Cancer at the Junction

Today I have added a link to a relatively new site "Cancer at the Junction"

Normally I do not make links to 'competing' blogs, but 'snusher' and his story are so readable that I thought I would make an exception.

What's more, there have been press releases recently in Australia (and possibly overseas as well) that the incidence of Oesophageal Cancer in Australia is on a dramatic rise and that the main causes to which this is being attributed are:

1. Smoking
2. Obesity and
   
3. Chronic uncontrolled gastric reflux

This is hardly news for people like me, since I am already someone who has experienced this deadly disease and is even now dealing with the legacy of its impact and the consequences of the treatments.

I hate to admit it, but I was one of those who is right up there in the very highest risk category, because I smoked, was obese and had an issue with gastric reflux over a long period.

There are now ads on television to alert people to the fact that having chronic gastric reflux is NOT necessarily something for which you just take Quick Eze or some other low cost antacid treatment.

Seeing your doctor and having the situation examined by experts and treated could literally save your life!

Trust me, you do NOT want to be told that had you seen your doctor earlier when you only had a mild irritation or even a more serious Barret's Oesophagus, things could have been different!

Back in late 2003 when I was told the "glad tidings" that:

• I had oesophageal cancer and
  
• that only 1 in five people (20%) made it past surgery and adjuvant treatments to a situation where they actually lived longer than 5 years after the diagnosis of this illness
• that oesophageal cancer was "rare"

I for one was shocked and surprised out of my brain and to be perfectly frank, scared witless!

Now, four and a bit years later, with my body in considerable pain, my health nothing like what it used to be, and various parts of me deteriorating much faster than I would like them to, I am still living in the hope that I can be one of the 20% who reaches and then surpasses the "five year" milestone.

My advice to ANYONE who currently has a history of chronic gastric reflux, happens to be obese (FAT) and smokes or just ONE of these conditions is simple, DON'T wait until it's too late!

Go and see your doctor NOW and ASK about your situation.

If you walk out of the surgery with advice that at present it's just your binge eating or drinking or something else - thank your lucky stars and think about what you are doing to your body.

If it's more serious, but not yet cancer - continue to thank your lucky stars and LISTEN to the doctor's advice about how to change your life style, if you want to continue to have a life style!

If you do find that you have this "ever more popular" form of cancer - get it assessed and treated if you can and just remember, that there are those of us out there - just a few of us mind, who have been there, are still around and willing to provide some support, as you try and find your way through the nightmare that your life has suddenly become.

It's now March and a new regime

Back in February I was most hopeful of a new drug regime that was giving me relief from the pain and I indicated that it was early days and that we would have to wait and see.

Well we did wait and see and while there was some improvement there was also some backsliding with a return to the need to have 6 - 8 Panadine a day to supplement the Lyrica and the Mobic.

So the other day following a visit to the Oncologist there was yet another change in the regime. The blood test which had been taken a few days prior to the visit showed none of the cancer markers - a good sign as this tended to support the PET scan results which actually showed a reduction in the take up rate of the contrast medium but a more disturbing indicator showed up in the results.

Some of my readers may recall that when I was last operated on for a recurrence of the remnant of the cancerous tissues half of my thyroid had been removed and there was an earnest hope that the remaining half would take care of business.

As many of you know (or if you don't can look up) the thyroid controls just about most of the functions in the body and when it goes out of whack so does the body.

And that is the bad news - the blood tests indicate that either the remnant is not functioning well or is in the process of shutting down.

Thankfully I am advised that these days there is medication available that can assist the thyroid to do its work. So as of yesterday that's another piece of medication which appears to be required daily with strict monitoring to take place to see whether the initial dosage supplied is going to do the job or whether it will have to be increased.

Back to the pain - there has been advice sought and received that more serious medication may be required to so some new drugs have been prescribed which take pain management to a new level - or at least so I am told.

Today is the first day of the new regime and I was told to quit - cold turkey from the other medications and give this new stuff a go - and that would be OK except that it does not kick in for 24 hours. So yesterday and last night was spent trying to cope with just Panadine and let's just say it was bumpy ride.

24 hours have now passed so I have to watch for the effects and the side effects and then report to my doctor at 17:30 tonight - this is called JITM or just in time management since tomorrow is Good Friday and there is no way that he is going to be at work which means I will just have time to get some quick advice on what to do over the holidays because there is NO WAY I want to go through what I had to go through yesterday and last night.

If anyone contacted me today on Skype or similar web cam applications they would have noted the patchy scalp where only tufts of hair remain after bits were torn out in sheer anguish last night.

I know there was not much there to begin with - but the results to day are not going to be classed as 'pretty.

Once again it's early days and the dosage can be raised up and down and supplementation can take place so we will see - let's hope that the pharmaceuticals can on this occasion cope with my requirements.