The biopsy

I went in yesterday and met with the endocrinologist regarding the cyst on my thyroid.  This was at a Kaiser office I had never been to before.  Before I started losing weight, I'd always worry about sitting in a chair with arms for fear I wouldn't fit.  The waiting room at this location had large seats and small ones.  Since there were so many people waiting for appointments besides me, the only seats open were the smaller ones.  Gulp, here I go!  Of course, I fit perfectly fine with room to spare.  I think my head needs to catch up with reality a little bit better, seriously.

Meeting with the endocrinologist was interesting.  First, he told me that the size of my cyst was not a grapefruit but a little lemon.  That was pretty shocking.  He showed me how to feel for it in my neck.  I have to admit that I probably would have never felt it before losing some weight, which was an eye-opening experience.  He gave me three options:

1. Do nothing and come back in a year to check on the growth of the cyst.
2. Wait six months and then re-test.
3. Have a biopsy done to rule out cancer.

After having melanoma last year, which is a rather deadly form of cancer, I opted to have the biopsy done.  If I do have cancer, I don't want it growing in my body.  He did tell me that, if it is cancer, it spreads very slowly and is highly treatable with surgery.  So, I laid back while he took a machine out to tell him where he would need to stick the needle in.  He said, based on what he could see, it looks benign but only the pathology report from the biopsy will tell us for sure.  The funny part (if there is one!) is, after he was done numbing the area, he told me I couldn't swallow while he had the needle in my neck.  And I tell you what, after he said that each time, all I wanted to do was swallow!  I guess if someone tells you no, then you want to do it. 

So he went into my neck four times.  He is going to be out of town for two weeks, but I can call his office in a week and they will tell me over the phone the results.  Some good news, though, is that I got weighed in and I am officially down 103 pounds.  Hooray!  I'll post a picture under the picture section here on my blog (just look for the link at the top of the screen).  For those of you who know me on Facebook, you've already seen the picture.  The difference is pretty noticeable, though, especially if you compare it to my first picture at the body assessment.  I just am so grateful that I am on this journey and seeing tangible results.  Sometimes I feel like skipping ;-)