Living with lung cancer - Introduce yourself & come say hi

Hello, my name is Sheri Helseth from Fresno. Just got told after biopsy I have lung cancer and am having an MRI on Friday and next week Pet scan, then Oct 10 the results

@merpreb Hi Merry. I suppose I was shocked too. I had a persistent cough for months but assumed that was allergies. I do have a lot of peace, but I'm dealing with some pain issues and that's not fun. I did have a PET scan which showed the large lung mass and other areas of interest 🙂 I'll have a biopsy of my lung 9/28. Six lung cancers? You've earned your place as a mentor! I appreciate you checking in and establishing a dialogue. Thanks, Kathy

@colleenyoung Hi Colleen, thanks for checking in. I did have my PET scan and my biopsy is scheduled 9/28. The PET clearly showed the large lung mass and other places lit up as well. I hope to know more the week following my biopsy. Emotionally, I'm doing well. My faith provides a lot of peace. I am dealing with undiagnosed pain around my mid-section that interferes with sleep. Annoying but I guess it goes with the territory. I'll keep in touch. Kathy

Good morning Kathy and welcome to the Lung Cancer group. With PMR you certainly don't need one more thing, do you? I was a heavy smoker and was not surprised at the news. However, no matter if you have suspicions or not I was definitely shocked at hearing those words. How are you dealing with this?

You do have a head start in being familiar with medical care and illness. This will help you with your journey. Two possible next steps will be a PET scan and a biopsy. Biopsies aren't always needed nor advised in some cases and there are varied reasons for this. In the 6 lung cancers that I have had, I've only had 1 biopsy as a tool for diagnosis. And I am very thankful for the caution taken with this.

But PET scans are a wonderful tool for confirming cancer suspicion. Be prepared to spend some time at the hospital when you have a PET. There is a lot of protocol surrounding the injection and wait time (usually an hour or so) paperwork, etc. You might have already had one for other reasons so this might be a moot point.

Do you have dates set for the PET scan as yet?

Oh gosh, @kmeikle1, I'm just catching up with this post. I'm sorry to hear that you have lung cancer to add to your polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR).

Kathy, have you had the PET scan and biospy in the meantime? How are you doing?

Hi there. I know of Mayo Clinic Connect because I'm on the PMR group. Diagnosed with lung cancer after a CT scan with contrast a week ago so I'm early on. PET scan and biopsy to follow, but that all takes time. Thought I'd get started here. I'll be reading, and I'm sure I'll have more to add in the future. Thanks for all that you do. Kathy

This is a perfect start. So, if I understand correctly you are currently undergoing investigations of a new spot on your lung? I can understand your being on overload right now. Sending encouragement and strength as you await results.

Not sure what you'd like to know. What is typical? I'm a bit on overload right now and am having a bronchoscopy procedure tomorrow with looking at a spot on my right lung (small cell tumor is in the left lung). Let me know what kind of info you'd like and I will fill you in later. Thanks so much. VLPR

Welcome @vlpr. I see you have slipped easily into a few discussions and been helpful to others. Glad to have you in the group. Pull up a virtual chair. I'd like to learn more about you. Would you like to introduce yourself?

aswan, I know sometimes it is difficult for some people to talk about this but the more detail you provide, the more others on here can help.

You mentioned severe cough. For some reason, that is somewhat common when you have chemo but in my case, I have something called pulmonary fibrosis that is the continued source of my cough. This might not apply to you but something to consider when you meet with your doctor.