California woman, 56, reveals how watermelon-sized tumor on her abdomen stopped ... trends now
A woman whose watermelon-sized tumor kept her from being intimate with her boyfriend has been 'given the gift of renewed life' after having the mass removed.
Jennifer, 56, from Coarsegold, California, first noticed a spot growing on the right side of her abdomen in 2014 - which 'exploded in size' in 2019.
By the time she saw a doctor that year the mass had ballooned to nearly 6lbs, at which point she was unable to do work on the farm and felt too self conscious to have sex with her boyfriend Bill.
But when she finally had the growth removed, she said: ‘My confidence level is through the roof. I feel really good.’
And a few weeks after her surgery, Jennifer broke up with Bill.
She said: 'Before when I had the tumor, being intimate wasn't really on my radar too much. I didn't give it a lot of thought.
'And now that I don't have the tumor, it's very freeing.'
Jennifer first noticed a spot growing on the right side of her abdomen in 2014
Jennifer said on this week's episode of TLC's Take My Tumor that she had never received a proper diagnosis of her tumor
Jennifer said after the removal: 'There has been a dramatic improvement in the quality of my life since the tumor was removed. I feel so different now. I feel lighter. My confidence level is through the roof. I feel really good'
Jennifer said on this week's episode of TLC's Take My Tumor that she had never received a proper diagnosis of her tumor and when she visited a doctor in 2019, the physician was shocked - and didn't know who to refer Jennifer to.
Jennifer said: '[In 2019] that's about when it got kind of scary for me.'
Determined to take her life back, however, the ranch owner discovered surgical oncologist Dr Kimberly Dalal, who was able to remove the tumor.
Jennifer said: ‘Things like this affect you in a different way than you would ever imagine psychologically.'
The 5.74-pound tumor was severely interfering with her life. She could no longer venture along her favorite hiking trails with her dog and boyfriend, help around the farm they owned, bend down or lift heavy objects.
It was even hard to walk for extended periods of time.
Additionally, Jennifer said the tumor 'greatly' affected their intimacy as it crushed her confidence and she felt very self conscious around her partner.
The tumor made her feel unattractive, and as the mass grew, so did the distance between the couple.
She hoped removing the mass would restore her self esteem.
For her surgery, Jennifer traveled to San Francisco to meet with Dr Dalal, medical director of surgical oncology at Sutter Health Mills Peninsula Hospital.
After examining Jennifer, Dr Dalal became very concerned over the veins running through the mass and told Jennifer the tumor could be a rare form of cancer. She said it needed to be removed as soon as possible and sent for testing.
Jennifer
