Health Problems

Frenzied Wombat · Jan 26, 2018

aychamo_aycono said:
Let me ask you all something. What would you pay (monthly) to have 24/7 access to your doctor? Email/Skype/Text? Lets say for simple problems you just call or skype or text, and for big shit the doctor comes sees you at your house or work, and for worse than that you go to the ER. And for labwork you would goto a lab and get negotiated, discounted rates. And how would you feel if there were caps? Like after you initiated communication, say, 5 times in a month there would be another fee (this is to kind of throttle the high maintenance patient).

I just imagine a patient would enjoy that, "Hey I have a bad cold, these are my symptoms" and they can send all the meds to the pharmacy for you. Or "I need birth control refilled" or "I'm due for my adderall refill, everything is fine" and they ask a few questions and then send it in for you. Just curious as a patient what you would expect and what you would value it at.

I pay $2100/year for "concierge" service with my internist. It gets me:
a) Same/next day appointments
b) His personal email and cell phone number
c) A dedicated nurse/admin to deal with any insurance/pharma issues on my behalf
d) "call in" ability for prescriptions. Basically can just call in for "minor" prescriptions and avoid the office visit
e) Hour long physical/psych exams once a year

Basically at one point he told all his patients that he was going "concierge only" cause he wasn't making enough money under Obamacare, and I opted in because he's a great doctor and I didn't want to lose him.

Mrs. Gravy · Jan 26, 2018

Suckymotherfucking day.
My sweet 54 year old cousin died overnight from sepsis associated with the flu.
She was an RN, she died in the hospital in which she lovingly served.
She had Lyme disease complications.

Tragedy for her beloved partner, her parents and her remaining sister. .
They have already suffered the loss of the youngest daughter/sister to cancer and the death of a grandson/son/nephew d/t suicide.
Fuck.

pharmakos · Jan 26, 2018

<3 Mrs. G

Borzak · Jan 26, 2018

State is having big flu outbreak like a lot of areas. So LSU decided they would offer flu shots for the public. So they opened up a closed giant wharehouse store to give the shots. Just me but seemed like a bad idea. They showed on the news thousands and thousands standing in line inside and out of the store to get the flu shot. Wonder how many of them wind up getting the flu from going to get the shot.

Lanx · Jan 26, 2018

pharmakos said:
Well, had my biopsy yesterday, no results til the end of the week probably.

Had my six month check-up scheduled for today, we all forgot to cancel it (went in early because I was complaining about pain). I went anyway since I hadn't had my serum tumor markers checked in a long time, and so I could pick the doctor's brain a bit.

It's pretty much unheard of for testicular cancer to spread to the lymph nodes, so we've been going thus far on the belief that it's probably a non-cancerous tumor called an adrenal adenoma.

My bloodwork today, tho, did not look good. My LDH only is slightly elevated, but my betaHCG went from 1 last time to 26 this time.

So yeah, still a lot of question marks, but that news today about my tumor markers being elevated hit me like a bag of bricks.

My doctor is concerned enough that she's already scheduled a PET scan in February, didn't even want to wait until we officially got the biopsy results back. Doesn't seem like a good sign to me.

What if Lumi is right?

If I have to go through chemotherapy again I might just kill myself first instead.

You go tell your white blood cells to fuck that cancer in the ass, they don't even need to aim, every hole in a cancer cell, is an asshole

Borzak · Jan 27, 2018

Kind of out place with cancer talk, but any recomendations for lotion/moisturizing cream? The dermatologist suggested CeraVe, which works real well kinda. But if I put it on and take a shower the next day/morning it's like I'm waterproof and it's all I can do to scrub it off or the water just beads up like water on a newly waxed car. Any ideas? I have Curel lotion fragrence free I'm about to try next.

moonarchia · Jan 28, 2018

Borzak said:
Kind of out place with cancer talk, but any recomendations for lotion/moisturizing cream? The dermatologist suggested CeraVe, which works real well kinda. But if I put it on and take a shower the next day/morning it's like I'm waterproof and it's all I can do to scrub it off or the water just beads up like water on a newly waxed car. Any ideas? I have Curel lotion fragrence free I'm about to try next.

Keep the CeraVe and get some slip & slides set up around the yard/house.

jayrebb · Jan 30, 2018

Borzak said:
Kind of out place with cancer talk, but any recomendations for lotion/moisturizing cream? The dermatologist suggested CeraVe, which works real well kinda. But if I put it on and take a shower the next day/morning it's like I'm waterproof and it's all I can do to scrub it off or the water just beads up like water on a newly waxed car. Any ideas? I have Curel lotion fragrence free I'm about to try next.

CeraVe (blue writing on the front I'm guessing) is pretty light stuff man. It comes right off my face 24 hours later with just a little urging. If you are putting it on before bed and showering in the morning that could be problematic.

I wish CeraVe worked as well as described here. I could use a waterproof oily coat...as far as other lighter options that are hypo-allergenic I am not sure they are going to exist in a pharmacy/convenience store.

Borzak · Jan 31, 2018

I put it on after a shower in the evening and will take another shower the next night. And put it on again. I feel like it's almost impossible to get clean or feel clean, it just literally beads up water the next night big time. I will spend 15 minutes in a shower with soap and washcloth scrubbing. If I don't when I get out of the shower and dry off it's just not right. I don't think I put that much on and a little in one palm will do half my body. Yeah the cerave in the blue writing in the white container.

jayrebb · Jan 31, 2018

Borzak said:
I put it on after a shower in the evening and will take another shower the next night. And put it on again. I feel like it's almost impossible to get clean or feel clean, it just literally beads up water the next night big time. I will spend 15 minutes in a shower with soap and washcloth scrubbing. If I don't when I get out of the shower and dry off it's just not right. I don't think I put that much on and a little in one palm will do half my body. Yeah the cerave in the blue writing in the white container.

I saw in my cabinet earlier this Vanicream Lite Lotion sample my dermatologist gave me. Might be worth checking out.

https://www.amazon.com/Vanicream-Sensitive-Fragrance-Parabens-Formaldehyde/dp/B003XWG880

It is a lotion and is not greasy. My dermatologist recommended it and I am very satisfied with it.

I really like the way it feels. Initially, it feels thick and like any lotion if you put too much on, it takes a while to sink in. Once rubbed in their is no greasy feeling at all. What makes it great in my opinion is, hours later or the next morning, when I wash my hands, I can still feel that the lotion is there. It didn't just evaporate or completely dissolve. It stays moisturized for a long time.

This lotion is absorbed by the skin quite well and is not greasy so I use it as an all over lotion. The thicker Vanicream I just use on my hands and arms as they tend to get dryer.

moonarchia · Jan 31, 2018

Kuriin any advice on dealing with ankylosing spondylitis?

pharmakos · Jan 31, 2018

well, finally got all my test results, and my adrenal tumor is indeed cancerous. biopsy shows it's still my testicular cancer, spread to a new spot.... which is in a way incredible, because there are only two known cases of seminoma spreading to the adrenal gland. i've got the dubious honor of being the quickest known case in which that's happened... the other two were three years later and nine years later, i haven't even been doing all this for two years yet.

can't help but think i'm fucked, seriously debating just putting a bullet in my skull.

Sludig · Jan 31, 2018

pharmakos said:
well, finally got all my test results, and my adrenal tumor is indeed cancerous. biopsy shows it's still my testicular cancer, spread to a new spot.... which is in a way incredible, because there are only two known cases of seminoma spreading to the adrenal gland. i've got the dubious honor of being the quickest known case in which that's happened... the other two were three years later and nine years later, i haven't even been doing all this for two years yet.

can't help but think i'm fucked, seriously debating just putting a bullet in my skull.

A mixture of humor and seriousness.

Keep it up because someone has to bilk mcdonalds out of all those too good to be true coupons easily duped....

If nothing else i would think if you are this true kind of unlucky snow flake that you maybe could do some good for medical science. If that rare I'm sure cornel or some random place would like to study the case etc. It sucks being in another high stakes gamble, but these days you hear about people winning more than one round with cancer. Just is miserable on the way.

If things get that bad though, and it's truly intolerable. Try my end of life plan to go out in style. ( And seriously is what i might do) Parachute lessons then not pulling the cord on your solo. Go vigilante on known violent felons/pedos and see how many you can get. I always liked the idea of a geriatric brigade of old folks ready to go armed and dropped into enemy states like N Korea and allowed to cause havoc.

Kuriin · Jan 31, 2018

moonarchia said:
Kuriin any advice on dealing with ankylosing spondylitis?

Sorry for lag. Got hit with the flu thanks to the massive surge in patient population in the ER.

Unfortunately, you're really only going to be looking at steroids, NSAIDs, or even some biologics. :\ Physical therapy may help. How severe is your AS?

Frenzied Wombat · Jan 31, 2018

pharmakos said:
well, finally got all my test results, and my adrenal tumor is indeed cancerous. biopsy shows it's still my testicular cancer, spread to a new spot.... which is in a way incredible, because there are only two known cases of seminoma spreading to the adrenal gland. i've got the dubious honor of being the quickest known case in which that's happened... the other two were three years later and nine years later, i haven't even been doing all this for two years yet.

can't help but think i'm fucked, seriously debating just putting a bullet in my skull.

Dude fuck I'm sorry.. I hate cancer with every fiber of my being-- it's taken so many of my family members and each day I wonder when I'll have it too.. Do you know what your prognosis looks like?

pharmakos · Jan 31, 2018

Frenzied Wombat said:
Dude fuck I'm sorry.. I hate cancer with every fiber of my being-- it's taken so many of my family members and each day I wonder when I'll have it too.. Do you know what your prognosis looks like?

the other two people that had seminomas spread to their adrenal glands did okay after, so i guess my projected odds are 100%?

but yeah, really no idea yet. haven't sat down with my doctors for the long talk yet, just got the news on the phone. i doubt they have any idea themselves.

Noodleface · Jan 31, 2018

Well fuck when's the guitar jam meetup

Springbok · Feb 1, 2018

Not about me but figured I’d vent. Old man had a heart attack over thanksgiving, and during that ordeal they noticed a 3cm mass on his right lung. He had a few stints put in so couldn’t biopsy until a few weeks ago.... pet scan in interim looked good, got biopsy back and it was stage 1b lung cancer - better news than I’d hoped for as surgery was still an option. After biopsy though he was coughing up tons of blood which struck me as scary, but figured plavix was the issue. Today he had a double lobectomy to remove the cancer, gets through the gnarly surgery fine, but an hour later blood starts gushing out of the breathing tube. They rush him back in to cut him open again and find a few vessels didn’t cauterize right.... he’s now in icu hooked up to machine keeping him breathing but reading between the lines this doesn’t seem good.

My wife and I are having our first kiddo in May, a boy, and it’ll be my fathers first grandchild....

Thing fucking sucks, cancer fucking sucks. Pharm, I hope you have a good prognosis and can give it a run.

pharmakos · Feb 1, 2018

Noodleface said:
Well fuck when's the guitar jam meetup

how would you explain that one to the wife?

Noodleface · Feb 1, 2018

pharmakos said:
how would you explain that one to the wife?

"someone on the forum has cancer and needs this guitar jam"

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