My ovaries are in the clear

It might help to read the previous post: https://naomicancerjourney.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-genetic-test-results.html 

Back in 2015, in order to address the endometrial cancer I had, they had to remove my cervix, uterus, and Fallopian tubes. I was able to keep my ovaries because I was too young to go through the surgical menopause. I knew my ovaries were disconnected and became "homeless" hanging somewhere in my pelvic cavity. Since then, part of my surveillance plan has been to undergo a pelvic and transvaginal ultrasound every two years to make sure my ovaries are healthy, primarily because I had endometrial cancer and had an uncertain variant of the BRIP1 gene. I have not been notified by the genetic testing center whether the that the variant is a definitiely positive or negative. 

My right ovary is easily visible. My left ovary is not. I dread the transvaginal ultrasound because it would be painful as they probe, trying to find my left ovary. Whenever I was due for the ultrasound, I would mentally send a message to my left ovary: don't roam too far away, and don't be so camera-shy. There was one instance when the technician called another technician, and they worked hard to locate my left ovary. It took them 45 minutes. Ouch. 

I was due this year for this ultrasound. On March 30th, when I was in the ER, they ordered an ultrasound. Great... I thought I could get this routine examination over with. Not quite. The technician found my right ovary easily but did not try hard enough to find my left ovary. Since they found the tumor in the kidney, my gynecologist wanted me to do the ultrasound again to visualize my left ovary and make sure there were no issues. 

The ultrasound was done immediately after the pre-biopsy labs last Wednesday afternoon. I was dreading it and hoped they would find my left ovary quickly. The technician acknowledged that she had to find my left ovary. She found it in 10 minutes. She apologized for hurting me by going too deep and pushing against my vaginal cuff to locate it. I told her I appreciated that she was able to find it. She took the time to explain that she could see that my ovaries were previously stitched to the pelvic wall. This was done during the hysterectomy in a procedure called ovarian suspension (oophoropexy) so that ovaries would not wander too far. This procedure became the standard of practice around the time I had my hysterectomy. I was intrigued. I inquired why it was so hard for others to find my left ovary in the past. She said it was because the left ovary was suspended higher in the pelvic cavity. She used my vaginal cuff as the guide to find scar tissues that developed around the stitches that dissolved, tracing the path to the right ovary and then to the left ovary. I asked her to show me the images, and I was fascinated. I could see it. She went further to explain that ovaries do shrink in size after hysterectomy. My left ovary is much smaller than the right ovary, so that it's easy to overlook. She beamed with pride when she said that she has been doing this for 22 years and knew how to find ovaries that are more difficult to find.

Right ovary measurement: 2.1 x 1.1 x 2.0 cm

Left ovary measurement: 1.3 x 0.6 x 0.7 cm

My gynecologist emailed me yesterday morning: "Great news - your ultrasound looks normal. Both ovaries look great!" I felt so relieved about that. Now I can just focus on figuring out this kidney tumor.