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December 03, 2005
I do not have cancer
As you may recall, one of the low-probability explanations of my stomach problems was stomach cancer. This was considered a very, very low probability, i.e. on the order of 1 in 15,000, so I was suprised to learn this Tuesday that when they did the endoscopy, they took a biopsy.
So, for a couple of days there, I'm wondering, "Well, what did the doctor see that made him do that? Did something look suspicious?" Anyway, the biopsy came back clear, so I do not have cancer.
It's also not a bacterial infection, and that was the real reason for taking the biopsy. However, my stomach lining is showing quite a bit of inflamation. It's not an ulcer, though, at least not yet. "Not yet" was what they said.
Here's the doc's plan:
- He doubled my dosage by telling me to take it morning and night, not just daily.
- I need to lose 50 pounds. It's a stretch, but it's feasible -- I'm currently about 70 pounds over my college freshman weight.
- I need to reduce the stress in my life. Mind you, I'm typing this up at 1:50am as my work computer finishes off a test, and then I'll have to take care of just two or three more little things. With luck I'll be in bed by 3am.
- I should avoid certain foods until the problem settles down. This is actually tougher. Part of it is that the nurse couldn't really give me a list of what those foods would be. She rattled off a few, but I get the impression it was 3 items from a list of 500. Also, a little Internet reading tells me that the community is somewhat divided on the "don't eat that" issue. For some people, it definitely makes a difference, but researchers don't know why.
In other news, I did manage to finish off my NaNoWriMo bit. I'd say more, but the test just finished on my work computer. Maybe later.
Life in General by Dan at December 3, 2005 01:40 AM
Comments
w00t * 2!! Congratulations on both counts.
Posted by: Marvin at December 3, 2005 04:50 PM
That's definitely good news. Melissa's had two cancer scares (the thyroid and then an ovarian cyst) recently. Finding a way to destress can be hard, but it pays off like nobody's business.
Posted by: Adam at December 6, 2005 06:07 PM