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8.5cm complex, separated ovarian cyst - 26yo

Hi all! I guess I am writing this more for reassurance and comfort, as sometimes it helps to get things out. I'm just under 27 years old, and here's my experience so far with a complex ovarian cyst.

Two weeks ago I went to the ER after suffering from severe pain on my right side. Blood work was normal, but a CT scan revealed a 7cm cyst on my right ovary. The ER doctor and nurse told me to follow up with my regular gyn, who would most likely monitor it and complete ultrasounds every 6-8 weeks to check for growth. They said it was not an emergency unless I suddenly developed major, excruciating pain. They both said that ovarian cysts sometimes have to be removed, but ones like mine (the said the shading on the CT scan looked like a normal cyst) should be fine and probably go away with my cycle. (I've never had any issues previously. In fact, just two weeks prior to this happening, I had my annual appointment with my gyn, and all of my tests came back normal.)

Three days later I met with my gyn, who promptly scheduled me for an ultrasound. She seemed concerned about the cyst due to its size and said she thought it'd definitely have to be removed, since it was already so large and because of the fact that I I have it while being on birth control (birth control, she said, is often prescribed to lessen the change of developing cysts. Go figure...) I became nervous after this, because the ER doctor and nurses didn't seem concerned at all, but my gyn did.

The next day I went for both my regular and transvaginal ultrasound, which returned the following results:

"8.5cm Complex cystic lesion with septations and what may represent a small papillary excrescence. No flow is noted to the solid component of the cystic portion. The appearance is nonspecific and both benign & malignant etiologies could give this appearance. Its size however is concerning."

Upon receiving those results, my gyn referred me to a gynecological oncologist; my gyn said that due to the fact that they cannot tell whether its benign or malignant, a gyn onc. must be the person to handle it.

My consultation with the gyn onc is on Tuesday, and while I'm trying to stay calm and optimistic, I've been a wreck at the thought of cancer. Of course, I Googled...and I read about so many characteristics of complex malignant cysts that seem to match up with mine, which scared me. The fact that the cyst seemed to grow so much in just three days between tests (1.5 cm) is frightening too...although, I'm wondering if there could be a discrepancy between a CT scan and an ultrasound? I am nervous to see how much it will have grown when I meet with the gyn onc.

The hardest part has been the waiting - I just want to know what it is. It's been a long couple of weeks. At times, I had myself worked up into a frenzy of worry, which only made the pain worse. My gyn has been fantastic through this, reassuring me to just take it easy and try not to worry too much...but it's easier said than done. Meeting with a doctor who specializes in cancer treatment and practices in a cancer hospital is just a scary thought (but also comforting, since God forbid it is cancer, I know I'll be in good hands...) It doesn't help that I've also always been a hypochondriac :)

I guess I just needed to get that out...the thought of cancer is just making me a nervous wreck. Thanks to anyone who took the time to read this...I'm not sure how much sense it makes. But it felt good to get that all out!
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667078 tn?1316000935
At your age you have a less than 1% chance it is ovarian cancer. 99% of ovarian cysts at your age are benign. The doctors are covering the basis because you can't see inside and ovarian cancer gets missed so much. I had symptoms and they saw the cysts with me. They did nothing and did not tell me I had cysts because they thought I would worry. By the time they found it in me the cancer was stage 4 and there was not much they could do. Your doctors do not want to be like mine and feeling bad they missed it. Ovarian cysts are usually not that big. If they were you would probably showing cancer in other places near by.
Of course you are scared. They thought I was a hypochondriac too. That is normal. For your own sake stay away from the internet on ovarian cancer. There is a lot of scary stuff. You are in good hands with your doctor. Blocked bowels are the main issue with ovarian cancer. You get very thin from throwing up most of your meals. If your pain was from OC  cancer would have showed up other places then the ovaries.
I understand the fear. Everything went very fast with me because the ultrasound showed the cancer. I had the ultrasound on Thursday. The doctor called me on Monday and said I had masses and it had to come out. Tuesday the next day I was at the oncologist. I had tests on Friday and had surgery on Monday.
The mass needs to come out because of the size. If you can keep your ovary tell them that is what you want. They will take the ovary because it is an easier surgery for them but we need our ovaries. The loss of ovaries causes problems for us. Our bodies rely on our ovaries especially if you want children.
Keep posting if you are scared.
Alex
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Avatar universal
Also forgot to mention that I have no family history of ovarian cancer or cysts.
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