The CORE biopsy was done on Monday, January 9th & the worst part was when the drugs wore off.  I remember trying to walk from the car into my condo.  While walking down the sidewalk, the pain was almost unbearable.  I told Oneida if I had known it would be this bad, I would have never agreed to do this.  It was quite difficult walking up the 18 steps to my condo.  I shedd a few tears that night too.  Pain, pain & more pain …

Waiting again for results was nerve wracking.  For 4 days, we waited for the phone to ring.  Finally, Friday evening, January 13, 2006, around 5 p.m., Dr. Frassica called to tell me he was very sorry & the CORE biopsy revealed the tumor was malignant.  He said it was a sarcoma & very rare but they had not yet determined the type.  It had qualities of several different types of sarcomas & was large.

I will never forget that night; it’s like it happened yesterday.  I NOW KNEW I HAD A CANCEROUS TUMOR IN MY LEG.  Not exactly the news I wanted to hear, although I was not surprised.  My first question was … so what’s next?

Waiting for the biopsy results was my next challenge.  It was hard knowing that I had an issue but not knowing the severity of the problem.  In early December I got word the tumor was BENIGN – noncancerous!  Yeah, I was Happy.  The plan was to eventually schedule surgery to remove it after the New Year.

As the month of December progressed, the pain & pressure in my thigh was getting worse.  I could barely bend my leg & started walking in a way to accommodate the limb that was not functioning normally.  My primary care physician, Dr. Lynn Alonso was working with me on managing the pain.  I was taking some strong narcotics & still experiencing levels of pain like I had never felt before.  At times, bringing tears to my eyes.  (I stopped driving in November because I could not move my leg from the gas pedal to the brake as needed.)

I was sure something was not right.  After much fuss, I fought to become a priority again for the Dr’s at Johns Hopkins.  I got an appt with Dr. Frassica for follow-up on the pain & current condition of my leg.  After the exam, he said, “Lisa, I know this is not what you want to hear but I am not convinced this tumor is benign.  I don’t care what the needle biopsy results were.  With your permission, I would like to do a CORE biopsy, where we cut out a piece of the tumor & test it.”  I agreed.  The appt was set for Monday, January 9, 2006, my sister Janet’s Birthday.

I started attending Massage Therapy School in September 2005.  Because of the issues with my leg/thigh, I had to take a leave of absence from the Baltimore School of Massage.  It was a sad time as I grew very FOND of my Classmates, Instructors & the information I was learning.  It was in my Anatomy textbook, the Cancer Chapter, that made me suspicious of my situation.  One of the signs of cancer was “pain in a lower extremity” & I certainly had it and it was INTENSE.

I went to Johns Hopkins on November 30th for an appt with Dr. Frank Frassica, Orthopaedic Surgeon.  Everything about this visit was overwhelming.  Driving thru Baltimore, past the Inner Harbor to get there.  Then the logistics of getting to the building & floor where my appt was held.  Learning about parking & $4 parking tickets.  Meeting the Dr & his TEAM of people – Physician’s Assistant & Medical Students, learning the ropes.  Getting blood work done & a needle biopsy on my very first visit.  I would soon learn this is the HOPKINS WAY … do as much as they can while you are there!  No need for another visit, if they can do it today!

My story begins in September/October 2005.  I started to experience leg pain in my right, inner thigh.  When I sat on the commuter train, the pain was more & more prominent.  Since I was over 40, I thought it was an aging thing.  I finally started seeing different Dr’s to try to determine the cause.  I had X-rays of my back, hips & legs.  I was in “the elimination game”.  All turned out OK.  Finally, I saw  Dr. Blam an Orthopedic, who recommended a MRI.  When I went to get the MRI, I only lasted about 12 minutes … I learned from this experience, I am caustrophobic, ugh.  I eventually had an open MRI in November that showed a soft tissue tumor in my thigh.  The next stop was Johns Hopkins on November 30th.