Just been diagnosed

Firstly I am sending u a big hug. To be diagnosed with the big  'C' is truly terrifying. my primary was in my kidney and lymph. They were removed. Now discovered in my lungs. My brother died of lung cancer and my mental state went into free fall. But his was lung cancer, mine is not it is kidney cancer in my lungs. My first advice is don't surf the world wide web. Only get ur information from British sites of reputable status. I ended up scaring myself with misinformation. The worst is the point u are at now.  The waiting....once all the information is gathered and u have a way forward u will feel more in control. I have stage 4 now, not curable but very treatable, my oncologist made me aware of many amazing treatments available and you only have to look at people on this forum to see that many have had this cancer fir many years and live good lives. U are not alone. This forum is wonderful with its kindness and support. I hope this gives u a little comfort..hugest hugs

I think this is a perfectly normal reaction. It is terrifying to be told you have cancer and your mind goes into overdrive. The reassuring news is that you have had scans and will have scans from now on to make sure they know what is happening in your body. Best wishes for your op. 

It is always a big shock. So hard to process.  We all totally understand!  I hope you get your other scan results fast and then a plan for treatment is made. It is always better when we know exactly what we are dealing with and what the plan is. In my case they say no further treatment needed as the kidney came out whole with the tumour inside and clear margins.. so no sign of spread. Just regular checkups 6 monthly. When your op is due do ask questions on here because there are so many useful tips and ideas from others who have already had it. Re hospital stays and useful things to have with you, pain management, coping mechanisms etc. You will get through and out the other side.. it isn't huge fun but it is amazing how clever they are these days at sorting it. I hope you have some friends/family support. Always ask for help.. most people really do like to help! Xx

Thank you so much for your reply. I'm sorry about your diagnosis although you've made it sound so positive. That helps me so much. Having it in my lungs is my biggest fear. Hopefully its all good and I can live too for a few more years with my children. It's such a hard thing to comprehend. As soon as someone says Cancer you automatically class it as a death warrant. So frightening.

Thank you. 

Thank you so much that's very reassuring. I think the scariest part for me at this moment is the waiting and the unknown. I have my last MRI on Sunday. I'm not due ky phone call frok the consultant until mid March but I'm hoping he calls me earlier with good news and this worry can at least ease a wee bit. 

Thank you. ️

Hi Niks, being frightened is perfectly normal.  I was diagnosed last October at 48 too but mine was after an episode of hematuria.  I was told I had a 5 cm enhancing renal mass likely to be RCC and would need a radical nephrectomy. They also referred me for the obligatory lung CT scan.  On 27 Nov I underwent my laparoscopic robotic radical nephrectomy.  On 31 Dec I saw the consultant surgeon who thankfully told me the tumour was contained in my right kidney and it had been removed with clear margins. The surgeon also removed some lymph nodes. The histology found it was a high grade T1B N0 M0 tumour and I am in the intermediate risk group with a 1 in 5 chance of recurrence (which I look at as 4 in 5 chance of no recurrence). I don’t need immunotherapy and will have CT scans for the next 10 years. In the words of the surgeon he gave me “the best shot”.

I think the best advice is to take things step by step.  Focus on the operation and then your recovery.  They can do amazing things these days and kidney cancer research is constantly progressing.  Oh and don't spend time looking at "Dr Google" like I did at the beginning - it is very out of date and inaccurate.  

Did they give u an idea of when ur results would be. U can always ring the consultants secretary or the nurse who's name and number u should have been given. Hugs sweetling