Is it cancer?

For the past few months, I've had this nagging abdominal just under my last rib on the right hand side of my body. At one of my follow up appointments with my oncologist, I mentioned it as a concern. He had me lie on my back on the exam table, and proceeded to poke and prod in the above mentioned area, and all down my right leg. Eventually, he didn't feel as though it was chemo related, and brushed it off. Since then, I've tried to ignore the pain, and go about my days. The pain has still persisted, and I finally decided to make an appointment with my primary care physician (PCP) to get her thoughts on the matter. That was two weeks ago. I've cancelled and scheduled the appointment multiple times, either making excuses or because something else has come up.

Since diagnosis, I've been on an online forum through breastcancer.org, and have made some amazing friends and supporters on that site through the March chemo group. I had mentioned this nagging pain to them, and yesterday, one of the ladies asked me if I'd found out what was wrong yet. It was then that I realized that I needed to put my big girl pants on (or, sweatpants rather, since none of my jeans currently fit) and make the appointment, if anything, for peace of mind. This morning, I looked online for an appointment, and scheduled one for this afternoon.

It really wasn't until I was sitting in the room waiting for my doctor, that I realized why I was hesitant to follow through the appointment. I'm cared that it might be some other type of cancer. From now on, any new pain, bump, or lump I feel, that's going to be the first thought I have. I hope that over time, that fear will subside, but one thing that my cancer has taught me, and has hopefully taught anyone reading this or following my story, is that I should be advocating for my own health care. If I feel like something is wrong, I should get it looked at rather than waiting. Being that persistent is what helped me find out about my cancer so much sooner, rather than waiting like the advice nurse suggested.

So, after talking with my PCP, and her overviewing my chart from the last few months, she decided to do more blood work to see if my elevated liver enzymes have gone back to normal, and also ordered a urine test and an ultrasound. She thinks there's a possibility that it might be a gall stone, and that is pushing on my liver, causing it to be inflamed. There's also a possibility that I'm just having heartburn and indigestion. I won't know for sure until all the tests are back. What I do know for sure is that I should listen to my body, and I shouldn't have to suffer in silence.

Now all I can do is wait..