PET Scan questions and rants long post Sorry!!

I've heard today I'm booked in at Gartnavel for my PET Scan on Tuesday then back again on wed to meet the Oncologist at the Beatson.  I've arranged for sitters for the girls as apparently I will be radioactive for 8 hours after ☹

I'm terrified it's spread at my meeting last week the nurse specialist said there was a lymph node they weren't sure about, I've been told it's slightly touching my bladder which would explain the constant dampness!!

Bad language alert .............

The guy I work for (not the main boss he's really nice) is an absolute gossiping wee .... I held off from telling him because I knew he would spread the word.  Stupidly when I got my diagnosis I allowed them to tell him on the proviso he didn't shout it from the rooftops.

I arrive at work on Monday and he starts telling me about people he knows at court who have had similar but worse cases to me and they're all back at work  f#xk sake I don't even know what im facing till after my scan but no he's transformed from lawyer to Dr! 

Trying to focus in myself and my hubby and kids but he's giving me the absolute rage I'm working tomorrow and can' even look at him. 

I told the 52 year old woman I jobs share with last week and her response was - well don't think I'm shaving my hair off in support I wouldn't the jabba the hut look and then sent me a gif of a woman crying shaving her hair off and suggested an office shaveathon!! wtaf  I'm sorry for the rant but someone please tell me I'm not being daft x 

Mandy-

I can COMPLETELY relate to your story.  I told my boss at work, and she was very discreet and professional.  She told me she was obligated to tell her boss, and he was a total professional too.  It was all kept so quiet and professional, that when my boss asked if she could tell another coworker that she and I work closely with, I said "sure".  Well...that coworker blabbed to everyone.  Soon, I was getting cards from people I barely knew at work!  What really hurt was that the blabbermouth coworker never even sent me a note or acknowledged my illness.  He simply just spread the word around the office!

What really hurts are some of the comments from people.  Many people are ill-informed about cc, and think it is a disease that only prostitutes and promiscuous women get.  And really, can you blame them?!  Read the freakin' risk factors for cc.  One states you are more at risk to get cc if you had sex at an early age, or you have had numerous partners.  NOT TRUE!  I told my doctor that those risk factors should be changed.  The risk factors for contracting HPV that leads to cc are the exact SAME as the risk factors for getting pregnant.  It only takes having sex with someone ONE time!  My doctor agreed with me.  

In fact, I am so defensive when I have to tell someone I have cc, I always add "I had none of the risk factors", b/c I immediately think they think I'm promiscous.  Once, when I told someone that, he replied "Oh, that's a shame you didn't get to have fun when you contracted it."  My sister overheard this person, and she almost punched the guy, lol!

I am so angry about the list of risk factors for cc--they need to be rewritten.  I had sex with ONE person, never smoked, am a vegetarian, and a regular exerciser.  I didn't have sex until I was 29!!  I was raised Catholic, and took sex seriously.  

The only advice I can give you is to laugh at the ignorance of people.  Some people will say something really rude or uniformed.  But many, many people have said things that made me feel good about myself, or even optimistic.  I think your boss was trying to be helpful by telling you about people who had cc and recovered.  Try to remember that before you get angry.  Most people mean well, and if you are like me, you're probably more mad at the fact that you have cc than at what the people say to you about it.

You have bigger fish to fry now.  You have to stay positive in order to fight this.  By positive, I don't mean you have to walk around with a smile on your face or be jolly at the office.  But you have to worry about YOU and ONLY YOU right now.  You are going to have to follow a lot of instructions for your treatment.  You need a clear mind to do that.  Stay strong, and try to forget the background noise.  In the long run, it means nothing.

Sending you good vibes and prayers for strength<3

Hi Mandy

as dog lover has said, many people are ill informed and so judgmental. Ignore them, just concentrate on yourself. This is the time that you need every ounce of positive mental energy you can muster up, and you can do it. i got through my treatment with the laughter and positivity from my husband and close friends. My best friend came to every Chemo day with me and I am sure they wanted to throw us out at one point. I took a really bad reaction to the Chemo one time and was head to toe in a brilliant rash, so my friend cheered me up by calling me Pongo the rest of the day. You definitely need humour through this.

I made the choice to tell my boss and supervisors from diagnosis and they never breathed a word. The same with three close friends and my sisters. All was well until one day sitting waiting for radiotherapy, I get a message telling me that someone came into my work and told the girl on the till that I had cancer and was in a bad way!  Turns out my sister had told a friend in confidence, yeah right. It went around like Chinese whispers with arms and legs on it. After shouting at my sister, I went into work and got everyone together and told them all exactly what was going on, and they could clearly see I was not in a bad way haha. My point being, until people know the facts from your mouth, they should keep theirs closed. sometimes people try to make us feel better but actually end up frying the brain even more.

Remember after your pet scan, drink plenty of water to flush the stuff out. I forgot and had the squirts something awful that night. 

Keep us updated, and good luck from a fellow Scottish lass x