I got the news I have been waiting for. The labs look good, the scan looks good. I'm clean. It's done.
We will check things annually just to be sure, but for now, it's over.
And I want to celebrate :) So...
I'm off to CT tomorrow to play pony until I drop! Given some of the people I'll be playing with, that may not take long, but I will certainly give it all I've got.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Glow Little Glow Worm...
The pill went down very easily this morning.
It was a black capsule a little smaller than the vitamin I take each morning. There was little fanfare beyond the shield container the technician carried it in. The pill itself was in the bottom of a small plastic tube. I picked up the tube and a small cup of water, tipped the tube into my mouth and then drank the water. That was it.
That was a good thing. If I had had to do anything more complicated than that, it would have been very difficult. I have walked the Earth like a zombie for the last couple of days due to the preparatory medication I received. Hormones are a complicated issue. In this case, medication was given to raise one hormone level so that any stray thyroid cells still clinging to life in my body would be stimulated to absorb the radioactive iodine I swallowed. They would then find life impossible to cling to any longer. Trouble is, raising that particular hormone level causes fatigue. In my case, in spades. And it turns out that my own endogenous supply of that particular hormone is through the roof for some reason. The normal level ranges from 0.3 to 3. You are considered hypothyroid if your level rises above 3. Mine was 11 last Friday despite daily medication, which is supposed to suppress it. The doctor's office called today to say that they are increasing the dose of my daily medication as a result.
Damn. I just got that prescription refilled yesterday. Oh well, that's what adjusting hormone levels is about. And the stuff is pretty cheap as medicines go. And at least I know it's not just my imagination.
So now I sit here irradiating my environment, a walking, talking hot zone for the next three days. Fortunately, there is little danger to my computer unless I vomit, pee or sweat profusely on it. So I can remain connected.
Right now, a nap seems in order.
It was a black capsule a little smaller than the vitamin I take each morning. There was little fanfare beyond the shield container the technician carried it in. The pill itself was in the bottom of a small plastic tube. I picked up the tube and a small cup of water, tipped the tube into my mouth and then drank the water. That was it.
That was a good thing. If I had had to do anything more complicated than that, it would have been very difficult. I have walked the Earth like a zombie for the last couple of days due to the preparatory medication I received. Hormones are a complicated issue. In this case, medication was given to raise one hormone level so that any stray thyroid cells still clinging to life in my body would be stimulated to absorb the radioactive iodine I swallowed. They would then find life impossible to cling to any longer. Trouble is, raising that particular hormone level causes fatigue. In my case, in spades. And it turns out that my own endogenous supply of that particular hormone is through the roof for some reason. The normal level ranges from 0.3 to 3. You are considered hypothyroid if your level rises above 3. Mine was 11 last Friday despite daily medication, which is supposed to suppress it. The doctor's office called today to say that they are increasing the dose of my daily medication as a result.
Damn. I just got that prescription refilled yesterday. Oh well, that's what adjusting hormone levels is about. And the stuff is pretty cheap as medicines go. And at least I know it's not just my imagination.
So now I sit here irradiating my environment, a walking, talking hot zone for the next three days. Fortunately, there is little danger to my computer unless I vomit, pee or sweat profusely on it. So I can remain connected.
Right now, a nap seems in order.
Friday, January 1, 2010
Treatment??
Oh yeah...I left that little detail out, didn't I?
Yes, treatment. If you recall, I mentioned that something beyond the thyroid surgery might be necessary. Well, it turns out that it is necessary. No doubt about it.
I got a call from my doctor to discuss the pathology report on my now defunct thyroid. She was stunned by what the report said. It turns out that I had not two, but four tumors and all of them were malignant. None of them were very big, but apparently so many in one thyroid is not at all common. In addition, there was evidence of extension (meaning spread) that made it impossible for them to rule out the possibility that the cancer had gotten into my neck.
So here is the score. I am a male of almost 51 years with a multi-focal cancer of the thyroid. You can stop right there and send in the troops with guns blazing. That's enough to warrant further testing and treatment.
That means radioactive iodine. Wait until you hear how that goes. It should be interesting. My cat will have to move out for a few days so that I don't poison her. Nobody can get within 7 feet of me for that same time period lest they suffer exposure to gamma radiation. It would be a logistical nightmare if I had other people living at home with me, but as it is, it should be pretty easy to deal with. I'm no stranger to isolation.
I live in Maine, after all, and it's winter!
More later. With any luck, I'll actually have something about pony play to write soon. The Winter Flea is coming up, and I am planning on being there. Right now, I'm angling to make sure this treatment thing is out of the way before then.
Goals are a good thing.
Yes, treatment. If you recall, I mentioned that something beyond the thyroid surgery might be necessary. Well, it turns out that it is necessary. No doubt about it.
I got a call from my doctor to discuss the pathology report on my now defunct thyroid. She was stunned by what the report said. It turns out that I had not two, but four tumors and all of them were malignant. None of them were very big, but apparently so many in one thyroid is not at all common. In addition, there was evidence of extension (meaning spread) that made it impossible for them to rule out the possibility that the cancer had gotten into my neck.
So here is the score. I am a male of almost 51 years with a multi-focal cancer of the thyroid. You can stop right there and send in the troops with guns blazing. That's enough to warrant further testing and treatment.
