Because the majority of the appointments are all on an outpatient basis, everyone gets a card with all your information on it. This needs to be presented at every visit. As well as the card, you also need to spell your last name at every stop you make and say your date of birth. Every. Single. Time. Thank god I have a short last name!
Once I had my card, I was directed to the first stop of the morning - the MRI. I changed into my super sexy hospital gown (gag) and waited to be called. With not more than a few minutes to sit and freak out, I was called to head to the MRI room. Now I have seen someone else get an MRI - once - and I can't really remember too much about it. So this was all completely foreign to me. The lady that got me sent up was very nice,, and she did her best to put me at ease.
I was placed onto the little tiny 'table', with lovely wedges under my knees to make me comfortable. I then had covers put over me (she didn't really explain what they were for) but they basically strapped me into place so I couldn't move. I had one over my abdomen, and one over my chest. They were heavy, and I couldn't help but think it was a good thing I'm not claustraphobic! Then she put some headphones over my ears. I asked if I could pick the music? She looked rather confused and said no, they were to protect my ears because it gets a little bit noisy. Bummer.
The MRI itself was very strange. It took about half an hour to do the scanning. It was definitely very noisy, it sounded like jackhammers going off and on, and every now and then I would get a 'warm' feeling, presumably something to do with the magnets? Finally it was all over and time to head to the next scan.
Next up was the PET scan. This is basically like a CT scan but in 3D. It helps them see exactly how the tumour is positioned in comparison to all the other organs, and they use this to work out the most appropriate treatment plan. Part of getting this scan involves being injected with a radioactive sugar, and drinking a litre of contrast. Fun.
First stop was the IV chair. After yet again saying my last name and date of birth, it was time to get a needle. Oh lucky me - I get the dumb ass nurse who MISSED my vein! I have BEAUTIFUL veins!! Seriously, they're so big and bouncy, not even a blind man with tremors could miss it. But this nurse did. And for anyone who knows IV's - she missed a giant ACF with a 22G needle. Like really? Thankfully she got it her second go (hey, i know, everyone has a bad day, but OMG - I NEED these veins!) and then it was time to head to the next 'station'.
I got seated in a lovely comfy chair with my feet up and a nice warm blanket. I was told that once they inject the sugar, it needs to go to certain areas of the body - namely anything cancer looking - so I'm not allowed to move around (because that makes it go into the muscles) and to not think or stimulate my brain in any way (that causes the radioactive sugar to enter my brain and they don't want that). Thanks for telling me that - now i'll think about how i'm not allowed to think about anything! I was injected with 10ml of sugar, which was completely painless. And then I was passed a one litre container of contrast to drink over the next hour while the sugar roams around my body.
Now oral CT contrast. Wow. I never realised how much torture I have placed on my patients over the years. That stuff is just plain NASTY!! And I had to drink a litre of the bloody stuff!!! It basically tasted like nasty tap water. Which is fine if you don't care what tap water tastes like, but me? I'm a total water snob. I like my water to taste nice! So here I am, on my comfy chair, taking a sip of this contrast and gagging. Another sip, gag. Another sip, gag. I swear it was like a never ending cup - no matter how many sips I took, the level never seemed to get any lower. Finally, I managed to make my way to the bottom of it, just as the guy came back to take me to the scanner.
The scan itself was much like getting a CT scan done. Up on the tiny table again, moving in and out of the donut ring, and done. Finally it was time to get changed back into normal clothes and head back to the apartment.
Round two tomorrow - time to hear the verdict from the oncologist what I'm up for!
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