Today I had my first post pg annual exam. I was due in Feb., 12 mos. after my six wk. post partum, or so my office thought per their many reminder letters. But when I went in then, the NP informed me that they only do Paps every two yrs. now, so she sent me on my way and told me to come back. These are not typically a big deal for me, so I was not expecting today to be any different. They are converting to e-records, so the first 20 mins. was going through everything they had entered into the system with a nurse to make sure it was correct. We talked through my lengthy history, reviewed my family history (which they had up to date), and then I waited to see Dr. Levin, who saw me through the pg w/the twins.
We talked for awhile and she was concerned that my sister had cancer so young (40). Fallopian tube cancer is a rarer, but close relative of ovarian, so she suggested I look into BRCA testing, if my sister hadn't been tested. But regardless of the outcome, with my risk she doesn't want me ovulating, so she put me back on BCP (low dose). She said it might be a good idea to just have my tubes removed, which is a relatively minor lap procedure. She also noted after the exam that my cervix is wide open, which she couldn't explain but it is not the way it is supposed to be, so even though she loves to talk about "if (we) have another", if I needed confirmation that my body is in no state to ever due such a thing, "there's your sign".
I couldn't remember if my sister had done any genetic testing after her diagnosis/treatment, so I gave my mom a call. In my defense, my mother kept a lot of what went on (including initially even her diagnosis in early 9/10) because we were simultaneously dealing with our planned first IVF cycle and then the sudden death of my FIL in India. She said the testing had been raised at the time, but that since my sister's insurance didn't cover it (she is disabled and receives SSI) and since the next recommendation if she tested positive would be a complete double mastectomy, which my mother had decided she would not put her through, she opted not to have it done at all. Well, that was her decision to make for her, but that doesn't really help my sisters and me, so I have a referral to the ovarian center to see what they say about next steps.
I have no idea if they will recommend the testing based on my profile, or if they do if it will be covered by our private insurance. Based on what we find, we'll decide if we want to do it OOP if that is our only option. I didn't know until speaking w/my mom today that I had great aunts on each side who had either ovarian or another "undetermined" reproductive cancer. Why on earth had this never come up? Thankfully, there is no history of any breast cancer in my family. My mother is a (now retired) RN and mother of four daughters for crying out loud. The common link between all three (my sister and great aunts) is that they didn't have any children (two were disabled, the other was a nun), which raises your risk (pg and BFing, like BCP, gives the ovaries a preventative rest).
So it's a lot to digest, but it seems we may be at just the beginning a new venture into the medical abyss. As much as I abhor and avoid drama, life is certainly never boring over here. I guess the good news is I have a clear baseline mammogram/b ultrasound from 2010 and my lap that year didn't turn up anything out of turn (not that they were looking necessarily) and my exam today was otherwise fine. I guess I can also look forward to trading up in the boobie dept. if all goes south. I'll be sure to post what I find out. Any experience you may have is welcome.
We talked for awhile and she was concerned that my sister had cancer so young (40). Fallopian tube cancer is a rarer, but close relative of ovarian, so she suggested I look into BRCA testing, if my sister hadn't been tested. But regardless of the outcome, with my risk she doesn't want me ovulating, so she put me back on BCP (low dose). She said it might be a good idea to just have my tubes removed, which is a relatively minor lap procedure. She also noted after the exam that my cervix is wide open, which she couldn't explain but it is not the way it is supposed to be, so even though she loves to talk about "if (we) have another", if I needed confirmation that my body is in no state to ever due such a thing, "there's your sign".
I couldn't remember if my sister had done any genetic testing after her diagnosis/treatment, so I gave my mom a call. In my defense, my mother kept a lot of what went on (including initially even her diagnosis in early 9/10) because we were simultaneously dealing with our planned first IVF cycle and then the sudden death of my FIL in India. She said the testing had been raised at the time, but that since my sister's insurance didn't cover it (she is disabled and receives SSI) and since the next recommendation if she tested positive would be a complete double mastectomy, which my mother had decided she would not put her through, she opted not to have it done at all. Well, that was her decision to make for her, but that doesn't really help my sisters and me, so I have a referral to the ovarian center to see what they say about next steps.
I have no idea if they will recommend the testing based on my profile, or if they do if it will be covered by our private insurance. Based on what we find, we'll decide if we want to do it OOP if that is our only option. I didn't know until speaking w/my mom today that I had great aunts on each side who had either ovarian or another "undetermined" reproductive cancer. Why on earth had this never come up? Thankfully, there is no history of any breast cancer in my family. My mother is a (now retired) RN and mother of four daughters for crying out loud. The common link between all three (my sister and great aunts) is that they didn't have any children (two were disabled, the other was a nun), which raises your risk (pg and BFing, like BCP, gives the ovaries a preventative rest).
So it's a lot to digest, but it seems we may be at just the beginning a new venture into the medical abyss. As much as I abhor and avoid drama, life is certainly never boring over here. I guess the good news is I have a clear baseline mammogram/b ultrasound from 2010 and my lap that year didn't turn up anything out of turn (not that they were looking necessarily) and my exam today was otherwise fine. I guess I can also look forward to trading up in the boobie dept. if all goes south. I'll be sure to post what I find out. Any experience you may have is welcome.
My little loves
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