Ultrasound and status – Part 1

It’s very late (1:45 am) and I have friends with their 2 adopted boys staying with us from out of town. I will have to break this post into two sections.  If you haven’t already done so, please take an extra second to visit Mo and Will.  They had some heartbreaking news today.  We need to give them lots of love and support.  I opened up my blogger for a few seconds before bedtime and posting and, well…it is just so awful and made me cry and why do these things happen?

I went in this morning to the RE’s office for an ultrasound.  The plan was to check and see if the cyst on my right ovary had collapsed now that the birth control pills were done and the “withdrawal bleed” has begun.  For more information or to catch up, you can read my prior post, “Are you kidding me?”  MrBeep was nice enough to come with me to the appointment to offer support and well…gosh darn it he is just so smart and reasonable.  He thinks of questions that elude my addled brain and I love when he comes to the appointments so he hears directly from the Doctor what is going on.  So we meet DocO, get right down to business with the wand and…

it’s still there. 

The measurement of the cyst hasn’t gone up or down even a millimeter.  Good ole lefty is hanging tough with no issues.  After the exam I sit there with my paper drape with MrBeep by my side and we discuss the situation with DocO.   The cyst is considered by DocO to be borderline.  A little smaller they wouldn’t think it was a big deal, a little bigger they would be very concerned how it would affect the cycle.  We discussed the possibility of aspirating the cyst.  He said it was an option, but he was concerned about putting me through a medical procedure that may not solve the problem and has the potential for complications.  He made an excellent comment.  “It’s all really a judgement call.  If we go forward, do nothing and it’s a problem that cancels the cycle, that’s bad.  If we aspirate and it acts up, that’s bad.  If we aspirate and it works well then that’s good.  It we leave it alone and it works, then that’s good.  But what we are talking about is something that is likely to affect the cycle and whether we think it is a good idea to take that risk or wait another month.”

I asked him why an ovarian cyst is considered a problem for an IVF cycle.  He explained that having a cyst can affect how well the eggs grow in that ovary.  You can get fewer eggs at retrieval time, you can have problems with the cyst growing larger due to the meds, you can have problems with your overall hormone levels, etc.  Keep in mind this cyst is here before the cycle has officially begun, I have not yet taken any stimulation medication.  Some folks who commented on Sunday had cysts appear after stimulation had already begun or they were many days into their IVF cycle.  I think that REs view this differently than one in the early stage.  This is just my impression.  To read a little more about ovarian cysts, here is a good article.

DocO told me to hold off on taking my first day lupron injection.  He said he planned to take today’s results and discuss the case with his colleagues. (This is their standard operating procedure – more brain power on the problem.  FYI-I love and respect that.)  He said they would call after the meeting in a few hours and tell me what the plan is, whether we will start the IVF cycle or wait until next month. 

After the appointment I walked MrBeep to his car, we talked and I wished him a good day at work.  Then I went home to wait for the call…(to be continued)