(3 years later)
Mommy! Mommy! We wanna go to the park!” Chad whined. I shook my head at my energetic three year olds.
“Ok guys, let’s put on coats then. It’s cold outside.” I said buttoning Chad and Krista’s coats. Then we walked over to the park. Chad and Krista each went their seperate directions. I had a pounding headache, along with an ache in the rest of my body. I just assumed that I had the flu. It had been like this for the past few weeks. About two hours later, I took Chad and Krista home and put them down for naps. Then I went and layed down in my room. I felt absolutely horrible and twenty minutes later, I started vomiting. I called Bonnie and her come over and watch the kids while I went to my personal physician.
“Mandy, I’m worried and I want to take some blood tests. I’ll get the results to you later today or early tomorrow. Your husband’s out of town isn’t he?”
“Yeah he’s touring. I should be too but I felt so sick.” I said. I left the doctor’s office. I anxiously waited for the doctor’s call to put an end to what was making me so sick. Later that day, the doctor called.
“Mandy, we have your blood test results and they’re not good. Dr. Brown would like you to come to his office as soon as possible.” The receptionist informed me. I said okay, grabbed my keys and went out to my car. Twenty minutes later, I puled into the parking lot of the doctor’s office.
“Go right in Mrs. Timberlake.” The receptionist told me. I went to the room at the end of the hall and walked in.
“Mandy sit down. Your blood test results are alarming.” Dr. Brown said.
“Why?” I asked fearfully.
“I’m worried aboout your elevated white blood count. I need to run more test and you need to be in the hospital in order for me to run them. I’ve called St. Paul’s in Miami.”
“Why Miami? Why not Orlando General?”
“They don’t have the equipment and staff I want for you. I suggest you go home, pack a bag, and have somebody drive you to St. Paul’s.” Dr. Brown demanded. I drove home, packed a bag, and asked Bonnie to drive me.
“What’s wrong Mandy?” Bonnie asked, alarmed. I didn’t answer. I felt pretty lousy. We checked in and they took me to a specialist.
“Mandy, we’re going to take a biopsy and bone marrow sample. I’m putting an iv with seditives in your arm.” A red haired blue eyed nurse said. Everything started getting fuzzy and then it went black.
****************
(3 hours later)
When I came to, I saw six worried faces staring at me. The guys and Bonnie.
“Mandy, why didn’t you tell us you weren’t feeling good?” Justin asked concerned.
“I didn’t want you guys to stop your tour and I didn’t want you guys fussing over me.” I said, touching the sore spot on my neck. Justin pulled my hand away. Dr. Sanchez, read the name on the tag of the doctor who came in.
“What’s wrong with my wife?” Justin asked immediately. The doctor didn’t look happy.
“I’m going to give it to you straight.”
“Ok.” Justin prodded.
“The official name for what you have is Hodgekin’s Lymphoma.”
“What’s that?” Joey asked.
“A form of cancer that develops in the lymph system. Right now, you’re in an early stage and the prognosis is good.”
“But she’s only twenty four!” Chris blurted.
“Hodgekin’s is rare, it accounts for less than one percent of all cancer cases. When we see it, it’s in young people between the ages of fifteen and thirty five.” Cancer? At twenty five? This couldn’t be happening.
“How are you going to treat it?” Everybody was talking for me.
“Chemotherapy. You’ll stay in the hospital and we’ll regulate the chemicals. Then we’ll put a Port A Cath in your neck under your skin. Neck? Skin? Justin looked stricken.
“What if I don’t want chemo?” I asked.
“You have the right to refuse treatment. With the treatment, you’ll have a chance at recovery. Without it, you will most certainly die.” Die? But I was only twenty four! My world had drastically changed.
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