Something is Rotten in the State of Denmark

One thing I’ve been thinking about over the last few days is: Could I have caught this in an early, precancerous stage?  Were there early signs that I missed? And the answer I keep coming up with is, “Not really.”  

My cycles always came and went like clockwork. 4-5 days, no trouble. They were completely normal last year, EXCEPT for December. December was an oddball. It came exactly when it was supposed to, but it was unusually heavy. However, it only lasted 2 days. I passed it off as stress, because I was under an extreme amount of pressure during that time. January and February came like normal, so I just assumed that December was an off beat. Hindsight is 20/20, and I know now that December was the first sign that something was not right.   

Why didn't I run to the doctor in December? Because anyone who has a uterus knows that they can be unpredictable at times. Most women wouldn’t run to the doctor for one unusual cycle, because every woman has had them. In fact, many doctors won't even request you come in until there was some sort of pattern (usually 3 months of irregularity) or your symptoms were extreme. There is good reason for this -- many, many things affect women’s cycles, like stress, diet, exercise patterns, etc., so one slightly unusual cycle doesn’t really tell a doctor anything. Also, many gynecological conditions cause the exact same symptoms, and cancer is the least likely cause for most women. It certainly is for a woman my age.

Knowing what I know now, I would have started to keep a calendar after my oddball cycle in December. Maybe I  wouldn’t have caught anything, but perhaps I may have seen something off in early 2014. So, learn from my mistakes. Even if you think everything is OK, keep track of your cycles and days you have discharge (record the type, flow, color, etc.), and talk to your doctor if there seems to be a significant change. If you have a smartphone, there are a few apps that can help you keep track of your cycle. Or use the wall calendar in the kitchen to keep track, and give your periods a weird code name just to confuse the hell out of your family.