In shock

Hi Sorrell

Welcome to the Online Community and the Womb group. 

I am sorry to hear that you have had a diagnosis of a serous tumour in a polyp. This must have come as a shock after being found during a routine smear and without having any symptoms. 

I hope your CT today has gone ok and that your results come through quickly. 

For endometrial cancer a hysterectomy is the normal first line of treatment and for some people that can be all that is needed. Depending on stage and grade and the post op results, sometimes further treatment can be needed. 

I had my hysterectomy in April 2022 and it was pretty straightforward, I had little pain and recovered quickly. I stayed in hospital for 1 night. 

Feeling shocked and scared is very normal in the circumstances. There are lots of lovely ladies on here who have been where you are now and will understand how you are feeling and will want to offer you support. Do reach out to us and feel free to ask any questions. 

I will pop a link below with some information that I found helpful when I was first diagnosed. 

Womb cancer booklet | Macmillan Cancer Support

If talking things through would help at any point, then please do give the Support Line a call. The number is at the end of this and they are there from 8am-8pm everyday. 

Jane

• Thanks Jane. I'm so scared and really not coping very well. But it's early days. I just have to wait for results now. I can't think about anything else or concentrate on anything.

Its very normal to feel like this and I couldn't focus on much else when I was diagnosed. I found the waiting hard but once the doctors had the necessary info I was called in and things did move fairly quickly. From what I remember for me it was about 10 days after the CT that I saw the consultant. That was on a Friday, I had pre op on Friday pm (unexpected) and surgery was on the Monday. Tuesday I was back home. Try to keep to your normal routines and meal times etc even if you don't feel like eating/sleeping etc. I found going for short walks in the fresh air helped a lot. If you stay home and sit in the same place it is hard to avoid thinking and worrying. 

If you can't focus on tv/books or whatever you normally do- try things like online jigsaws, puzzles etc- where you are doing small things but keeping busy. Talk to people around you if you feel it helps but also know that sometimes you might want to keep things to yourself to begin with, while you process it all. For me it was a time of feeling up and down and just really going with the flow. Once the CT results come back, they would likely be discussed within a Multi disciplinary team meeting at the hospital and then they normally contact you to discuss the next stage. If at anytime you feel a bit in the dark about what is happening then contact your GP as they will be sent updates/results etc. Mine was able to intervene and contact the hospital directly for an update. The next week to 10 days will probably be waiting but then things should move forward. In the meantime, we are here.

Jane

hope you get results of ct scan and date for hysterectomy soon 

Thanks. I have an appointment on Feb 6th with Consultant. I just can't stop thinking about the future and what might happen. To be honest I'm extremely frightened.

Hi Sorrell, welcome to the group and to this emotional roller coaster ride. It’s understandable and totally normal to feel anxious - and it’s also okay. I remember feeling all this info and anxious  stuff  buzzing round my head and finding it hard to let it all settle. Were you given contact details for your CNS (Cancer Nurse Specialist) when you were diagnosed? They are there to support us usually office hours Monday-Friday and I called mine quite often when I needed someone to talk to, and they were wonderful. I also called the Macmillan helpline evenings or weekends when I needed support as they’re open 8am-8pm. 

• Hi. I was only given diagnosis on Tuesday in a phone call whilst at work. I went straight home and have been in a daze since. He did offer me contact with support - but also said i would  get a phone call to arrange scan very soon. I thought I would wait until I know a bit more. Had CT last night and have appointment in 10 days to discuss next steps.
• I am being supported by a friend but still shell shocked and not sure how to carry on with everyday life. I'm imagining all sorts and worrying about my children- grown up but youngest is only 21 and still lives with me. Maybe I should use the helpline but not sure talking will make any difference- which is funny because I'm a psychologist!
• Thanks everyone who's responded to me. It's comforting.

Hi again, I also got my news in a phone call (November 2021) and called my CNS that same day to introduce myself and touch base even before I’d had my staging MRI. I would encourage you to phone them today for emotional support as I found it really did help. I trained as a counsellor some years ago and I can relate to where you’re coming from, but if nothing else it’s a good intellectual exercise as to how much it helps to talk! I phoned my CNS whenever I needed emotional support or to chase results and on a couple of occasions to talk things through in person. I would often just phone and say I’m feeling anxious today and could they just talk to me to help things settle, then I was okay and went on with my day, You won’t know whether talking makes any difference until you try - and if it doesn’t you’re no worse off! For me it helped to have someone to talk to who wasn’t connected to me in my everyday life - meant I could separate the two and not lean on family or friends too much. 

Thanks. That's very good advice- to separate it from everyday life. I think also I just need a bit more time for it to sink in.

They say doctors make the worst patients so maybe that applies to psychologists too!

I've got my CT results tomorrow. The last 10 days have been so bad. I'm hardly eating- just pacing around. Doing the basics. I just keep imagining going in the room and hearing the worst and wondering how I'll cope. I know everyone here has been through it. It's the worst feeling I've ever had.