Monday, February 12, 2001
Mouton Anchors News Bald - news anchorwoman "unwigs" to show viewers that the battle against breast cancer is very real.
posted by Karen Weber Monday, February 12, 2001
Tuesday, February 13, 2001
AICR Statement on JAMA Review of Studies on Vegetables, Fruits and Breast CancerFood and Breast Cancer Studied
Reliability assessment of soluble c-erbB-2 concentrations in the saliva of healthy women and men - using her2/neu concentrations in the saliva to predict recurrence of breast cancer.
Jefferson and Burnham Institute scientists find protein may predict long-term survival for early-stage breast cancer - new marker has higher reliability in predicting survival in node negative women than p53, estrogen receptors, Her2/Neu, the disease "stage," and Bcl-2.
Well, tomorrow Rick has a colonoscopy. He is having to start screening a few years early due to a bad family history. He should be home any minute now to start drinking the large jug of icky tasting stuff that's sitting in our refrigerator. I'll take him over to the hospital tomorrow at 6:30am and he'll go for the procedure at 8am. On Valentine's Day! Can you believe that scheduling?
I got a call from my folks this morning. My dad was diagnosed with actinic keratinosis (a pre-cancerous skin lesion) on his lower lip a few weeks ago. He was offered surgery, laser removal, freezing it off with liquid nitrogen, or (what the doctor recommended) a cream to put on the lesion daily for a month. He went with the Efudex cream, which is a topical version of 5-FU, a chemotherapy drug that is the "F" in the CMF and CAF chemo cocktails that are commonly used for breast cancer. He is two weeks into the month, and his entire lower lip is blistered and scabbed over. He saw the PA today, who told him that was an indication that the lesion was larger than they originally thought. Everywhere that is blistered or scabbed is involved instead of just the small area they originally identified. So I'm glad he went with the topical treatment!
I had some excitement myself over the weekend, so I'll be making another visit to the cardiologist. We had gone out to lunch and were shopping at Trader Joe's. I felt fine. Got done shopping and was waiting to check out. All of the sudden I felt that if I did not sit down immediately I was going to faint. Found a bench and let Rick finish the checkout. When we got home, my BP was extremely low and my pulse rate was high. I spent the rest of the day in the La-Z-Boy chair with my legs up. My BP eventually normalized by my pulse stayed high through Monday afternoon. I talked to the cardiologist's nurse Monday, and got my instructions: call immediately if the BP drops like that again and take it easy until I see the doctor on Wednesday. Today my BP is a little higher than its usual low rate, but my pulse is still about 20 beats higher than usual. I'm trying very hard not to panic about this. I didn't sleep well last Thursday due to arm pain. Neither Rick or I felt good on Friday. So maybe I just have a little bug that is stressing my system. We'll find out tomorrow.
posted by Karen Weber Tuesday, February 13, 2001
Wednesday, February 14, 2001
Rick survived his colonoscopy, but they couldn't complete the test. They couldn't make it around the final curve, so he'll have to go back and have a lower GI (barium enema) in a few months. But what they could see was all clear and he doesn't have to do this again for 5 years assuming the lower GI turns out normal.After I dropped Rick off at home, I had lunch with my Bible study group. Brought home some tortilla soup for Rick. Then I was off to the cardiologist. My BP is still a little higher than normal (but since I normally run low, that's no biggie) and so is my pulse rate. The cardiologist ordered a CBC to see if the anemia that was present post-surgically has resolved and a CMP to make sure my electrolytes are OK. He also said that we'll do the MUGA scan now instead of waiting until April. He said that maybe I just can't be up on my feet that long now. I'm usually up longer than that when I sing at church, but I wasn't going to quibble with him until we see the MUGA and know what's happening.
I also got a call from the PET center saying that I'm scheduled for next Tuesday. They left a message, so I'll call tomorrow and get all the details.
posted by Karen Weber Wednesday, February 14, 2001
Thursday, February 15, 2001
Physician gender influences type of breast cancer surgery advised for older womenMolecular Action and Clinical Relevance of Aromatase Inhibitors (1998: The Oncologist)
Mucositis: Its Occurrence, Consequences, and Treatment in the Oncology Setting - an overview of "sore mouth" during chemotherapy. Written for doctors, but good information for patients as well.
Oral Toxicity Associated With Chemotherapy
ASCO and ACOG Update: Breast Cancer Screening and Prevention - includes this quote: ""I believe very strongly in the 'minority report' position that a 17 percent reduction in breast cancer mortality in younger women should not be considered trivial," stated David H. Moore, M.D., associate professor of obstetric/gynecology and chief of gynecologic oncology at Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Ind. Moore strongly opposes the NIH consensus panel's recommendation against universal mammography for women in their forties." Finally - sanity!
Terry's Photo Gallary - another angel from Friends in Need shares her "hair/no hair" pictures.
posted by Karen Weber Thursday, February 15, 2001
Friday, February 16, 2001
Rick was having pain and cramping yesterday. Since you aren't supposed to have any pain after a colonoscopy, I made him call the doctor. The doctor said that he expected Rick would have some pain for several days due to the trouble they had advancing the camera. Rick has what's called a redundant colon - meaning it is extra long. It also loops back on itself. He has vague memories of nurses pressing hard on his belly while they were trying to advance the camera. He also seems to remember hearing that they would need another meter (!) of the cord or whatever in order to finish the test. So apparently this isn't ever going to be easy for him. I'm glad that he doesn't have to do it more than every 5 years.My cardiologist called me yesterday. I'm still anemic, but the numbers are on their way up. My WBCs have normalized, which is great. I am still waiting for a date on the MUGA. I'm to continue to take it easy until we have the results on that. He also told me to increase my fluid intake (I already drink over 2 liters a day and spend a good amount of time running for the bathroom!) and to stop taking the heart pill (Zestril) until we know what's happening.
Prognostic Factors: To Each Patient Her Therapy
Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Tool
posted by Karen Weber Friday, February 16, 2001