Hello jembers, I wrote on your first post as I also have an incidental mass very similar. 
when I had my CA125 test I was told it is very likely for a raised amount even if only a cyst as it can signal other things like pelvic inflammatory. The levels can be in their hundreds just on a period so actually the fact that you went to the docs with some post menopause bleeding might actual explain the higher level.

when is your MRI? I am also awaiting mine, I had to have further bloods taken on wed and awaiting my MRI now. 2-4 weeks. 
more waiting…..

keeping everything crossed for us! 

Hi cloudy1986, thanks so much for checking in with me, it means a lot. I've been given an appointment for 23rd December (Merry Christmas!!) I'm clearly on an urgent 2 week wait due to the nature of my cyst, my age and my blood test results. It's very hard not to fear the worst. I'm trying to remind myself that my situation could be completely benign, but due to my terrible habit of googling, I've convinced myself that it's something terrible! I am genuinely sending as many positive thoughts to both of us as I possibly can. X

Glad to hear you're making good progress. I started to feel a lot more comfortable yesterday, as the shoulder tip pain has more or less gone. I haven't needed any painkillers so far today, and although my belly button area is quite tender, it's manageable. I do keep getting colicky, gas pains in that area, but nothing too bad. The bruising is more obvious today and I've got a swollen bulge above my belly button that I'm assuming is normal and will go down in time. I can't say I had a completely flat stomach in the first place, but it's quite noticeable at the moment when I stand side on in the mirror. I'm going for another shower in a minute and will then embark on my first outside walk. I'm getting really restless and, even though I'm a bit slow and tired at the moment, I'm not enjoying sitting around doing nothing. I'm usually out and about all the time, so it's quite annoying not being able to do all my usual stuff. I'm conscious, though, of not doing too much too soon. X

We sound very similar in the not being able to sit around. Even being able to potter about in the garden is difficult as I just want to start weeding or hoovering when I’m indoors. Haha. Are you managing to wear normal clothes and trousers? I am still in my dressing gown at home or my long dress’s when out and about. I am too nervous to put on even underwear incase it rubs on the incisions x 

Hello,  I am still away and not sure what is going on with my phone but I hadn't realised lots of posts had been shared. I'm glad everyone is doing so well. I appreciate you starting this chat off Jembers and for everyone sharing their stories, I can't tell you all so much how it has helped me, I will always appreciate everyone's honesty, compassion and friendliness. Please keep sharing updates on your progress everyone xx

Hey all, hope everyone is doing well! 

I got my ca125 back, it's only 7  I know it's not 100% that I have nothing to worry about but I do feel a little relieved! Only a month until my surgery too so not too long to wait for a 100% answer. 

Brilliant! That must have made you feel a lot better. August will be here in a flash, and then you'll be able to move on. Keep in touch and in the meantime, if you need a chat, we'll all be here. X

That’s great news.very very low. Not long at all now. Lovely to think in a month it will be all over x 

I've been wearing some baggy jogging bottoms around the house and when I went out for my first walk, I wore a dress. I had been wearing pants that sat below the belly button and then tried some that covered my belly button. I actually think the below belly button ones are more comfortable. Over the top seems to cause too much friction!

Hi, how's it going? Hope you're steadily starting to make progress. I'm feeling much more comfortable now and had an appointment at the GP yesterday to check my wounds are healing ok. I've literally just done my first sneeze since before Friday last week. No idea how I've managed to last until now, because I suffer from hayfever. I thought it would hurt, but it was absolutely fine! I'm off to B&Q to buy a new house plant in a few minutes and then I'll try to get another little walk around this afternoon. I've been thinking about calyxa and hoping she's doing ok. Hope anyone else reading this is doing ok too. X

Yeah, been thinking of you guys recovering and of calyxa. All reading and those with uncertain diagnoses too.

I'm doing okay. Need to sleep more. Shame I can't share a photo because I'd show what a nothing my scar is 4 years down the line even though it's about 6 inches long. I didn't bother with oils and moisturizer and it's still receded fine. Some people swear by biooil.

