as I said yesterday, there's more to the story ...
before I forget, I want to mention the OUTSTANDING medical care I received from OSF (Order of St. Francis) Medical Center, based in Peoria, Illinois ... I've been in several hospitals in my life, and this was the BEST care I have ever received anywhere ...
if I'm not mistaken, what with the economic downsizing of Caterpillar Tractor Co., OSF Medical Center is now the largest civilian employer in the state of Illinois ... everywhere you look, it seems, you see a branch of theirs ... that's good news, as they really take care of their patients ...
plus, as my 'medical records expert' girlfriend appreciates, their Billing statements are clear and understandable, and they were just as good as can be, in arranging affordable payments to pay off my Medicare balance ... (I just paid them off completely, a month or so ago - and, that felt GREAT ! ) ...
after healing up for a short time at my sister's home, my major leg surgery was doing very well, so I climbed into the van, and pointed it towards Kalifornia ...
I took my time driving back, and took a longer southern route to avoid impending winter weather ... plus, it enabled me to visit some snowbird friends in Yuma, AZ ... good friends, Canadians Harvey & Fran, and Twain, CA friends Pete & Joyce, drove out to my motel to have lunch with me ... that was really nice, and I enjoyed it a lot ... I love those folks to death ...
my leg was doing quite well, and even to this day, it doesn't give me too much trouble - sore, yes, but that's OK ... if 'something' didn't hurt, I'd think I was dead !
arriving home in northern Kalifornia in late November, I set up appointments with the Enloe Cancer Center, in Chico, Kalifornia ... while I have never been in their hospital, I was fortunate to get an excellent cancer doctor, and their cancer program is highly-rated ... it's affiliated with the UCSF (University of California at San Francisco) Medical Center ...
hmmm, wonder why they mispelled 'Kalifornia' ? ...
I'm very lucky to have Dr. Randolph, the head of their cancer center, as my personal Doctor ... he is a great guy, and very much concerned with my care ... knowing I am not sensitive about my condition, and not fond of sugarcoating my health problems, he gives it to me straight ...
there is no chemotherapy, etc., that applies to my situation, I'm too far gone, and he agreed with my prior Doctor's predicted 12-14 month prognosis ... that's all OK with me, I didn't have important anything planned, anyway ...
I left Sybil in Peoria to live with my niece, who has given her a most wonderful home ... leaving Sybil behind has been the only significant sacrifice I've made in relation to my cancer ... I miss her so badly, the most trusted and loyal friend I could ever ask for ...
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| my loyal and lovable wolf-girl at 6 yo |
back in Kalifornia, my Dr. put me on a monthly injection schedule of 'Xgeva', a drug that strengthens the bones, hopefully to prevent further metasticis of the cancer ... it's a $1500/month shot, but I only have to pay a couple hundred per month for it (because I be po', ya see !) ...
also, he started me on another drug, sort of a chemotherapy-in-pill form, Votrient ... it was made clear to me, that this drug would NOT cure my cancer, but, it did have a reputation of 'slowing down blood vessel growth' in the tumor, itself ...
this drug costs around $15,000 per month, but again, since I qualify as low-income, the manufacturer provided it for free ... I'm glad I didn't have to buy it, as that stuff almost did me in, putting me in the Emergency Ward of Feather River Hospital twice ... I was in some BAD shape ! ...
my second episode with the Votrient, on Feb. 10, had me ambulanced into FRH again, and this time, Feather River Hospital ran CT scans & MRIs of my head, too ...
the CT scan showed a 'lesion' in my brain, but the MRI didn't, I guess ... the Dr. in charge deemed it 'insignificant', and I was sent home ... (while it's possible discovery was noted in my records, I was not told about it, and it was a long time before I found out) ... man, I was really in BAD shape this time around ...
because it was raising my blood pressure so much, Dr. Randolph reduced my Votrient dosages in late February, and discontinued it in March ...
in mid-May, I made a 5,000-mile road trip to Peoria again, stayed about a week with Sybil, visited a sick friend in Detroit, and drove back to Kalifornia once more ...
I re-started the Votrient at a very low dosage in June, but once again, the side-effects commenced, and by July 1st, I was taken off of it for good ... Dr. Randolph stopped it, not liking my liver numbers or my increased blood pressure ...
on September 12, 2016, I hopped into the van, and drove back to Peoria again ... yeah, I know, I sure do drive around a lot for a dying man ! ... once a trucker, ..........
taking my time, driving a few hours, then sleeping for a few more, I arrived on the 17th ...
I felt good on arrival, but was tired of course ... on the 2nd day, I started vomiting, and then dry-heaving non-stop when I ran out of anything to throw up ... it wasn't much fun ...
on September 20th, my sister drove me to good old OSF Medical Center, to see what the hell was going on ...
then, things really got interesting !
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