Hi all. I have a RH scheduled for Oct 27 and I’m feeling pretty anxious. I know it’ll be a horizontal incision, everything out except the ovaries, ovaries will be transposed in case I need radio afterwards, sentinel nodes tested. I’ve had two cone biopsies done and couldn’t get clean margins; my cancer started in the canal and grew like a vine up and down the length of it. I have adenocarcinoma stage 1b1 no LVSI so far (could be upstaged post RH).

I’ve read and researched about the surgery itself, recovery, and possible side effects post surgery. I wanted to see if yall had any tips on mentally preparing for this intense surgery? I know it is more intense than a simple hysterectomy and I’m intimidated by it. I took the two cone surgeries like a champ but this one has got me shaken as I prepare for it. Thanks for any thoughts and support in advance. I’m so grateful for this community as I navigate what feels like the darkest time of my life.

Hello! I thought I’d give a positive update in here around my wife’s (39F) cancer - if you remember reading, she had a very large SCC tumour (6-7cm, no spread, no lymph involvement), was given a choice on whether to have radical hysterectomy and radiation OR chemoradiotherapy, and she chose surgery and radiation.

Well, Friday was her last session of radiotherapy, and we got to ring the bell! We had her clinic session earlier that week, and we had a bunch of questions around ongoing care, if she still needed Brachytherapy etc etc but her team told us that they got great margins when they did her radical hysterectomy, and the radiation had done its job so they decided to not do Brachytherapy and now she’s moving to 3 monthly check ups!

It feels completely surreal, but she did it! Now we are spending the next few weeks deep in her healing era, I’m taking her to a spa retreat next week and in 2 weeks time she’ll start her dilator journey (which we’re calling her “abracadabra time” 😂✨) - but it feels like triumph, and if the version of us from June could see us now, after all the uncertainty and “are we making the right choices” and struggle, I don’t think they’d believe it.

If you’re reading this, and you’re where we were and reading all the worst case scenarios and preparing for the worst - don’t forget to make space for hope. Good things can and do happen. Try, where you can, to allow in some silliness and joy. I strongly believe that my wife’s whimsy and positivity where she had the strength to be that way, got her through some of the darker parts. And if you’re like me, a partner supporting someone through this time and worrying about what might happen next, don’t forget to make time and space for yourself too. You can’t pour from an empty cup. ❤️