Hi Catherine-30,

I'm sorry to hear you're going through a tough time, I can understand this is a lot to deal with. I hope the wait for the appointment doesn't feel too long and that you can get all the information you need soon.

My reply will boost your post, meaning a few more people should see it - so if others have similar experience to share then hopefully they'll be along soon.

If you feel you'd like to talk things through with someone prior to your appointment, you are welcome to give our nurses a call. You can reach them on 0808 800 4040 (Monday-Friday, 9-5).

We're always here for support on the forum if you need it.

Wishing you all the best,

Ben
Cancer Chat Moderator

 I am post menopausal  so this may not be as much help . In December 2022  I found I had a cyst similar size to yours . My understanding is that  a  large ovarian cyst is usually referred  to an oncology surgeon.   In my case things got taken out of my hands as the cyst twisted  and had to be removed by emergency surgery.  However even in a post menopausal woman they left the left ovary.

incidently my niece  at  a similar age to you, had an ovarian cyst which was debulked  ( which they will do if no cancer ) and she went on to have two children. 

 I know it is difficult for you and the waiting is the worst , but you have had the tests  they willl have a plan on what is needed. 

Hi dypsoda, 

Thank you for the reassurance - its good to hear all of this from someone who has been in a similar position and understands how this feels. I had a feeling oncology surgeon would be involved given the size of the mass and input it will require but of course anxiety took over and I've been panicking myself...need to stay off Google I think! 

I hope your niece and yourself have recovered well and continue to be well. 

Thank you for replying to me, you've made me feel alot better xx

I've been following your journey as I've had same kind of symptoms back and forward to doctors, it's taken 5 weeks just to get an appointment for bloods, they have come back raised levels at 78. So only now are they referring me on the 2 week pathway. It's taken so long even to get to this.

How did your appointment go on the 1st? Hope it went well

Hi Jo22Jo,

Thanks for replying to my post - hope you're doing okay, how have your symptoms been since getting sent for bloods and being referred on the pathway?

My meeting on the 1st went really well, the consultant showed me the MRI images and the mass I have is very large, putting pressure on my bowel and bladder, and its very close to my spine - the kind of cancer gynae have said I could have is rare, I basically have a large teratoma (dermoid cyst) and around 1-2% of these become malignant and the surgeon can count on one hand the malignant ones he has seen during his career (so fingers crossed im in the majority and this is also benign) - my bloods are elevated and as such they need to treat this like it was cancer. I would have been in for surgery next week for a laparotomy of right ovary and cyst along with a washing and assessment of my other organs but someone never referred me for a CT Scan of my chest and abdomen to assist with staging so the surgery has been delayed only by a week or so (hopefully). I am priority for surgery and just by luck I managed to get a CT Scan cancellation on the 2nd so all the boxes have been ticked now and my surgery should go to plan. 

I am feeling optimistic about the outcome now, the surgeon was absolutely lovely and wasn't phased by this at all, he isnt jumping the gun to cancer at all, right now its a lump that needs to come out and if biopsy comes back malignant then we will cross that bridge if we come to it - once you've had any necessary testing and actually get to speak to someone who specialises in this field then i'm sure you'll be feeling good like I am right now and your mind will be put to rest, I found waiting for MRI appointments, ultrasounds etc was the most stressful but now i know the plan for me I'm just ready for this mass to be removed and to start getting on with my life again. 

I'm here if you ever need to talk about your experiences - I'm not an expert but I've been in the initial shock of it and it's good to have someone there who's went through something similar. (Hope my long message didn't bore you haha) xx

Ah that's amazing news Catherine. Such a good attitude too. I hope your surgery all goes ahead as planned. I feel like it's been such a long wait for me to get to this point but after my markers came back at 80 yesterday they suddenly seem panicked into referring me on the pathway so hopefully I don't have too long to wait. But another spanner in the works is I'm in early pregnancy as well, so I'm struggling to get excited about that with this health scare looming over me 

Thanks for getting back to me, your posts have been so detailed and helpful so far, it's really reassuring x