Two years ago I wrote about my choice to have a preventivedouble mastectomy. A simple blood test had revealed that Icarried a mutation in the BRCA1 gene. It gave me an estimated87 percent risk of breast cancer and a 50 percent risk of ovarian cancer. I lost my mother,grandmother and aunt to cancer.
兩年前,我曾寫過一篇文章,是關(guān)于我選擇預(yù)防性雙乳切除手術(shù)的。因為一項簡單的血檢顯示,我的BRCA1基因存在突變。這意味著我患乳癌的概率高達(dá)87%,而患卵巢癌的概率高達(dá)50%。此外,我的母親、外祖母和姨媽都因癌癥去世。
I wanted other women at risk to know about the options. I promised to follow up with anyinformation that could be useful, including about my next preventive surgery, the removal of myovaries and fallopian tubes.
為了讓其他高危女性了解我的選擇,我曾經(jīng)承諾會不斷更新有用的消息,比如我接下來要做的預(yù)防性卵巢與輸卵管摘除手術(shù)。
I had been planning this for some time. It is a less complex surgery than the mastectomy, but itseffects are more severe. It puts a woman into forced menopause. So I was readying myselfphysically and emotionally, discussing options with doctors, researching alternative medicine, andmapping my hormones for estrogen or progesterone replacement. But I felt I still had months tomake the date.
為了這個手術(shù),我已計劃了一段時間。雖然它沒有乳腺切除術(shù)復(fù)雜,但影響卻更嚴(yán)重,它會迫使女性絕經(jīng),進(jìn)入更年期。因此,我做了很多身心準(zhǔn)備工作,與醫(yī)生探討其他辦法,研究替代性藥物,規(guī)劃雌激素和孕激素代替物。但我依然覺得自己還有好幾個月的緩沖時間。
Then two weeks ago I got a call from my doctor with blood-test results. “Your CA-125 is normal,”he said. I breathed a sigh of relief. That test measures the amount of the protein CA-125 in theblood, and is used to monitor ovarian cancer. I have it every year because of my family history.
就在兩周前,我接到了醫(yī)生的電話,他告知我血檢結(jié)果。聽到他說“你的CA-125正常”時,我舒了一口氣。血液中的CA-125蛋白含量是用來檢測卵巢癌的一項指標(biāo)。因為家族病史,我每年都會做這項測試。
But that wasn’t all. He went on. “There are a number of inflammatory markers that are elevated,and taken together they could be a sign of early cancer.” I took a pause. "CA-125 has a 50 to 75percent chance of missing ovarian cancer at early stages," he said. He wanted me to see thesurgeon immediately to check my ovaries.
但這并非全部結(jié)果,醫(yī)生接著說:“部分炎癥指標(biāo)有些升高,綜合考慮,這可能是癌癥早期的征兆。”我頓了一下,他說“癌癥早期,僅檢測CA-125有50%到75%的概率是不能發(fā)現(xiàn)卵巢癌的”。他還是建議我立刻去外科檢查卵巢。
I went through what I imagine thousands of other women have felt. I told myself to stay calm, tobe strong, and that I had no reason to think I wouldn’t live to see my children grow up and tomeet my grandchildren.
我頓時想到成千上萬的女性們(在接到診斷通知書時)心中的感受。我告訴自己要保持冷靜和堅強(qiáng),因為我必須活下去,看著我的孩子們長大,活著看見我的孫子孫女們出生。
I called my husband in France, who was on a plane within hours. The beautiful thing about suchmoments in life is that there is so much clarity. You know what you live for and what matters. It ispolarizing, and it is peaceful.
我給身在法國的老公打了電話,幾個小時后他將登機(jī)。生命中最“美好”的時刻,莫過于一切都無比明了清晰。你知道了自己活著的目的,也知道什么才最為重要。(答案)雖然極端,但也能平靜接受。
That same day I went to see the surgeon, who had treated my mother. I last saw her the day mymother passed away, and she teared up when she saw me: “You look just like her.” I broke down.But we smiled at each other and agreed we were there to deal with any problem, so “let’s get onwith it.”
當(dāng)天,我就去見外科醫(yī)生,她曾治療過我的母親。上一次見她還是我母親去世之時,當(dāng)時一見到我,她就哭著說:“你跟你的母親長得真像。”我也隨之崩潰。但這一次,我們都對彼此笑了笑,約定要解決所有問題,所以“讓我們繼續(xù)加油。”