Chapter 10: New exams at lab

Moira awoke, tired and sore with the first light of the next day, and she felt an arm over her midriff after a few minutes. Looking to the side, she saw her sleeping mother, face down, her face turned her way, and her arm hugging her as a lover, which she was, would. Her mother's face was at rest, serene, and calm, her features showed neither her age nor her disease. She was beautiful and Moira suddenly wanted to mourn. She lay still on the bed, motionless, letting her mother's sleep with tranquility.

Helen's eyes slowly opened an hour later, feeling the unaccustomed presence of someone in her bed. A wide smile lit her face when she saw Moira, remembering last night, "Good morning, my love, what time is it?"

It seemed to her that it was the most natural thing in the world to awaken with her daughter in her bed after a night of sex and loving. While Moira had awakened tired and sore, her mother was fresh as a newly cut rose. Rising from the bed and seeing that she was naked, she guffawed while she looked for and put on her sexy peignoir asking, "What do you want for breakfast, my love? Coffee and juice, toast and eggs with bacon, what my love?"

"Oh, you must rest, Mother, I'll make breakfast," said one tired Moira, moving as if to get out of bed.

"Nonsense, my love, let Mommy pamper you; you'll have time to look after me later."

"Oh, Mother, I..."

"Don't worry, my love, nothing is going to happen to me."

So she made breakfast, and Helen came back to bed with her daughter. She kissed Moira on the lips, no tongue this time, and hugging her she asked, "Well, whenever you feel like it, explain tomorrow's procedure to me."

"OK, Mother; you know that I don't approve on keeping these tests secret and to not confide your sickness to your husband," but Helen was determined to keep anything concerning her cancer secret from anyone. "I have my reasons, my love; just trust me in this as I trust you as my doctor."

"Yes, Mother, but I will be alone to do the examinations your ... you require."

"I know, but you can do it, now tell me what this procedure is all about so I'll be mentally prepared."

"I'm going do several exams to you, the most important being a colposcopy, and if necessary an endocervical curettage."

"You sure put it bluntly, my love."

"It's the only way I can treat you, Helen, being as unemotional as I can be; which is not much."

"OK, Doctor; please explain me the clinical process."

"Well the colposcopy is performed with the patient lying on her back, legs in stirrups, and buttocks at the lower edge of the table. I will examine your vulva first,..."

"Oh, you just did that last night, did you see anything wrong there, my dear?"

"Mother, please I'm trying to be serious. Next, I'll place a speculum in your vagina and examine it for any suspicious lesions. Then with an ectocervical biopsy brush, which we use in place of punch forceps during colposcopy, I'll collect a full transepithelial tissue sample to send to a pathology lab for evaluation and diagnosis of possible cervical cancer."

"You think I have cerv..."

"Helen, I don't think anything right now, and you are making this very difficult for me; now do you understand why..."

"Sorry, Love, I'll keep quiet."

"Next I'll perform a colposcopy; this is a medical diagnostic procedure to provide me with an illuminated, magnified view of the cervix and the tissues of the vagina and vulva, you know what that is, don't you?"

"Yes, I know; does it hurt?"

"Not generally, sometimes a little burning after the application of acetic acid if there are any lesions; I'll use a topical anesthetic such as lidocaine or a cervical block to decrease your discomfort, and just to be sure and not have to repeat the exams again, I'll do an endocervical curettage. I'll use a long straight curette or a cytobrush to scrape the inside of the cervical canal. I'll carry all samples to the biopsy lab myself on Monday morning, then we wait."

Helen, silent and thoughtful after her daughter's explanation, shook her head as if to dismiss unpleasant thoughts, and quietly said, "Oh my, my, it's already past noon, what do you say we eat out, and it's my treat?"

"Are you up to going out?"

"Yes, I want to enjoy life with my love and lover; it's been so long!"

So they did.

They went to the clinic midmorning the next day, where Moira performed the necessary exams on her mother. After she had rested for around sixteen hours, they left the clinic with the samples. Helen was tired and in pain, so she went immediately to bed when they got home, and Moira prepared everything for next day.

After dinner, locking doors and windows, Moira went to bed with her mother. Helen was using flannel pajamas and dressings in her crotch to avoid staining the sheets in case of bleeding, and Moira was careful not to do anything that would cause discomfort to her mother. They hugged and went to sleep in each other's arms.

They slept late Monday morning, and Moira went to shower around ten, dressed, and prepared herself for a trying day. She took breakfast to her mother in bed first, and advised her not to get up throughout the day, be careful with the dressings, to carefully wash herself, no shower, and to immediately call her if she noticed any heavy bleeding. Helen nodded at her daughter/doctor's instructions and went to sleep again after Moira gave her a mild sedative.

Moira took her mother's samples and went to the lab. When the assistant asked for the patient's name for the paperwork, Moira gave her own. The girl opened her eyes as big as saucers, and Moira had to tell her it wasn't hers, but a patient's who didn't want it to be known that she was sick. Lab results would take one week.

The working day was a nightmare for Moira, sick with worry about her mother. At about 6 PM, with the last patient gone, she said her goodbyes and drove to her mother's home. When she got to the clinic parking lot, her father, leaving at the same time, approached her car to greet her, and ask about her health. Moira's only contact with her father was on the rare occasions that they crossed paths in the halls of the hospital.

"Hello, Moira, how are you?"

"Hello, Dr. Song, I'm fine and you?"

"I'm well, thank you: do you know anything about your mother?"

"Yes, I go see her most weekends; don't you go home?"

"Well, er ... not lately, it's a long ride, and I have too much work and too little time; besides your mother and I don't have much to say to each other."

"Well, Father, I'll tell her I've seen you, and that you seem to be alright, bye."

"Alright, take care and give your mother my regards."

Moira went to her apartment to see if everything was alright there, took a few clothes and lingerie, and went to her mother's house; her home again after so long. She bought Chinese for dinner on her way, and she was in the house driveway around 7 PM. She entered, checked the locked doors and windows, and went to her mother's bedroom.

Helen was sitting on the bed, surrounded by pillows, watching TV. Her face lit up when she saw her daughter enter. Moira went to the bedside and softly kissed her on the lips.