Yesterday was my birthday, although we celebrated the night before. Plus, I am drowning in medical test results.
I should start with my thyroid biopsy results.
ℹ️ previously discussed here.
My results are complicated and, well, quite annoying! I used quotations in the title for the word because my results were left undetermined.
Essentially, they determined that the cells don’t appear benign. However, they do not feel confident that it is cancerous, either. The chance of it being cancer is about 22% at this point.
There are a few routes I can take from here. My doctor wanted to take the wait-and-see approach. I asked about a second fine needle aspiration to biopsy more tissue for a better determination, or to forward the tissue for molecular testing.
That was on Friday. I waited all weekend to find out this morning that she is gone until next week. I’ll see her next week, on Tuesday.
It sounds to me that I will be having this conversation in person instead.
I am a little frustrated, which is not my doctor’s fault. I am just frustrated because I don’t want to sit and wait to see if it becomes a problem. My thyroid causes me issues with breathing.
At least I think it is the thyroid. As you see, my doctor is less confident about that. She says it isn’t swollen enough, and the nodule is still too small to press on my windpipe. The mechanical struggle that is positional, though, gives me the impression that it isn’t the case.
I am seeing an Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) doctor in July. I guess I will know soon enough. As for my cruddy (lack of) results, my doctor asked if I have seen an endocrinologist yet.
I suspect that will be what happens next.
TL;DR
My nodule doesn’t look cancerous, but it has abnormal cell structures, too. My results remain undetermined without further evaluation. There is a 22% chance it is cancerous without further diagnostics.
My Latest MRI Results For My Lumbar Has Come Back
I had to get a new MRI of my lumbar because I have had increasing pain.
- My right leg gradually loses sensation and will buckle.
- Sometimes I get mild left leg sciatica.
- I have full sciatica on my right.
- I also now have occasional electric shock-like nerve issues. It shoots down my leg like a lightning bolt!
- Of course, I live with stiffness and back pain in general.
I wrote out a summary of those (quite detailed!) results for Threads. I feel like they would best explain them here, too.
MRI Results Summary
Each section of my spine has an issue. There is no way I could fit the whole explanation in a thread, so I am going to break it down here.
This is why “just go for a walk” isn’t exactly the best option. I walk as much as my body will allow, but I am not getting far on foot.
This is why:
L1-L2: Mild to Moderate facet anthropathy (degenerative arthritis in plain speak).
L2-L3: Moderate degenerative disc disease. Mild lipomatosis (likely from past epidural injections for pain). A lateral disc protrusion, likely touching the far lateral nerve root (pushing out the far right edge of the spine, likely brushing against the nerve root in this area).
L3-L4: Moderate facet anthropathy and hypertrophy, with a posterior osteophytic ridge and disc bulge (The joints are full of arthritis and have grown thicker, likely compensating for the stress on my lower back. Disc bulge is self-explanatory, I assume). This results in moderate spinal stenosis and moderate foraminal narrowing, worst on the left side (The central nerve path is tightly squeezed, and the nerve exits are very crowded, with the worst on the left). Degenerative marrow edema is also noted (an accumulation of fluid in the bone marrow).
L4-L5: Moderate facet anthropathy and hypertrophy, and mild posterior stephytic ridge lateralizing to the right. Moderate to severe right and mild left foraminal stenosis. (Explained more clearly above at the previous levels.)
L5-S1: Moderate to severe facet arthropathy and hypertrophy, and a minimal posterior (back) osteophytic ridge. Mild right foraminal stenosis (nerve path crowding).
My lumbar also appears to have a slight bit of scoliosis in the shape of an S. Not bad, but present.
TL;DR
I have multi-level degenerative disc disease, multi-level degenerative arthritis, bulging discs, edema in the bone marrow at one level, multi-level mild to moderate bone ridges/spur growth, and multi-level narrowing and crowding where the nerves in my back live.
Things are not good, and it paints a detailed picture of my lived experience. It is very validating in that respect!
Now, Let’s Talk About My Awesome 41st Birthday Celebrations!
My daughter and her lovely boyfriend came down on Sunday, the day before my birthday, to celebrate. It is always lovely to see them!
The feature image for this post is a full photo of what I received from them for my birthday. Above is a collection of photos for my birthday card.
I kind of want to frame the card open and hang it on my wall. It darn near made me cry. It is very kind and sweet of them. I love my daughter to the moon and beyond. It warmed my heart a ton.
Sunday night, we had a family dinner with my daughter, her boyfriend, my boyfriend, his son, his granddaughter, and his son’s girlfriend. I absolutely had a blast!
I chose to go up to Battle Creek and dine at Texas Roadhouse. They failed to tell us when our table was ready, claiming “we missed it.” No, not really. They missed it by not telling us.
All the same, after waiting around 40 minutes, we were seated.
I have a photo of us together at the table. I’m not sharing it because it isn’t my place to share faces online that likely don’t wish to be there.
I had a wonderful time at dinner with everyone. It absolutely made my night. I hugged my daughter and her boyfriend, just grateful they came down to see me!
Yesterday was the day of, and I did absolutely nothing all day. I binge-watched a TV show I am obsessed with right now. I crocheted. I call that a good time.
TL;DR
I had a big birthday dinner with family the night before. My daughter and her boyfriend came down to visit and joined us for dinner. I spent my birthday watching a TV show I love and crocheting.
At The End Of It All…
My medical things are exhausting. Absolutely exhausting! I am tired of being in constant diagnostic hell. The saving grace of it all was my time with family.
I will say that the MRI validating my reality did feel good, though. I needed that. I see my pain management doctor on Thursday, and this should open some major doors to pain management care.
Have a beautiful day, my friends. I wish all of you well and a beautiful Tuesday.
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