20th January 2025, Visit to ENT consultant who told me that the results from the ultrasound were "inconclusive" but some abnormal cells were found. so after the consultant shoved his hand down my throat, to feel my tonsils, where he thought he could feel a small lump on my right tonsil, the next step would be an MRI scan.
8th Feb 2025, after having one MRI scan appointment cancelled, we get to climb into the "donut" machine for the MRI scan, again the staff were brilliant in explaining everything, all i had to do was lay very still for a while...... I found this quite hard to do, if I relaxed too much I was afraid I would fall asleep and if I concentrated too much in keeping still I found i started moving, or at least it felt that i was. But all went well and should get the results in a week or two!
The following weeks were a bit frustrating to say the least as I had appointments with the consultant to discuss the next steps made, cancelled, rearranged and postponed.
Received a letter stating that MRI was inconclusive so i was booked to have a PET scan.
18th March 2025, Time for the PET scan. No its nothing to do with if i liked cats or dogs, its similar to the MRI scan but they inject a radioactive liquid into you that helps show up any cancer cells. And no you don't glow in the dark afterwards. Again the staff treating me were wonderful, they explained everything, kept checking in on me while the "liquid was doing what it does in readiness for the scan. I was informed that while I was in the donut I would have another injection half way through the scan, I believe this was to help show up the blood vessels during the scan, but cant remember. But I do remember the nurse saying that when this injection is administered I would feel warm, have a metallic taste in my mouth and it will feel like I've wet myself ! Just to be clear, you don't actually wet yourself its just a strange feeling, so don't worry.
28th March 2025, appointment with Consultant to discuss PET scan results. This is when the year went from not so good but hoping for the best to not so good and only getting worse. Consultant confirmed it was cancer in one of the lymph nodes in my neck (hence the lump) but the PET scan didn't show the source or any other traces other than the lymph node, which in all the gloom was a very good thing ! He also arranged to have another biopsy, a deep core, to gain better samples for analysis, which was done there and then. now have to wait for the results !!
