Page 120 of Never Stop

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Brooke

When Dr. Bloom called with the news about my biopsy, he only confirmed what I knew. Given that I was in New York now, he referred me to Dr. Simon, a surgeon at the hospital I was becoming all too familiar with.

I still thought everything would be a repeat.

It wasn’t.

“I’ve reviewed your CT scans and the biopsy,” Dr. Simon said after he greeted Easton and me in the exam room. “I’ve also talked to Dr. Bloom in detail about your case.”

I nodded and looked to Easton, who sat in a chair across the small room from me, and he smiled tightly at me.

Dr. Simon continued speaking, and my gaze moved back to him. “He told me exactly what he did during your last surgery, and we talked about desmoid tumors. I’ve never heard of those types of tumors before.”

My heart sank. Of course, he didn’t know what they were. No one did. I knew they were rare, but I just wanted to have the reassurance that someone knew what the fuck was going on.

“It’s rare,” I confirmed.

He smiled warmly. “That’s what I gathered. Needless to say, it needs to come out.”

“What about chemo?” I asked. I’d heard chemotherapy may shrink tumors.

“Dr. Bloom and I talked about all the options you may have available. He said that after your last surgery, your case was evaluated by the tumor review board and they suggested radiation—”

“But Dr. Bloom sent me to have a consultation with a chemo doctor. Why would he do that if this board suggested only radiation?” This was the first I’d heard my case was sent to a review board.

“It’s my understanding that it was reviewed after he sent you to those consultations.”

I shook my head. “No, the chemo doctor didn’t think chemo was the answer because I wanted children.” I wasn’t sure why I’d asked about chemo. I still wanted children. However, I didn’t want to keep going through surgery after surgery.

He looked to Easton and then back to me. “Do you still want children?”

If he only knew. I looked to Easton, and he gave me a reassuring smile. “Yeah,” I answered.

“Then chemo is still not the answer. We don’t want to pump you full of toxins that may be harmful to your future children.”

I felt like crying. I didn’t want chemo any more than Dr. Simon or Dr. Bloom wanted to prescribe it for me. I just wanted a baby.

“So more radiation?” Easton asked.

Dr. Simon turned to him. “No. Brooke has had her lifetime maximum exposure.”

“I have?” Again this was all new to me. It confused me because if I couldn’t have chemo or radiation, then what was the answer? Surgery every two years? I wanted to wake up from my nightmare.

He turned his body back to me. “You have, but it seems it didn’t work given the tumor came back.”

“I didn’t think I was getting that much. I mean, I went for six weeks, but I didn’t think that was the maximum.”

“I’ll double-check, but I’m certain you have. Plus, it didn’t work, and this tumor needs to come out. It’s growing faster than the previous one.”

I stared at him, another bomb thrown at me. “What? But I’m not in pain like before.”

“It’s bigger than the last one, too.”

And another…

I felt my eyes widen and I looked to Easton again as if he could give me the answers I wanted to hear. Easton shook his head. Dr. Simon turned to his computer and pressed some keys.