Day 1 of Scan

This morning, after sending off the older two to school and making sure Ben knew what he was supposed to do at home, I drove down to the hospital for the first part of my scan, checked in, flipped through a magazine, and followed the technician through the double doors. The last time I was here, for my MRI, I turned right and walked a long hallway. Today we made a left and immediately I recognized the nuclear medicine room from when I had my lumpectomy surgery. The tech read my chart and saw I had lymph nodes removed in 2012. I mentioned that I had breast cancer, and she sympathized with my now thyroid problem. I appreciated her kindness, but I didn't want to go there. If I let myself, I could easily slip into a puddle of "poor-me's" and "life's unfairs." It's better if I stick to the moment, to lean into God's grace, and trust in His goodness. As I was mentioning this test to people, I was unsure what results I am hoping for. Do I want it to be "hot" and have to figure out how to treat hyperthyroidism? Do I want it to be normal or "cold" and then it'll need to be biopsied? If the pathology report doesn't indicate cancer, will we know for sure we were able to access enough cells to tell? Would it be safer/wiser to have the nodule and that part of my thyroid removed? Would I then have to be on thyroid medication? Is there a chance it can just be "normal," even though the nodules are growing? So many questions, no clear cut answer. All I can do is pray for God's best plan through this.

In my morning trip, all I needed to do is swallow a pill with the iodine. Then I went home to return for a 4 pm scan. At 4:30 they finally called me back. (Typical late-in-the-day appointment.) For the uptake portion of this procedure, all I had to do is rest my thigh against a machine called a probe, which gave a reading of the iodine level. Then I pressed my neck against it, so it could read what my thyroid was doing. After that, I sat in a chair, and waited. Waited. Waited. Then the technician came back and said the scanning machine was stuck and they were hoping to be able to fix it. Would I like to get a coffee or snack while they work on it? I took the coupon they gave me and headed to the coffee shop down the hall and got a chai tea latte. Finally, one of the techs led me back, and I lay on a table, with a round scanning machine encircling my head. The faceplate was lowered inches from my face, as I extended my neck. It wasn't too uncomfortable (much easier than a MRI), but someone who was claustrophobic would have a hard time with it. It took about 30 minutes to take the pictures, and I spent the time praying and thinking on scripture. Finally it was over, and I was released into the rainy rush-hour commute, a few hours later than expected.

Tomorrow, I get to go back at 10 a.m., but just for the uptake portion of the procedure. Once I am called back, it will only take about 5 minutes. Then I make the long trip back home and pray for good news. On top of this thyroid stuff, next Monday I have my fasting blood test, bone scan and mammogram. The following Monday I have my 4-month followup with my oncologist. Not sure how I'm going to manage more appointments, but I'll focus on one day at a time.