In January 2015 at about 7:30 in the morning, my wife Linda and I were having breakfast. At that time, I got a call from my endocrinologist, Dr. Joseph Terrana. To say that we were startled and nervous would be a tremendous understatement. Wouldn’t you be very concerned if a doctor called you at 7:30 AM?
[Interestingly, without referring to my CT-scan results, I don’t remember the exact date as January 15, 2015, only that it was a Thursday. I do remember other key dates so well. But I draw I blank on that one. I think that’s because I must have been in a daze.]
Some background: As a Type 2 diabetic for two decades, I got a battery of blood tests every three months through Dr. Terrana, besides the A1C test to monitor my blood sugar. One of the tests that Dr. Terrana regularly ordered – that I did not even know anything about since the results were one in a long list – was a Bilirubin test.
When Dr. Terrana called, he said my Bilirubin test result and a couple of other blood tests were elevated. And this might mean a tumor. Because he is an amazing doctor and person, by the time he called me, he had already scheduled a CT-Scan for me for later that same day.
Linda and I went together when I did the MRI. And then we waited to get the CD of the scan and the radiologist’s report. The number one impression of the radiologist was: