Phew, well, I think I am past this last one (as in past this last chemo round). I’m not a hundred percent over it, but I am feeling much more like my usual self. Such a relief.
And, I “dealt” with my oncologist a little bit today. After talking to my brother Steve about my last appointment I decided to take his approach. If you have read my previous post, my last meeting with my oncologist was very disappointing. It was clear that he had not prepared in any way for our meeting. I have a business and I have clients – none of whom are facing life and death situations, mind you – but, when I meet with a client of mine I ALWAYS review their file and prepare for meeting with them. Anyway, I digress.
So, my brother told me that if it were him, he would have gotten up and walked out after telling the doctor that next time he had better prepare for the meeting. And, he said (my brother) that he would not pay for that visit. My brother pointed out that my doctor works for me, is paid by me etc. So, I called the office today and unleashed a little bit (have to say that felt pretty good). I told them that I was considering going to UCLA for my remaining treatment (which I am considering doing) and that unless I had a very different experience very soon, that I would be doing just that. I don’t know if it will make any difference. But, I do know that I am not going to let my doctor get away with that kind of laziness again.
I realize that part of why I am getting this sort of “brush off” kind of treatment when I meet with my oncologist is because I am doing so well. So I am not really a priority I think. I look well, my blood work is very good, I do not have a lot of the problems that many chemo patients have like anemia and low white counts and infections. But, all of this is because I am working very hard to make sure of that. I follow a very careful diet, I exercise (this really helps stave off anemia) – I am just doing everything I can to try to compliment my chemotherapy and be the best patient that I can be. And, I guess I just expect my doctor to meet me halfway.
In any case, I am going to go back to UCLA (where I sought my second opinion) and have the specialist there review my case again (now that there is new information, the treatment is working etc.). And, whether I ultimately switch to UCLA, I am going to just see this specialist there every 3 or 4 weeks – pay for it – and get the peace of mind that I need. It is worth it. The specialist at UCLA is a breast cancer surgical oncologist. So she deals specifically in my type of cancer. Not only that, she is just a different kind of doctor – she is invested in you when you are there. At least that is how I felt.
So that is what is going on cancer wise. I definitely feel better tonight and am on the mend for sure.
L.
cancerfree2b 
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