Diagnosis, Part 2

Hello again :)
So, getting everyone up to date on the processes and procedures I have gone through in the past 6 months. In December I went to my PCP, Dr. Kross, after a cough was still going strong after 3 weeks. He ordered chest x-rays and when those came back looking a bit cloudy he put me on a run of antibiotics which still did not resolve cough. He referred me on to a pulmonologist and a CT scan showed inflammation of the lymph nodes and masses in the left lung and a small mass in the right. He conducted a broncoscopy, which is where you are knocked out and they send a little tool down your throat that has a camera and allows them to do a biopsy of the lung tissue. Usually an outpatient procedure, I ended up spending a few days at Sewickley Hospital. I think they wanted to wait for the lab results, which came back as non malignant and showed some non caseating granulomas, which are indicative of sarcoidosis, which is an autoimmune inflammatory disorder. That was at the end of January and I proceeded under the care of a doctor with this diagnosis and no further testing.
So from February on, I had a constant cough and wasn't sleeping well. I ended up seeking a second opinion at the end of May when my breathing became so bad I was out of breath going up a flight of stairs, or walking from my car to the office. What scared me good was while on vacation in North Carolina, Brandon and I were taking a walk around the resort's property...all flat mind you...and I had to sto to catch my breath. Whoa. This coming from someone who had completed the grueling p90x back on December. So, appointment made with the great Dr. Hazel Bigdeli and immediately upon seeing my CT slides from January she ordered a follow up CT scan. Those scans showed that upper left lobe mass had increased from about a 5.7 x 6.7 cm to 9.5 x 8.4 cm. The left lower mass was originally 4.5 x 5.5 and had increased to 7.3 x 7.4 cm. There were 3 other smaller nodules in the left lung and 2 in the right lung, all increased in size. She ordered a CT guided chest biopsy, which was performed at Allegheny General Hospital (AGH) on June 1, 2011. This was an interesting procedure. I was awake but they give you some happy juice to chill out. Fentanyl, I think. So, they insert a needle into the lung through the chest wall and slide you in and out of the CT machine so the Doc makes sure the needle is in the right place. Then I had to hold my breath as they do each biopsy, which sucks out a litle bit of tissue from the site each time. Piece of cake.
So the biopsy results came in 2 days later with the diagnosis of classical Hodgkin's Lymphoma.
So, with that, I went to go meet my new doctor, oncologist Moses Raj. Very personable for a doctor. He and his staff at the cancer center are great. They got me moving on the fast track so I could begin treatment ASAP. I had a power port put in my upper right chest, sub dermal. This connects a pretty little purple plastic button with a tube that taps into my jugular vein. I will receive my Chemo through here and they can draw blood from here and I can get IV contrasts, meds, whatever pumped in there while giving my poor arm veins a break from all the poking and prodding. That procedure again, no biggie. Just 2 little scars. Love the radiology staff at AGH. Also had a bone marrow biopsy conducted at UPMC. This was my least favorite procedure of all. First they numb the skin on the upper iliac crest which stings a bit, but then have to numb the bone, which seems to be some sort of hydraulic needle that goes like a woodpecker at the bone. First time definitely hurts, but the next two rounds aren't as bad, but the whole leg vibrates. Just kind of a yucky sensation.
So that is a wrap on the preliminary stuff. Next up I will fill ya in on the chemo and side effects of the first treatment, which I know I would have like to have a better heads up on beforehand, but everyone reacts differently, but it might give someone an idea on what to expect if they face going through the treatment. I will start posting in real time soon, I promise :)
'night all!