Living with RA and two cancers
The world is filled with magic. The sun rises each day. Each day we do have Just a little say in how it will be. The magic is that we have the day. And this moment alone is ours to be.
Author: Mary Mann
Radoactive Iodine treatment
The pill come in a heavy lead container. The nurse has a glass of water ready. She suggests my son lift the lead container. He does. Then I do. We are both surprised just how heavy it is. She opens the container and tips the pill into my hand. I put it in my mouth and swallow it with the water. We go home. I am now radioactive. I don’t feel any different. I stay in my room for three days. I drink lots of water. I eat sour candies and lemon slices. I try to do all the right things. I also like being in my room so it is not hard for me to be there. My son brings my meals and won’t come within ten feet of me. He doesn’t want to suffer radiation side effects. He also sets his alarm so he can bring me my coffee at 7 am. Thoughtful and important to me. The radiology tech had made it clear to me that I was not to vomit for …
How to tell a charlatan
I met my first charlatan last week. I’m sure I’ve known other ones. A charlatan presents as someone who is an authority on a subject when in fact she’s not. She often times is looking to profit from her faulty information, but not always. This woman approached me at a cancer class. She said my cancer was caused by an imbalance in my body. She could cure me. Doctors were clueless. Nurses were clueless, too. I really needed to go to her program and learn about the acid-alkaline diet. ( A friend had already given me a book on the subject.) I would be better. I would feel better. She didn’t have a card and mentioned she did a lot of other things. She wrote her info on the back of one of her other cards. Contact me, she said. To me the fundamental sign of a charlatan is her attitude that she know best and that all the other resources in the world are bogus. There are too many good resources in the world. …
evolution of a cancer mind
On Thursday I go to the Caring Hearts Cancer Support Group. This is at the Presbyterian Cancer Center in Albuquerque. It runs in blocks of six weeks. Lunch is served and discussion is 1.5 hours. Since I have been going, the hospital chaplain has been the facilitator. She is excellent. I have benefited immeasurably from my visits. The discussion turned to how we felt about our diagnosis. I never had the moment. I seemed to slide from one revelation to the next. I was not angry. I was too confused to be scared. I was always recovering from a treatment. I was exhausted and fatigued. My concern was having to spend my life in that state. I am inclined to believe what people tell me and they did say fine fine fine. First it was the severe rheumatoid arthritis (seven months to become manageable). Next was thyroid cancer. Not bad you will do fine. Next it was breast cancer(small but invasive) You will be fine. Next was more tests. More cancer. We need to move …
breast cancer was next
Where have I been all this time? November 5th I had a follow up CT scan and between April and November, I developed breast cancer. There was a quick response in the medical community to this development. The next Monday I had a mammogram, an ultrasound and a biopsy all in one day. By Wednesday I was diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. The next Monday I met with the surgeon. Then on Tuesday I had a MRI and met with the medical oncologist and then on Thursday I met with the radiology oncologist. Busy! November 25th I had surgery. I had a lumpectomy to be followed by radiation(statistically same results as a mastectomy). A sentinel node biopsy had no additional cancer cells. However, up to 30% of those with negative nodes already have micro metastasis. My cancer biomarkers: estrogen positive, progesterone negative, Her-2/neu negative. Next is the oncotype breast test. It took a month for them to finally tell me my cancer samples were damaged and they were unable to perform the test. Next stop …
Thyroid CA next step
Monday I visited my surgeon. She had my pathology report. I like to see her. She has so much positive energy. She is knowledgeable. She is very helpful. My cancer was not encapsulated and was within a mm of the border. not sure about this.My cancer was also in my lymph glands. So I will have a radioactive treatment. Next stop today was my endocrinologist. The radioactive treatment is complicated. Prep work is detailed and takes time. I will have to become extremely hypo active. I will be on a low iodine diet. There is an injection called Thyroglobulin that costs $2500 that would cut the prep work to a much smaller time. My insurance will pay $1600 of it. I certainly am not able to pay the rest. In addition there will be the cost of the full body scan, $300 under my plan. The drug company has an application for assistance. I filled it out and gave it to my Doc and she will give it to the person who will be getting authorizations. …
Thyroid CA surgery is done
On 10/16/13 Dr. Vasquez operated on me. I say she slit my throat but the appropriate procedure was a total thyroidectomy and central neck resection. I was lucky. I had one of the best surgeons in the southwest doing her magic in my neck. I felt safe. I was supposed to arrive at the hospital at 5:30 a.m. with a clean neck and an empty stomach. The evening before I received a call from the hospital and was told my arrival time was pushed back to 7:30a.m. and my surgery to 9:30a.m. Good I thought, I can sleep in. Next morning I took my designated meds as instructed(BP meds, prednisone, Plaquinil) dressed in loose easy to get into clothes and I am ready to go. As we were loading into cars for the trip down the street and around the corner, my phone beeps and another change in the plan. It is the hospital saying they are ready as soon as I could get there. We are there in 5 minutes. I register and copay. …
An RA life is doable: First year.
This has been a roller coaster year for me. I was lucky in some ways with a sudden and severe onset. There was no question about my diagnosis. I searched and searched the internet looking for clues to my future. My RA is a bad case. I have no remission. All the little joints in my feet and in my hands have been swollen for 9 months. Now I wake up daily to the surprise of what joints will be more swollen and demanding attention that morning. I like to start the day by getting all my little guys moving. My joints love me for it. I feel better sooner. I make my coffee. Love freshly ground French roast beans. It is worth getting up just to have a cup. I feed Emma and Jimmy. Heat my heating pad in the micro. Take my first pill of the day after a blood sugar check. Settle into a warm back, hot coffee and my journal. Multitasking in a happy way. After the leisurely coffee ritual, a …
Did the Dinosaurs have RA?
They did not. They were a healthy species. However, there were some who had holes in their bones similar to those humans who have Gout. The earliest findings of RA in humans was actually in North America in an area know today as Tennessee. Bones found to belong to Native Americans who lived about 6500 years ago or in 4500 BC were authenticated to have RA. Today Native Americans have the highest incidence of RA in any ethnic group. Some argue that RA is a new disease but it seems they are ignoring all the evidence compiled by researchers. RA was also found to be present in Egyptian mummies. We can feel fortunate that we have our RA in the present. Even in the 20th century it was a tough disease to have. Aspirin was consumed in large doses as was Prednisone in the latter part of the century. Prednisone was considered a miracle drug and was used in high doses. Today it is helpful tool in our war chest but in much lower doses. …
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