That means radioactive iodine. Wait until you hear how that goes. It should be interesting. My cat will have to move out for a few days so that I don't poison her. Nobody can get within 7 feet of me for that same time period lest they suffer exposure to gamma radiation. It would be a logistical nightmare if I had other people living at home with me, but as it is, it should be pretty easy to deal with. I'm no stranger to isolation.
I live in Maine, after all, and it's winter!
More later. With any luck, I'll actually have something about pony play to write soon. The Winter Flea is coming up, and I am planning on being there. Right now, I'm angling to make sure this treatment thing is out of the way before then.
Goals are a good thing.
Thoughts for the Weekend
I do hope I can get into my driveway when I get home today. No peace for the wicked - or for those who work in the emergency business.
It is supposed to snow all weekend so I have decided to take a positive approach. I will be home and pretty much curled up with the cat for both days. Although I usually enjoy breakfast out on Saturday morning, that won't be possible tomorrow as I am now on a low iodine diet pending my treatment.
If you have never been on a low iodine diet, it's a trip. No dairy, no canned goods, no soy products other than soy lecithin, nothing from the sea including sea salt, restricted meat intake, restricted grain intake, nothing with red dye #3, no commercially baked goods, no restaurant food, no pre-packaged food, and so on. You really have to read labels. Basically, you have to cook everything from scratch, and I do mean everything.
That's not a bad thing, though. Some serious shopping and a little time on one's hands can put a dent in this. I already have a freezer full of low iodine food and will spend most of this weekend putting more of it together. I will bake bread, prepare chili and corn bread, make chicken soup (I made the stock over the last two days) and probably produce another batch of pasta sauce in the slow cooker my sister bought me for Christmas.
That ought to make the house smell like someplace I'd like to be.
Other than bread, baked goods are something of a challenge. Egg yolks are off limits, so making a muffin that is not rubbery can be difficult. Most egg substitutes are off limits because they contain either salt, soy or whey proteins. For cookies, the only shortening that can be used is Spectrum (available at John Edwards), which is a palm oil shortening - and costs about $7 a tub. I guess that's one way to keep to the lower calorie side of things. Also, I am learning to substitute Splenda for sugar in baking - a fraught process for certain.
You learn a lot about the foods you eat when you have to be this careful and I'm glad this diet will only be necessary for a few weeks each year. It will be needed in preparation for annual iodine uptake scans for the next few years as we watch to make certain that the cancer does not start up again. You learn where to find the things that you thought were common (like tortillas that are actually made from corn flour) but turn out not to be, really. You learn how much salt the average breakfast cereal contains (any salt puts a cereal in the 'no eat' zone). You find out exactly which brands of granola (yes, I eat that) are ok in this situation and which are best left alone. And it doesn't hurt to have a little - ok, a lot - of help from the low iodine cookbook that I got for free online. It's times like this, though, when I wish my kitchen wasn't quite so small.
Still, I shall prevail, and it will be fun.
It is supposed to snow all weekend so I have decided to take a positive approach. I will be home and pretty much curled up with the cat for both days. Although I usually enjoy breakfast out on Saturday morning, that won't be possible tomorrow as I am now on a low iodine diet pending my treatment.
If you have never been on a low iodine diet, it's a trip. No dairy, no canned goods, no soy products other than soy lecithin, nothing from the sea including sea salt, restricted meat intake, restricted grain intake, nothing with red dye #3, no commercially baked goods, no restaurant food, no pre-packaged food, and so on. You really have to read labels. Basically, you have to cook everything from scratch, and I do mean everything.
That's not a bad thing, though. Some serious shopping and a little time on one's hands can put a dent in this. I already have a freezer full of low iodine food and will spend most of this weekend putting more of it together. I will bake bread, prepare chili and corn bread, make chicken soup (I made the stock over the last two days) and probably produce another batch of pasta sauce in the slow cooker my sister bought me for Christmas.
That ought to make the house smell like someplace I'd like to be.
Other than bread, baked goods are something of a challenge. Egg yolks are off limits, so making a muffin that is not rubbery can be difficult. Most egg substitutes are off limits because they contain either salt, soy or whey proteins. For cookies, the only shortening that can be used is Spectrum (available at John Edwards), which is a palm oil shortening - and costs about $7 a tub. I guess that's one way to keep to the lower calorie side of things. Also, I am learning to substitute Splenda for sugar in baking - a fraught process for certain.
You learn a lot about the foods you eat when you have to be this careful and I'm glad this diet will only be necessary for a few weeks each year. It will be needed in preparation for annual iodine uptake scans for the next few years as we watch to make certain that the cancer does not start up again. You learn where to find the things that you thought were common (like tortillas that are actually made from corn flour) but turn out not to be, really. You learn how much salt the average breakfast cereal contains (any salt puts a cereal in the 'no eat' zone). You find out exactly which brands of granola (yes, I eat that) are ok in this situation and which are best left alone. And it doesn't hurt to have a little - ok, a lot - of help from the low iodine cookbook that I got for free online. It's times like this, though, when I wish my kitchen wasn't quite so small.
Still, I shall prevail, and it will be fun.
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