Cancer is such fun.

So the imaging department called to schedule the PET scan.     “Alright, now remember you can’t eat anything for this, you can have black coffee or water only.  Our next appointment is Tuesday at 1 pm.”

Me: “1 pm? I need to be NPO until 1pm?”

Imaging:  “Oh is that a problem?  Are you diabetic?”

Me: “No, I’m just human,  What do we have in the morning?”

Imaging: “Well we have one next week at 8 am”

Me:  “That’s mine, sign me up, see you then, have a nice day!”

Okay now I can be a tough one with anyone else.  If I need to have surgery and the only time we can do it is in the afternoon fine.  But if I need to have a test, that has more than one time to schedule it, I think morning would be best for everyone involved.

For those of you who have not had a PET scan before here’s how it works.  You check in and wait for a little while.  Then they take you back and check you blood sugar.  As long as that is okay they set up your IV and then bring in the lead box.  That’s right lead box. Nothing quite as intimidating as watching them take a little vial that they’re going to inject into you out of a BIG LEAD BOX. I’m used to it now but the first time was not fun.  Then they inject you and you have to lay still for an hour to allow the radioactive tracer time to get to where it needs to be.  Then you go in for your scan, and away you go.

This is a test that you do not want a call back on.  We do this annually to look to see if any of the little cancer cells have set up shop again.  They haven’t had a chance yet and I intend to keep it that way, even if it involves the big lead box.