I’m a 21F year old university student entering my third year. Yesterday I was told there is an 80% chance that the 3.1cm mass in my kidney is a malignant tumour.
In January, I had a cholesystectomy to remove my gallbladder due to gallstones. I was hopeful that my life would be normal and pain free again. Then, a few weeks post-op, I began experiencing stomach pain, fatigue and muscle aches. I went to the GP thinking I had PCS (post-cholecystectomy syndrome). They ordered a liver test, where my blood results came back high. I was then sent to have an ultrasound.
During the ultrasound, the nurse looked at my left kidney and said “I don’t like the look of this kidney”. Not something anyone wants to hear. The next day I got a phone call from the GP fast tracking me to urology to see a consultant. He pointed to my MRI from January; they had missed the mass. They had been focused on my gallbladder, so much so that they missed the beginning of it. A CT scan was ordered. I was assured I was young. Kidney cancer at my age is incredibly rare. It’s probably a cyst due to the number of UTIs I’ve had this past year.
Yesterday, me, my family and my partner were told that the urologists had sat down and discussed my results. They concluded they weren’t 100% sure, but most agreed that it is most likely cancer. No one prepares you for that. For the past 3 weeks since my CT, everyone told me that “it will be nothing”, “you’ll be okay”, just for it to be something, and not be okay.
They’re going to try and partially remove my kidney, but because the tumour is so close to blood vessels, they don’t think it would be possible. They might have to remove my whole kidney. I’m also having a chest CT next week to see if it has spread to my lungs. If it has, I will start immunotherapy.
I feel numb. I spent the waiting period worrying, and now I’m in a state of acceptance. I’ve always been told i’m resilient, so if the universe throws cancer at me, so be it!
