A scare

Sunday while sitting next to Derek at church I found a lump on his right arm, near his shoulder. He said he hadn't noticed it before and it didn't hurt. Still, it needed to be checked out.

Wednesday morning Derek and I went to the doctor. Can I just say how efficient the doctor's office is in Finland? We had barely checked in and were walking to the waiting area and I heard the doctor call his name. 8:15 means 8:15. Dr. Elomaa looked at his lump and referred us to what I later learned was the children's hospital in Helsinki. She told us it was good that we had come in quickly and that someone from the hospital would call us to schedule tests. They'd probably be next week. Later that afternoon the hospital called and asked if we could come in today for an ultra sound and to meet with the doctor. Yes. The sooner the better.

I told Derek he had another appointment. At that point we decided to name his lump. He chose Bob. So, Bob had to have an ultra sound. I explained how they do ultra sounds, specifically no needles or knives. Lauren was intrigued by the blue goo. "What does it taste like?" Um, what? I told her it's used for medical equipment and that I doubt it has a taste. She went on, "I'm curious now. Maybe it's Blue Raspberry." Me, "It's not for eating! Let it go!" She did, but then moved on to how a boy in her class had to get a stomach ultra sound and when he got back someone asked when the baby was due. So helpful.

Today the appointment was at 10:45 but they told us to be there at 10:30. We were. We just couldn't find a place to park. (Curse you, Helsinki parking.) We get in at 10:43 and...yep, you guessed it, they called us back at 10:45. The ultra sound tech said the lump was made of bone. Benign. Whew. They had to take an xray as well. We were told to head back to waiting room 5 or the Duck waiting room and they'd try to get us in as soon as they could. Not ten minutes later, they call for Derek. Xray done we move to a different waiting room, waiting room 2 or the Bear waiting room to await our doctor appointment. They told me that since the appointment was made at the last minute we might have to wait for him to fit us in. No problem. I brought a book and Derek had his DS.

Ten minutes later we're with the doctor. He tells us Derek has an exostosis which is a benign bony tumor. It's a growth out of his humerus. He showed us this xray.

You can see it on the left. It looks like a hook. (Dan, "Derek has a built in bottle opener!") Unless it causes him pain or starts to inhibit movement in his arm, Bob gets to stay. It's possible Bob will get bigger, but the doctor said Bob will most likely stay proportionate to Derek's body. (If you're wondering, we didn't refer to it as Bob in front of the doctor.)

The doctor asked if I wanted a copy of the xray. (Could he tell I was thinking about taking a picture of his monitor with my phone?) Yes, please. He said no problem and asked for my email address. How many times does that happen in the US? Don't you need a form filled out in triplicate and notarized to get access to your xrays?

One hour and five minutes after we got there, we left. Derek asked if he could skip the rest of the day. I told him if he took a picture with the two clowns entertaining kids in the lobby I'd think about it. His response, "What clowns?" I took him back to school.

This is the part where I tell everyone how thankful I am. I'm not going to skip it. I am beyond thankful that this is nothing more than a cool story. There were a few tears this week (mine) but today the tears are tears of happiness. Welcome to the family, Bob.