Hello! Laughing at your sneezing - I have yet to sneeze and also have hay fever. I keep grabbing my nose every time and managing somehow to still not have sneezed! Can’t believe the difference in 1 week although I am still getting frustrated at not being able to walk longer. I’m about 15/20 mins at a very slow pace and then I’m getting sore. Everything I read says after week 1 I should be walking up to 60 mins and I just am not there. I’m back to washing clothes and doing dishes and I drove for 30 mins today for the very first time. I managed but bit uncomfortable. I felt strangely anxious leaving the house after a week! Fine when I’m out. 
my incisions are really healing up well from what I can tell, the glue is drying up and starting to come away. The bruising around my belly button is getting yellow and fading. 
My worst part is injecting myself everyday - I am absolutely looking forward to not doing that anymore. I hate it. The second worst is sleeping on my back, I’m actually getting sore elsewhere on my body because I am not a back sleeper naturally! 
still having internal discomfort, mostly just dull internal feeling like someone was rooting about in there a week ago, sometimes I get the odd sharper pain, getting less and less! 
Are you managing to walk about fine now? What did the GP say about your incisions? X 

Hello! Laughing at your sneezing - I have yet to sneeze and also have hay fever. I keep grabbing my nose every time and managing somehow to still not have sneezed! Can’t believe the difference in 1 week although I am still getting frustrated at not being able to walk longer. I’m about 15/20 mins at a very slow pace and then I’m getting sore. Everything I read says after week 1 I should be walking up to 60 mins and I just am not there. I’m back to washing clothes and doing dishes and I drove for 30 mins today for the very first time. I managed but bit uncomfortable. I felt strangely anxious leaving the house after a week! Fine when I’m out. 
my incisions are really healing up well from what I can tell, the glue is drying up and starting to come away. The bruising around my belly button is getting yellow and fading. 
My worst part is injecting myself everyday - I am absolutely looking forward to not doing that anymore. I hate it. The second worst is sleeping on my back, I’m actually getting sore elsewhere on my body because I am not a back sleeper naturally! 
still having internal discomfort, mostly just dull internal feeling like someone was rooting about in there a week ago, sometimes I get the odd sharper pain, getting less and less! 
Are you managing to walk about fine now? What did the GP say about your incisions? X 

I'm walking pretty well. A bit slower than normal, and I still feel as though I'm not quite standing up as straight as I normally would. My belly button does feel quite tight and tender, but only to be expected. The thing that I don't like is the hard bulge above my belly button. I thought I might have had a very small hernia in that area prior to having the surgery, and I did mention it to my surgeon. She didn't seem bothered or even examine me. Now it seems more noticeable and I'm hoping it's just because the area is still bruised and swollen from being cut into. I know that the inside takes way longer to completely heal than the outside, so I'll just have to hope it settles down in the next month to 6 weeks. The GP was happy with my wounds. I think from the stuff I've read that walking for 30 to 60 minutes is what can be expected at the 2-3 weeks stage. I wouldn't rush anything, just take it at your own pace. I've been managing to sleep on my side with a pillow between my knees. I can now alternate between my back and my side without it taking 10 minutes to do the manoeuvre!! Since going through the menopause, I've been a very restless sleeper and overheat really easily, so being able to change position is quite important. I've been quite active today, but I'm feeling pretty tired now, which is a reminder that I'm still recovering. X

How is your recovery going now? I think really day 10 I turned a good corner. Yesterday I wore trousers for the first time, I feel like every day I have “firsts” since surgery and that’s how I mark my improvement! My stitches still have glue over the top and it’s not fallen off yet although it’s starting to come away. I’ve been told I can have a bath after 2 weeks so I am so so excited for this on wed night. I am managing to sleep on my side now. I tried to hold my 3 month old nephew on Saturday, that was a mistake. He’s 12lb and it was just too uncomfortable so even though I was just sitting, trying to adjust him etc was too much. Hopefully another few days and I’ll be able as he’s only visiting for 2 weeks. I went out for dinner last night. That felt like a real treat and I almost felt normal! It’s been a while since I haven’t had this cyst in the back of my mind, so that was lovely. Hope you are well on the mend x 

Hey, how you doing? It was 2 weeks yesterday since I had my surgery and I think I've been doing pretty well. I'm starting to resume most of my usual activities and have been feeling better every day. I'm trying very hard to remind myself that the inside will need longer to fully recover than the outside and not to get too carried away. My stitches are still there and I hope they dissolve properly over the next couple of weeks. The main thing I'm waiting for is my histology results and to get confirmation that everything is benign. Hope everyone who follows this thread is doing well. Keep in touch. X

Hello.
Glad to read you are doing ok and recovering well. How is your lump above your belly button that was annoying you? 3 of my scabs and glue have come off. 1 still has it so I am yet to have that bath I was excited for! I am pretty much back to normal now but do keep getting short sharp stabbing pains in the area of my left ovary, a good reminder I am also still healing internally and need to not get too carried away with normal activities. I’m on day 17 of recovery and so glad I took longer than 2 weeks off work.
also still awaiting those results, I got my letter from the hospital with the record of my surgery. Lots of info in it which I’m so glad they wrote out as I do not remember hardly what the surgeon said to me after surgery so was great to read everything that went on. She had to reconstruct my ovary as it was stuck to my bowel with the cyst adhesions, so she had to seperate my ovary too. Hence the 3.5 hour surgery. 
Fingers crossed for this to be the end of this chapter for both of us. Let me know when you get your results and happy healing x 

