Tuesday, March 3, 2009

i am not a mutant. i am a big girl.

i decided to have a genetic test done to find out if my cancer may have been caused by an alteration in my genes. since i'm younger than the average ovarian cancer patient and since there have been instances of cancer in members of my extended family, i assumed that the test would reveal some sort of wackiness in my genes.

today i received the results in the mail. even though my genetic counselor had called me a couple of weeks ago to tell me, it seemed different holding the piece of paper in my own hands. the result? "no mutation detected". that's exactly what the paper says. i was really surprised. i fully expected that darn cancer to be hereditary, but it turns out, i'm simply part of a very elite club. the odds are against a 42 year old without any genetic predisposition to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer, but look who beat those odds. so no mutation. i guess for me, the outcome is a moot point since i've already had the cancer, but the real winner in this scenario is my sister, and her two kids.

as a side note, i was on my feet today for three and half hours, a personal best lately. i went for a walk and did a few unnecessary errands just to get some fresh air and build my stamina. sheesh. i started out okay, but by the end, even old men shuffling along with canes were passing me by. that's alright. two nights ago, i took myself off the pain medication which is the longest i've gone without pharmaceutical assistance in the last four weeks, and today was the first day i put my socks on all by myself. i mean, since the surgery. i'm a big girl now.


8 comments:

nat said...

Hi

I stumbled across your blog while searching Ovarian cancer. My genetic tests (brca1 and 2) just came back as no mutation as well. I was also confused!!

They told me that, just because I'm negative, doesn't mean my sister will be - which confused me even more... So what was the point of me having the test? Ugh. I'm talking about it more with my doctor tomorrow.

Take care!

Kia Taylor said...

Hi! I also stumbled upon your blog!(Hi Nat!). I will be scheduling my genetic testing within the next few weeks, as I have cystic breast ad was diagnosed with OVCA at the age of 33.

Wishing you all the best!

Kia

sandra said...

hi nat,
i'd be very curious to hear what your doctor says about the possibility of your sister getting a positive test result when yours was negative.
i hope you're doing well. thanks for visiting my blog!
s.

sandra said...

hello kia,

i just checked out your blog. you're doing a great job! i wish the very best of health for both you and your father.
take care and thanks for reading.
s.

test said...

hi! what a lot of stumbling going on here girls! :o) Hi Nat & Kia! We certainly get around heheh

Sandra - so happy if my blog helped you even a little bit. You should look for the three of us on facebook - we all chatter away on there and we have an OC group going as well.

So great that you are cancer free! yippee! And don't worry about all those old chaps passing you - you'll be zooming past them again soon enough...
x

Unknown said...

Hey big girl! Did your body give you one of those lovely little side aches when it decided you'd walked enough? That drove me crazy for quite a while. I'm glad you're not a mutant, or mutated, or whatever! Some of us are just lucky that way! Take care and keep your socks up! xoxoxoxoxox

Anonymous said...

YAY!! But how will I explain to Max that his Nina is not a Forty-Something Mutant Ninja Turtle after all???

Anonymous said...

curlywithglasses.blogspot.com; You saved my day again.