancerCompass staff. For personal protection, email address removed. Consider private reply. Please review CancerCompass Member Guidelines at http://www.cancercompass.com/common/guidelines.html-- Amthon07 Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT Out of curiosity, did you have a PAP smear three or four months after the LEEP? If not, you should have. In addition, have you been looking at the lab reports all along? There are a few things that could be going on. First, if this is your first PAP smear, after the LEEP, it could be that the LEEP didn't get all the dysplasia. LEEP's hot metal wire leaves burn marks on the edges of the margins that can give it a false negative.Secondly, if you didn't have clear margins or if the dysplasia was more involved, your doctor should have told you. If this is the case, get a different doctor, immediately. It is your doctor's required job to educate you.Thirdly, dysplasia has up to a 27% chance of returning, five years after surgery, with or without clean margins. I was not happy to learn that. But finding out the facts helped me seek alternative medicine as a means to boost my immune system in order to avoid more surgery.However, if you don't want another LEEP, you may qualify for something less invasive. But you need to look at the lab report and get a full description about what you have, where it's located, how extensive it is, how many cervical quadrants are involved, and if there is any glandular involvement before you agree to anything. Don't let a doctor bully you into anything through scare tactics. It is your right and your doctor's obligation to make sure you are as educated as possible so that your decision can be informed.Aside from that, knowledge is power! It will remove the mystery and get you actively involved in what is best for your health. herenow Sun, 30 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT Hey again, I've been obsessively researching this "thing" we have and did come across the cerclage for incompetent cervix.  It doesn't sound appealing but if someday down the road it would help then I suppose it's a good thing.  Anyways, I just wanted to vent some of my frustration.  I'm supposed to have my leep in December but still haven't been able to schedule an appointment due to the incompetent staff at the clinic.  So...hopefully I too will know when that next step will happen on Monday when they are supposed to call back.  And...if you are in any way able to decipher the medical jargon we're supposed to understand, check out my other post (It's the one before your's "Cone Biopsy") and see if you know what any of it means.  Keep in touch and I'll post again next Sunday :)  Have a good week! Amthon07 Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT Oh and another thing.. you can have children after the the leep.. by removing cells from your cervix only weakens it..but if there is to much removed from your cervix or you dont heal properly you could have troubles carring a baby but i just learned that there are ways you can carry as of a stich that can help your cervix be stronger to hold the baby. Your doctor will tell you after your check up after the leep how well you healed etc. well see! AngelDanny Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT Its nice to know that I have someone out there too to talk to because friends and family really cant relate.I had my leep because i had cancerous cells so the leep was to remove them but i had my pap and I guess i have more abnormal cells which are cancerous..so im not sure if im going to have another leep or what but i was pretty sure that if i was to get the leep i wouldnt have to deal with this anymore but I guess not. Ill find out monday what my next step is..at this point ive been dealing with it for 8 months now.. I try to not let it control my life or make me upset..although i do once in awhile freak out alone but ill fill you in and take care and let me know how things are going for u! Danny AngelDanny Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT I can't tell you how relieved I am to have found someone my age with similar circumstances.  It pretty much sucks that we have to go through it but now I'm not feeling so alone.  To be honest I'm really not that concerned about the leep.  It's what comes after that's really scaring me at this point.  You know....what if it's worse than they thought, do I have cancer, will I ever have children...that sort of thing.  Can I be a bit nosy and ask why you are having to have another leep?  I am leaving tonight and will be out of state and away from my computer for a week.  Keep in touch and I will return to my computer as soon as we return.  Amthon07 Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT I did the LEEP in march and it was fine.. i was also scared but honestly it wasnt that bad you cant feel a thing. I did have one in a million reactions to the needle but im weird..dont be scared im sure you will be alright.. but im trying to find out what is next after this and what i should be thinking.. we are to young for this.. all my doctors have been saying that to me all along.. ill keep you filled in.. and let me know how your leep goes! Danny AngelDanny Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT I am 24 also and are somewhat in your same situation.  I will be going for my first leep in December and am seriously freaking out.  My DH and I do not have any children and are hoping to start ttc soon after my leep.  I've read all of the horror stories about difficulty getting pregnant and it's really scary.  We're 24 right...this shouldn't be happening to us :)  But then I've also read some mind easing stories where everything turned out okay.  Let's hope we're in that group...Keep in touch and let me know how things turn out. Amthon07 Fri, 21 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT I had the leep procedure done in the end of march and I recently had an abnormal pap.Before i had this procedure I was told I could have some difficulties with having children in the future. Well I went in for a pap and she told me everything looks great and now I recieved my results back and it came back abnormal. For once in for all i thought maybe i could have children without worring..but now im going back in on monday and im 24 and i almost want to be selfish and have a child now before its to late and things just get worse. Has anyone experienced a leep and abnormal paps and have had children after?I never thought i would have to think about this at my age but not having  children in the future years and waiting for it will kill me. someone please help me with a story of their own.Danny AngelDanny Thu, 20 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT