Stories of Hope – Page 12 – The Metastatic Breast Cancer Journey

April 28, 2022May 11, 2022

Failed!

If you’ve been keeping up with my blog, you know that yesterday I went in for a procedure to remove a large polyp in my colon. At first it looked like the polyp was about 2 cm, but after further digging and evaluating it is estimated between 6-7 cm. It goes around a corner where the colon folds. Apparently my body is good at growing things inside. 😪 I wish I could transfer my luck to the lottery!

There are only 1-2 doctors in the whole world who do this procedure. They send challenging cases to this doctor because he is very good at what he does. MD Anderson is noted to be best in the world. I trust them. Dr. Ge has a 95% success rate for removing difficult polyps, and he was quite confident going in that he would be able to remove it, with minimal risks.

He explained the reasons for staying on a liquid diet after the procedure, to avoid tearing or lacerations, etc. We don’t want all that “stuff” to end up inside. I wasn’t looking forward to the recovery time.

The reason this polyp is a challenge is due to the fold in the colon. It’s on the far right side of my body, and hard to access. Apparently, there is a lot of scar tissue in addition to some markers around this polyp, so it appears this one has been worked on before. It has been likely growing for a long time. It is probably a continuation or regrowth of the polyp I had the very first time I had a colonoscopy eight years ago, which my previous doctor had “removed.” Dr. Ge said he would not have let this go five years between colonoscopies. Lesson learned!

I was under general anesthesia and had a very nice nap. I couldn’t tell you what I dreamt. I was having a nice chat with the anesthesia assistant about the blizzard of ’78 in southern Ohio (he was born in Dayton, just 30 minutes from my home town). The next thing I knew I was waking up and it was all over. Dr. Ge waited until I was more awake to talk to me, and then he went over 15 pages which document the procedure with pictures. It’s pretty cool, really, what they can do with those cameras and toys.

Anyway, he showed me the steps he took to try and remove it. He tried several methods and techniques as well as some expensive tools that other gastroenterologists don’t have access to. Long story short, after two and a half hours he realized it was not going to happen. He removed some pieces of it, and a couple of other polyps as well which they sent to pathology. I should get those results back in about a week.

I apologized for messing up his success rate. 😪 😫 He chuckled. He said this is the reason he gets all the tough cases. But he admitted he had never seen anything like this in all his years of working. (He looks young, so I’m not sure how long that is 🤪.) It was definitely something that he wasn’t expecting. Who knows, I may end up in some medical journal because of it.

The next step is go back to the colorectal surgeon for another consult. There was some talk about whether it is worth doing the surgery due to my current metastatic breast cancer diagnosis. I was a little offended by that, to be honest, as I believe I have a lot of years left! I don’t want this thing to turn into colon cancer. That’s how my grandfather died. But what are the risks of that?

Here’s what I found on Healthline. According to the Colon Cancer Alliance, the risk of developing colon cancer is one in 20. Doctors screen for this type of cancer by looking for polyps in the colon and rectum. Like most forms of cancer, early detection can make a big difference in survival rates. If identified at the local stage, the five-year survival rate is 90 percent. However, if identified at a later stage when the cancer has spread, the five-year survival rate is 12 percent. PSA: Get your colonoscopy!

So much to consider. If we do it, we will schedule surgery to have part of my colon removed. Stay tuned and I’ll keep you posted. The upside? I get to eat today with no restrictions.

We never give up. Our bodies are gradually dying, but we ourselves are being made stronger each day. These little troubles are getting us ready for an eternal glory that will make all our troubles seem like nothing. Things that are seen don’t last forever, but things that are not seen are eternal. This is why we keep our minds on the things that cannot be seen.
II Corinthians 4:16-18 CEV

À la prochaine…until next time.

April 26, 2022April 26, 2022

Noon Tomorrow

the metastatic breast cancer journey banner

Someone asked me at church on Sunday for an update on my colon situation. I was on her prayer list, and she wanted to know when my procedure is. I am always impressed by the saints who pray for me on a daily basis. I know they don’t do it for that reason, but I’m sure there will be some extra jewels in their crowns when they get to Heaven.

It’s scheduled for noon tomorrow (Wednesday). I have to check-in at 11:00. At least we’ll miss the morning rush hour. They will access my port, and then I’ll get a nice long nap! Tim will drive me there and back. Apparently they don’t want me to get a DUI 😳.

On a walk through the Houston Botanic Garden, yesterday.

It seems like a lifetime ago when I found out I have a polyp in my colon that needs to be removed. Previous blogs have addressed the problem, consults, and where we are today. Dr. Ge didn’t bring me in for another consult; he just scheduled the procedure. I’m always grateful when I can avoid a trip to the downtown center.

It’s called a FLEXIBLE COLONOSCOPY WITH ENDOSCOPIC MUCOSAL RESECTION. It’s a little more than a colonoscopy, but less than major surgery. If they can’t get the whole polyp, they may have to do surgery to remove part of my colon. Let’s pray they get the whole thing! I have to stay in the Houston area for the first 48 hours, just in case there are problems. We have our RV down here, so that’s convenient. Praying for no problems!

The procedure will take about three hours. That seems like a long time, especially compared to the regular colonoscopies. We should be done just in time for the afternoon rush hour. I guess we can’t have it both ways. 🤷‍♀️ *sigh*

I am prepping…again. This time is different. I’ll have the beef consommé, the Miralax/ Gatorade cocktail, and a side of Dulcolax, s’il vous plait. Still waiting for it to “kick in” at this writing.

No food. Only clear liquids all day today (hence the consommé), as well as the next couple of days after the procedure. Then I can slowly ramp up to a normal diet by day six. I do have some popsicles and jello!

Tim conveniently had a meeting tonight, so he gets to miss all the fun 🤪😁. He will be feeding himself for a few days, so I stocked the freezer with some Aussie meat pies and Texas steaks. He’ll be fine.

À la prochaine…until next time.

April 25, 2022April 29, 2022

Grandkids and Easter and Updates on Life

The past few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind. I went off of Facebook during the Lent season and quite frankly enjoyed the break. Several people told me they missed me, and wanted an update on my medical progress while I was gone. I also missed chatting with the ladies in my metastatic breast cancer support group, and providing encouragement to newly diagnosed women as well.

I’m back, but it may look different. I may not be quite as active on my home page as before. I hope to be more active on my Books by Lucinda group. I’ll be blogging here more regularly (not everyone is on Facebook anyway). In addition, I’m giving more attention to other projects. And certainly, not last or least, my family has been keeping me busy. “Je suis très occupé!”

Here’s a quick recap of the last few weeks (in addition to living with cancer) since I didn’t post on Facebook.

We went to Orlando for the Exponential conference and saw some of our friends.
We took another quick trip to Arkansas to see Tim’s mom (her health is declining).
I attended a professional conference in Fort Worth for Texas marriage and family therapists.
I walked through the bluebonnets.
We had several grandkid visits, including a sleepover with the girls.
We celebrated birthdays.
We attended multiple services for Easter and enjoyed our family Easter.
We helped at a kids event at our church.
I spoke at a Relay for Life event (fund raiser for the American Cancer Society), and attended one of the main events.

I hope you enjoy the pictures! Please comment below! Also, if you subscribe to my blog you will get notified when I post something new. I promise I won’t sell your email address.

À la prochaine…until next time!

Rise up with Jesus, Easter event at church

Russ, Denys, Dawn and Rob. Such good times with all our “old” friends.

*Orlando friends! Bob, Arlene, and Cheryl. We ate at a wonderful Mediterranean restaurant.*

Beautiful lights at the Mediterranean restaurant.

Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush, Ennis, on my way back from the TAMFT conference.

Alison turned seven, so we took her for a horse-back riding lesson. All Texans should ride at least once! She’s a natural! The trainer had her walking over obstacles and turning within the hour.

Relay for Life. Thanks Cherie for being such a good friend!

April 14, 2022

Still Stable!

Today consists of another visit with my wonderful oncologist, along with blood work and chemotherapy. It’s the first time Tim has been to the doctor with me in quite a while. Maybe two years? First, he stopped coming due to Covid, then it became more of a habit, and too convenient to drop me off (or he was out of town). Finally, MD Anderson opened up and started allowing one person to accompany patients. They even took away their plastic shields.

This was also my first visit since my scans back in February. I wasn’t concerned. Well, maybe a little. But, if there was an issue he would have called me. The dude never sleeps. No news is typically good news, especially with such a great doctor. He continues to tell me how well I am responding to the treatment, and he is pleased with my progress.

All my scans look good. You don’t have to read any further to know my body is still stable. Having said that…

They always see evidence of cancer in my bones. Likely it is where the cancer was and not is. Cancer eats away the bone, and therefore my bones are always a concern. Bone density shows I have osteopenia (which I have had for several years). He is referring me to a bone specialist downtown just to make sure we aren’t missing anything. (Add another specialist to the list!) He doesn’t think it will change any of the treatment, but this is their speciality so…It might impact how often, or if, I get the Zometa.

The CT scan did find a new spot in the space between my lung and lining of the lung. It is less than 5 mm. The tip of a pencil is about 2-3 mm, so that tells you how small it is. If I wasn’t getting scanned all the time, we would likely not even know this exists. There is nothing to do with it, except watch it to see if it grows. It could be anything. Left over from an infection. Cancer. Benign something or other. Who knows? It’s too small to biopsy, and even if it was negative this would not change anything. The radiologist impression basically says to watch it.

We had a lengthy and entertaining discussion about Covid, Dr. Fauci, the CDC, wearing masks, and other life events. Of course we also talked about my treatment, and when to know if someone is “cured” from metastatic disease, etc. And we pondered whether to stop treatment, or if I am even a candidate to *ever* stop treatment.

Researchers will likely never know how long we should be on Arimadex, Herceptin and Perjeta. The reason for this is multi-faceted. Our population is small. Also, due to the complexity of the disease there is an inability to do effective research. Would you be willing to participate in a randomized sample, where you may be in the group who stops treatment, just to see if your disease progresses?

Um…no thank you! So, the research will never be done. Who would participate in a study like that? We will likely never know if, or when, we can stop treatment.

Bottom line. I will never be considered “cured” because there is always going to be evidence of disease in my system. (I suppose the Lord could completely heal my bones and evidence would disappear. But I will accept whatever He does.)

We concluded I will never stop treatment, because even if I don’t have disease showing up in my system the treatment is keeping it asleep.

He did remind us to live life. Don’t worry about missing a dose if we go on a lengthy vacation, etc. Don’t do it on a regular basis, but don’t let treatment prevent you from visiting places like Australia. If they ever open up enough for us to get in.

Oops! I need to go put on my Lidocaine cream. Almost time for treatment!

À la prochaine…See you next time!

March 29, 2022March 29, 2022

ECHO Echo echo

It seems like I keep repeating myself. Scan, rinse, repeat. Every…six…months. Another half-day of scans and a doctor visit. It may sound a bit redundant after a while.

However, there is an upside to today’s story. They didn’t do contrast (so no IVs or pokes) and they included a scan of my carotid arteries as well. It’s the first time I’ve had this one. Due to family history, my cardiologist ordered this test along with the echocardiogram. Note: The echocardiogram is not the same as an EKG. This involves a 30 minute ultrasound of the heart and nearby arteries. Breathe in, hold your breath, breathe. Breathe out, hold your breath, breathe normally. It sounds more relaxing than reality when they are jabbing your ribs with the goop and a wand.

I’m happy to say my echo looks good. Yes, that is a bit of an echo (insert rimshot) which I’m pleased to report. Treatment can continue.

The carotid scan is also an ultrasound, looking at both arteries on the left and right sides. The right side looks good. The scan detected some plaque on the left side, but it looks small enough not to worry about. That’s what the tech said, as he showed it to me on the screen. It looks like less than 50%. I’ll know more when the doctor gets the results, but it doesn’t seem to be cause for concern.

I am comforted by the care they give me at MD Anderson. I know the Lord put me here at just such a time as this. I’m also happy to be in our RV on the day I had to be downtown for all these appointments. Thirty minutes to the downtown medical center is not nearly as bad as driving from Conroe. Yay! Another upside.

On another note, I saw the colorectal surgeon at MD Anderson for a consult last Friday, and she concurred with the external surgeon’s opinion. They both agree I should get a colonoscopy with a specialist, to remove the polyp, and only do surgery if it is required at that point. They have specialists at MD Anderson who do this, who are not surgeons.

While private practitioners shouldn’t do surgery if it is not necessary, they can do it if they think it is necessary. Tim noted they get paid more money to do surgery versus a colonoscopy so there’s that 🤷‍♀️. Just saying…

MD Anderson doctors are paid on salary, so they don’t have a need to justify surgery unless, well, it’s justified. They have specialists at MD Anderson who are trained to dig deep enough to get out large polyps, but they are not surgeons, so they would not do surgery while I’m incapacitated. I wouldn’t really want to wake up thinking I had a polyp removed and discover nearly half my colon was also missing 😳. Although it could be a good weight loss plan 🤷‍♀️. Hmmm 🤔.

At any rate, I will go back downtown for another consult with the specialist, and then most likely go in for the procedure (colonoscopy) to remove the polyp. That sounds much better than losing 40% of my colon. I’m hoping and praying that is sufficient. Stay tuned on that one as well.

Medical stuff is a constant waiting game! First this scan or this doctor, then the next. Wait for results (still waiting on CT and bone scan as well as today’s carotid). Wait for the consult. Wait for the procedure. Wait, wait, wait. (Do I hear another echo?)

What does the Bible have to say about this? For one, worrying won’t make us live longer (Matt. 6:27). And Paul tells us not to worry, but to cast our cares on the Lord (Phil. 4:6). Also, you may remember the story when King Saul jumped in too quickly and failed to wait for Samuel to offer a sacrifice, so he missed out on the blessing of a forever kingdom (I Samuel 13:8-14).

I don’t want to miss out on a blessing. Maybe by waiting I’ll keep my entire colon intact. Maybe I’ll meet someone along the way who needs a word of encouragement. Whatever it is, I’m going to give it to the Lord and wait… patiently. Perhaps in the waiting, I will not miss out on a blessing.

Will you wait patiently for the Lord and look for your blessing?

“That was stupid!” Samuel said. “You didn’t obey the Lord your God. If you had obeyed him, someone from your family would always have been king of Israel. But no, you disobeyed, and so the Lord won’t choose anyone else from your family to be king. In fact, he has already chosen the one he wants to be the next leader of his people.”
I Samuel 13:13-14 CEV

À la prochaine…until next time!

March 27, 2022March 29, 2022

The Four Boys

Sometimes Tim and I visit model homes to get decorating ideas. That’s what we did on this beautiful Sunday afternoon while we were waiting for our granddaughter’s party to start. But, wait, this is titled “The Four Boys,” so it has nothing to do with our beautiful granddaughter who just turned seven, or the Urban Air experience, or the yummy chocolate cake, or watching children float down the zip line and run through the mazes.

Four young teenage boys from different cultural backgrounds were friends. They were wandering the street when we pulled up to the first house on model row. One was riding a bike; another was carrying a plastic baseball bat; and they were having some fun interacting with the model hosts as well as guests. We were the only guests at the moment.

They told us we would have to pay an entrance fee. They informed us we would need a million dollars to buy that house. They told us not to go inside because they were asked to leave. They were harmless, really, just hanging out and having some fun. But boys will be boys, and the agents were concerned they might accidentally break something.

After some friendly banter, off they went, and we went inside the first house.

I didn’t think more about it until we were walking down the path to the second and third house. The boys turned back around and began interacting with us. They seemed willing and even eager to engage us in conversation, so I turned back to greet them before following Tim into the model home.

I immediately picked out who was who, and decided to have some fun with them as well. Mr. Knuckles reached out his hand to shake mine, then winced as we shook hands; he showed me the sores on his knuckles. As it turns out, he was trying to adopt me as his mom so he could get inside the house. I nearly had to pry him away.

Before I went in, I felt the urge to talk with them more. I asked the boys, “You say these houses are expensive, right?”

Yeah…they all nodded their heads in agreement.

“You need at least a half-million dollars to own one, right?”

More nods. More playful hits on their friends’ arms and chest.

“Okay, so I’m going to give you a little lesson on your future. One day you’ll look back on this day and remember the crazy lady that stood in front of the model home, and you’ll thank me for this.” They got a laugh out of that, but they stuck around for more.

“I’m going to ask you a question, and I want you to think about it seriously.”

Intrigue seemed to increase.

“Look at this house. Look at it closely. What do you need to do…right now…and in the future…to buy one of these homes?” I asked.

They came up with several answers. Mr. Afro said, “play in the NFL” and “be an entrepreneur,” as Mr. Cheeseball wearing the AC/DC shirt came up with anything from selling drugs to being a porn star. He didn’t get the reaction he was seeking from me. Mr. Knuckles kept begging to be my adopted kid.

Mr. Intuitive on the bike seemed most interested as well as sincere when he said, “Save money. Get a job. Go to college.”

“Great ideas!” I said. You’re going to go places. I thought.

This conversation continued as I challenged the boys to start thinking about their future now. Today. What do they need to do to go to college (get good grades), and what if the NFL doesn’t call (if they do, you can buy a house for all your friends). Or what if that drug deal goes south. You need a better plan.

Mr. Intuitive seemed to listen the most intently, but I think the others maybe heard as well. I challenged him to think about that, to plan for his future, and to remember this conversation.

Take your future seriously. Keep a mental picture of this house, and what you need to do to buy one some day. Be smart. Don’t wait until you’re thirty and wonder what you are going to do with your life.

I said a few more things to encourage them, and then I went inside the model wondering if that conversation had an impact. Sometimes it takes just one person to leave a mark.

I know they left a soft spot in me. I truly wondered if those kids will grow up and make something of their lives. They are just hanging out, enjoying life on a Sunday afternoon. They have no idea what lies ahead of them. Will they take life for granted, or take it by the horns?

It is for moments like these that I believe I am still alive today.

As we were exiting the home, the boys were still out there. We had a few more exchanges, then Mr. Afro told me his name so I could remember him when he’s a famous NFL player. I think he was listening.

Mr. Intuitive said he would remember our talk. I looked him square in the eyes and told him he had some potential. I can see it in him. He is going to do something great with his life.

He’s already looking for ways to make money. He tried to guess my age for $20. He missed by four years.

I would have given it to him if he was right.

À la prochaine… Until next time.

March 25, 2022April 14, 2022

Dr. Who, I Mean You

My daughter introduced me to Dr. Who years ago. We watched the whole series. The knowledge has come in handy from time to time, as I now know what a Tardis is, amongst other things. It was hard to imagine Dr. Who as Queen Elizabeth’s husband in “The Crown” series, but there he was! I kept imagining he would find a red phone booth somewhere in London and poof!

Sometimes I wish I could be transported into the future when technology can eliminate the need for doctors. But for now, it’s the life I live. One specialist after another. I’ve kind of lost count, but I have many doctors following me, and they all have their niche reasons. It’s a full-time job being my own personal assistant. Fortunately, I have a calendar to keep me straight. Most of the time.

Dr. You is a colorectal surgeon at MD Anderson. She comes to The Woodlands once or twice a week, so I agreed to see her. My oncologist referred me to her when I told him about the polyp in my colon. I liked Dr. Knapp (see previous post), but it doesn’t hurt to have a second opinion.

As it turns out, MD Anderson has a team of specialists who can remove challenging polyps laparoscopically. This can help me to avoid surgical removal of part of my colon. That’s the hope anyway! Dr. You referred me to Dr. Gee. (It’s not pronounced “Jee” like I thought. The G is hard as in “goose.”) Anyway, he will perform a special procedure to get the polyp out of there.

It’s scheduled for Wednesday, April 27th. Downtown. Fortunately we will already be downtown so I won’t have to fight quite as much traffic. There’s a bit more prep than a regular colonoscopy, including a Covid test the previous day, followed up by a week-long liquid diet ramped up to normal.

The upside is, I might lose some weight in the process. One can hope! I’ll keep you posted on the outcome.

À la prochaine…until next time!

March 24, 2022

Another Long Day…sigh

It’s 1:28 PM and the day is only half over. The morning started with a drive through traffic to MD Anderson in The Woodlands for my 8:00 AM bloodwork. Third Floor.

Then I was off to getting prepped for CT scans of the chest, abdomen, pelvis and whole body bone scan (access port, drink the peach tea contrast, inject the nuclear tracer). First Floor.

A few abnormalities happened to me today, but since I’m used to the process I didn’t panic. A little trouble with blood return. Raise your hand. Make a fist. Lay back. Cough… That did take care of it. In addition, they had too many nuclear medicine tracers in my room. Three to be exact. Fortunately, I had a savvy nurse who quickly figured out which one is mine. Is it a full moon? 🙄🙄

The CT tech took me back a little early, so that cleared up some time between scans to go and eat the oatmeal I had brought with me. I also bought some tea in their café. Second Floor.

I’m pretty good at math, but when the bone scan tech said today was a slow day with about 120 patients, I was quite surprised. They normally have between 150-160 patients every day 😳.) I couldn’t wrap my head around it. They only have the one machine. Mine takes about 15-20 minutes. How do they fit them all in? It’s one of those mysteries I may never know the answer to.

After some humorous comments by the bone scan tech about various people snoring over the loud speaker, I’m pretty sure I fell asleep 🥱. He concurred, but he said he didn’t have any recording to prove it. Whew 😅. First Floor.

I normally do these scans about every four to six months. My oncologist brought me in at the three month mark this time due to some pain in my right ribcage. It comes and goes. It is reminiscent of when and where the cancer started in my left ribcage, so he’s scanning a bit earlier than normal to be certain. I suspect all will be clear, but you never know with this disease.

That took us until noon. We should get the results in the next few days.

They left my port accessed for chemo (immunotherapy). Tim picked me up for lunch, and we left the building. We also got to pop into Circle K and say hello to Elizabeth. It was nice to see her in the middle of the day. She looks tired, but I think she is doing okay. I’m really proud of her for working so hard to keep her family afloat.

I came back early for chemo, with hopes of getting in and out a bit early. I just checked in, and pulled out my computer while I am waiting. I am an hour early, so who knows whether they will call me early or not. Third Floor.

When I opened my computer, I was welcomed by the normal MD Anderson Internet connection. But this time a special announcement came with it. A press release dated today caught my attention. This is just one more reminder of what a wonderful facility I am blessed to be a part of.

MD Anderson just opened a research center in his name, devoted to the work of immunotherapy. If you want to read more about it, click here. Very incredible work they are doing!

Jim Allison is an interesting scientist. They really should make a movie about him. He’s the one who said our immune system can fight cancer, while all the others in the field laughed at his ideas. Well, we all know about immunotherapy now, and how much it has changed the health world. Amazing stuff. He was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize for his immunotherapy treatment. Totally brilliant.

“Mr. West?”

“Who are you looking for?”

“Mr. West?”

“What’s the first name?” I said this with some degree of hopefulness.

She double-checked. It’s a guy. Rats. Looks like I’ll be waiting a bit longer.

At least they won’t have to poke me again. There’s always an upside.

À la prochaine…see you next time.

March 4, 2022

Back to the Colon

Not everything I do medically is because of breast cancer, but it certainly has an impact.

I saw Dr. Knapps, a colorectal surgeon, for a consult today. Don’t worry if you don’t know what that is. The benefits specialist at my insurance company didn’t know what it is either. (I’m not sure he spoke English, to be honest.) But, it’s covered, so that’s all I wanted to know.

I was referred by my gastroenterologist, who did my colonoscopy.

He reviewed Dr. Maheshwari’s reports, looked at the path report and determined we are not in an emergency state. Whew! I knew that, but it’s good to hear him say it. The pathology report on the piece of the polyp already removed shows it is benign. But they have to take it all out to ensure there isn’t something else lurking underneath. Since it’s in the fold, I was referred to a surgeon.

The good news is, he can attempt to do it with another colonoscopy. (Yay! More prep 🙄.) Since he’s a surgeon, he can clip more aggressively to remove the whole polyp. If he accidentally clips my colon in the process, he can repair it. My gastroenterologist can’t do that, so they are more careful when dealing with the folds of the colon. He said I can do that in a couple of months or so. If that doesn’t take care of it, he may remove a section of my colon. I prefer the former option, so I’m praying that works.

In the meantime, I got a referral from my oncologist to see one of the MD Anderson colorectal surgeons for a second opinion. I’ll see her on the 24th, and then I can make my decision. If she says the same thing, I’ll most likely go back to Dr. Knapps. I liked him, and Tim liked him, so there’s that. Another benefit…He can do it locally rather than downtown Houston.

An Insurance Hiccup

Medical insurance has been a life saver, but this week it was a bit of a stressor.

I received a call from MD Anderson, telling me Cigna was only going to approve one more treatment. That’s today’s treatment. After this, they said I would have to go outside the MD Anderson system to another facility.

I get these infusions every three weeks, so my doctor was concerned about doing everything in time for my next treatment. Also, how does that work? He can only write orders for this facility, which means I need another doctor elsewhere. How do they monitor everything? And how does MD Anderson keep up with everything if it’s not all done in house?

This could be a real pain. 🤨 The closest center they want to send me to is 45 minutes from my home.

I get it. I’m sure it’s all about saving money. MD Anderson is considered a hospital system, and any time you do something at the hospital it is quite a bit more expensive than when you go to an outpatient facility. However, I’ve been getting treatment here since 2012, with no hiccups like this. Routinely and more frequently since 2017. Why the sudden change?

I’m sure it probably has something to do with Covid. Isn’t everything?

I pleaded my case. I informed the Cigna case manager that I will be going on Medicare starting in July, so please don’t make me move for a few more infusions. My 29-month waiting period to get on Medicare will finally be over. They will not only let me on Medicare, but force it on me.

She asked if I would be using Cigna as a supplemental policy to Medicare. Uh, after this fiasco? My answer is a confident NO. I will seek another company for supplemental insurance.

If they’ll have me. 😳😳

After multiple calls with Cigna back and forth, discussions with the medical director, and reviewing my case, she called me back this morning. Since I only have five more treatments until July, they authorized the remaining treatments until my Medicare kicks in.

Hooray! 🥳🤩🥳 See, your prayers were answered before you even knew what to pray for!

So, today I’m on round eighty-something of Perjeta and Herceptin. There are five more rounds until I go on Medicare. At least, I believe I’ll be on Medicare at that point. If not, Cigna is holding fast to their decision to move me outside the system. I guess we’ll see when the time comes.

“…your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!”
Matthew 6:8b NLT

À la prochaine…see you next time.