Well ladies I am so glad I have found and read through this whole thread hearing your stories and seeing how supportive you are of each others journeys is wonderful. My journey began June 19th with a call from my GP my CA125 (which I didn’t know he had tested as I went to him with menopause symptoms and low mood) was elevated at 45. He referred me for an ultrasound. Had the ultrasound yesterday 29th July both abdominal and Transvaginal. I received a text from my GP today saying they have found a complex cyst on my right ovary suspected dermoid cyst but I have been referrred on 2ww pathway to gynae for further investigations to rule out anything sinister. Well my mind has gone into overdrive and panic mode. Scared of what’s to come what will be done and what it could be …. What comes next ? How long does it take? So many questions and no one to speak to but now I have found this thread and it’s given me some comfort. Thank you. I hope you are all healing well and looking after yourselves. I doubt I will sleep tonight not knowing for sure now there is something inside me that could be sinister. 

Hi there. Your story sounds very much like mine. I had post menopausal symptoms that I was concerned about, and was automatically put on an urgent 2ww referral for an ultrasound (abdominal and transvaginal). The last thing I expected was to be told I had a large complex mass. Just hearing the word "mass" completely terrified me. Right from the start, they thought it was probably a dermoid cyst, but continued to keep me on the suspected cancer pathway until further tests had been carried out. It was at this point that they did the CA125, and when I found out it was raised at 51, I really started freaking out. The only bits of information I could focus on were the sinister bits. This all happened at the beginning of December and I didn't find out what I was dealing with until around 9th January. It was the longest wait of my life! The MRI scan confirmed a dermoid cyst and I was finally removed from the cancer pathway. I think from reading other people's stories, it seems that if they think you've got a dermoid cyst, then you probably have. All the other tests are just extra reassurance. At the time, it feels like all the other tests are being done because something terrible must be happening, but it's just procedure. It's taken a long time to get my surgery and I've still not had my histology results back, but I'm healing well, I'm not in any pain and I'm basically back to all my pre-surgery activities. I was actually given the option to have no surgery at all and just monitor the cyst over time. At my age, I decided to just get rid to reduce any future issues. The additional procedure to remove my ovaries and fallopian tubes took no time at all and I was back home by 2pm! Try to keep reminding yourself that they think it's a dermoid cyst. They are most commonly found on the right ovary, they can cause raised CA125 and they have quite distinctive characteristics on ultrasound and MRI scans. They are also almost always benign. Take it easy and let us know how you get on. X

Hi cloudy, just reading over this again, I hadn't realised your surgery had taken so long! Glad you're doing well though. My belly bulge has reduced now thankfully. I've had one stitch fall out, but the others are still hanging on. I've been told by my doctor that this is normal and they will probably come out over the next couple of weeks. I've managed to book a city break to Porto in November. Can't wait! X

Thank you for taking the time to reply and easing my brain as to what will happen next. I go on holiday in 3 weeks so hoping to be seen before then. Your journey does sound like mine as do many others so I will keep that in my mind it’s a dermoid cyst. My best friend named it Gemma already why I do not know trying to keep it light hearted I bet. Sending you healing thoughts and thank you again x

Lovely to hear you have booked a trip! That’s great news. Glad to hear your bulge has gone down. I am pretty healed now, back to full health and no pains unless I lean on a counter or my baby nephew kicks me when holding him. I have a couple of small stiches still poking out but my incisions marks are now so small, all the glue has gone and just waiting for these stiches to disappear. Back to work next week. Still awaiting histology results of course, hopefully not long now x 

I nicknamed mine dermot, I think I read it on another forum and it made me laugh so that was its name until eviction day. 
As you have read through the thread you will know our stories and where we are. it’s a real positive to have already been told that it’s a complex cyst. I would assume next stage for you might be an MRI but maybe not if they can see it well on an ultrasound. I got my MRI as they weren’t sure what it was and also to determine what could be saved and what couldn’t. Funnily enough I was told that I would certainly lose my ovary and then the surgeon saved it in surgery so you can only tell so much  until they are in there in person. Did they tell you the size of your cyst? That will determine some of your plans moving forward too whether Igemma will also be getting evicted! Mine had long hair, I don’t know why I find that so freaky!x