No warning signs
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
By: Patricia Fawcett-Shaw

Check up showed spot on left lung, many tests followed, surgery removed left lung & the rest is history.

I went for a follow up physical examination on October 14, 2004. The doctor said come back in a few weeks and we will go over the results. As it turned out, the doctor said come back next week as he had seen the x-ray. I saw the technician and I saw the look on her face when she put the x-ray up to the light. I asked her about it, but was assured as she said "she could not read the x-ray the doctor had to do that". Well I went back the following week, and many, many tests followed including blood work, CT scan, more x-rays and many visits to the doctor. Then a breathing specialist came into the picture. I had to do breathing tests to see if I was okay to breath with limited lung capacity. This breathing person, as I cannot call him a specialist, advised me across the desk - "You have inoperable lung cancer". This was not the surgeon who was to eventually do the surgery, this was a person who was to tell me only that, yes, I did have lung cancer. The next week, after going through severe trauma, I saw my wonderful surgeon. He did a bronchoscope which indicated that surgery was definitely in order. I told him what happened and he said the only thing I was to be told was, yes, you have lung cancer. Well January 25th, 2005 the surgeon operated and removed my left lung. I have been a survivor since then. In 2010, I will celebrate 5 years as a lung cancer survivor!