The C - BOMB!

On Wednesday September 14, 2005 a C-bomb was tossed at me and the repercussions could be potentially devastating.

September 14th started off like any other day which was pretty uneventful. I sat in front of my computer late that afternoon typing away, well, actually I had just finish some online gaming with one of my favorite games called Star Craft (Brood War Expansion). Anyhow, I was sitting there looking at the monitor and then SUDDENLY the screen on the monitor became contorted and then went black as if there has been an interruption in power. The computer desk, my chair, the room began to move and shake. OH MY GOD! WE ARE HAVING AN EARTHQUAKE! As I began to realized something significant has just happened and happened over the course of 5 to 10 seconds, I immediately thought we were having an earthquake (I live in California). My adrenaline kicked in and no sooner did it kick in that I began to understand this significant event was not an earthquake, but was something that just happened, to me. As I began to recycle the events prior to and immediately after this event my worst suspicions came to light. It did in fact, happen to me. My heart rate was up and my head felt as if was battling Vertigo. One problem, the increased heart rate and feeling of Vertigo (the room moving and spinning), were not subsiding. I knew something was wrong.

I picked up the phone and called the advice nurse at the local hospital to see if there might be some immediate remedy. I was instructed to get to the emergency room immediately. Upon arrival at the emergency room and being examined by the doctor one thing that came out was the fact that over the past 2 to 3 years I began to develop headaches and an increase of occurrences over the last year and half. The past 2 weeks I would experience a headache nearly every day. Prior to 2 or 3 years ago, I did not get headaches. I attributed them to stress. BOY WAS I WRONG! Not to mention, I hate going to the hospital. Any how a CT of my head was ordered. For those that don't know, that is what we laymen call a CAT SCAN of the brain. AND this is what they found...VERBATIM.

EMERGENCY HEAD CT SCAN WITHOUT CONTRAST 09/14/2005

CLINICAL INDICATION

Headaches.

TECHNIQUE

Routine CT scan of the head was performed using standard protocol without intravenous contrast.

FINDINGS

The bony calvarium is intact. There is a large calcification along the course of the parasagittal sinus, anteriorly projecting toward the right. Although this may represent calcified meningioma, there is no definite mass effect or other abnormality is seen. The remainder of the brain is normal. The ventricular size is normal for the patient's age and there is no evidence of hemorrhage, mass or other abnormality.

IMPRESSION

No evidence of acute intracranial process. A large calcification along the falx could remotely represent meningioma and MI is suggested for further evaluation.

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Reported By: ROZYCKI, MAREK MD

For those reading this post the significant term in the above findings is "calcified meningioma", with particular attention to meningioma.

The long and short of it is this, meningioma is a tumor. AND for all of my searches on the web it is a cancerous tumor. If you haven't figured it out, the C-BOMB I refer to in this post is cancer. Yes, I said a cancerous tumor and one on the brain no doubt.

According to the findings the possibility that I have a cancerous tumor in my brain is there and IS real. But also, as I read this piece of paper over and over again, trying to find some shred of hope, I found this to cling to for the moment. The findings are not definitive and thus far there is no evidence of a definitive mass effect, no evidence of acute intracranial process (I presume spreading). For all of my fears and hopes, I see the doctor again Wednesday September 21, 2005. I am to be scheduled for an MRI and referred to a Neurologist.

Through all of this so far, my wife is a trooper, she is being strong, even after losing her mother 13 years ago to breast cancer. Her mother died at the age of 41, the same exact day my youngest son was born. It will be 13 years next month on October 8th.

I am currently 39 and will be the big 40 in December. I am trying to be strong for my wife and 2 children the oldest is 19 and the youngest will be 13 next month, October 8th. I am trying to be strong.

Man, what an emotional roller coaster ride I have been on over the last couple of weeks with Hurricane Katrina, and now this C-BOMB! Hopefully, I can jump out of the way before this C-Bomb explodes. I find out next week if it hit its target, wish me luck.