MEDICAL MATTERS

[Tizer]

Does it come as continuous pain or in spasms, Ken? Did it gradually go away or suddenly disappear (I assume you're not still in the full-on pain!). I hope they get it sorted quickly.

[Big Kev]

Hope they sort you out soon, Ken.

[Stanley]

That reinforces what I said just before Ken posted. I note we haven't heard from him and I shan't be happy until we hear he is improved. Sounds terrifying to me as well as being acutely painful!
If you're reading this Ken, best of luck.

[plaques]

Big thanks to everyone for for their kind thoughts. Relatively pain free night, can get to the bathroom and back but it can be touch and go.

The diagnosis sounds bad but the longer term is more encouraging. I've got a very aggressive prostate cancer which fortunately is still contained within prostate gland. The overall cancer grading is 3, which hopefully I can live with. Started the treatment Friday as soon as I got home from hospital. Hormone reduction tablets then moving on to injections. The problem is compounded by becoming anemic probably brought on by the cancer and the blood anticoagulant drug but that's my guess. No point in worrying about it just part of the rich tapestry of life.

Well that's me sorted Just Rishi Sunak and the cost of living to sort out. Dealing with stupidity is always hard work

[Tizer]

Phew! Great to see you back and posting, Plaques!
Are the upper body and chest pain related to the cancer or its treatment or something else altogether.

[Stanley]

That post was very welcome Ken. Glad to hear you are reasonably satisfied and can manage the pain. I still think it's a bugger and wish you as trouble-free an exercise as I have.
Now please sort out Sunak for us! (and Barclay!).

[PanBiker]

NIce to have you back posting Ken, onwards and upwards.

[Big Kev]

A good positive attitude there Ken, always an aid to recovery

[Stanley]

Thinking about you Ken. The hardest thing is learning to live with it and the consequences. My brother had the same condition and survived. So I know the course and what it entails. Best of luck but there are reasons to be optimistic!
On another matter, my mate Steve is back home, he's lost 3 stone and looks frail but he says he is having no problems at all with the chemo.... They must have improved it tremendously!

[plaques]

“The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.”
― Omar Khayyám

In my case all is not lost. The District Nurse is booked for Friday to give me the first of the anti-Testosterone injection. The precursor tablets can only continue for this first month any longer may result in castration and we don't want that, do we. Please say NO.

Recent hospital blood checks showed hemoglobin at 86 near to the cutoff point of 80 (how do you get a single value out of the millions of population) no doubt I'll be asking Ian or Kev to roll their shirts up.

Star signs and wrist patches to combat stress is too much in mystic Meg territory That is unless there's an nice little bung to be had.

[PanBiker]

You can have an armful of mine with pleasure Ken if you are A rhesus positive (A+). As to your first paragraph definitely NO.

[Big Kev]

I would gladly give you an armful of A+ Ken, sadly the 'vampires' no longer want mine...

[Stanley]

I too vote against castration.....
I'm glad you can be at home and there is a District Nurse available. My GP Hassan tells me my prostate is enlarged but not cancerous. How he can tell that with his finger I couldn't say.....Hang in there.

[plaques]

Ken if you are A rhesus positive (A+). Drat
sadly the 'vampires' no longer want mine Double drat,

My GP Hassan tells me my prostate is enlarged but not cancerous.Possibly because there's no lumpy nodules to be felt. Read the next post for a bit of entertainment.

Now off up to the Health centre to give more bloods. Should be an exciting trip. I can only walk about 15 yards and stairs are a forbidden zone. There's a lift which I've never tried before. "Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye"

[plaques]

Prostate Biopsy

Warning not to be taken too seriously but near the truth.

Location Burnley Teaching Hospital New Urology unit. Very impressive unit that you feel you could have confidence. New furniture and pleasant staff. Details taken and called into the examination room. Actually it should have been called Room 101. A quick glance round. No bench where you lay on your side while the Doctor mildly embarrasses you.
This is a different ball game altogether. Centre stage is a Gynecological chair and four very pretty young nurse, “Please take you shoes, socks, trousers and underpants off and sit in the chair.” You suddenly remember that the don’t make shirts as long as they used to do. With eight razor sharp eyes watching you as you cross the floor do you brazenly try to keep all the swinging harmonics in time with each other or pull your vest down as far as it will go and take mincing steps towards the chair.
The doctor now arrives who explains the procedures. A very pleasant man who you are inclined to believe,”I shall give you a local anaesthetic which will at first feel cold. He now gets down on his low stool which gives him a view which has never been seen before.
Action building all round, legs firmly held in place by the two nurses on each side, one tries some distraction tactics by showing how the biopsy gun works. Looks like a German Mauser pistol but with a spring loaded tube that makes a loud click when fired. The two behind your shoulder slip a G rope under the dangly private parts and drag them as far up as they will go. A modesty sheet covering any loose bits.
The Doctor now injects a pint of frozen liquid Nitrogen so that everything goes numb. Then never seen before is an ultrasonic probe which he sticks up your exit hole. The duck shoot now starts. I counted at least ten but the final tally was only eight. The Dr now says he’s put a bit of tape over the wound it will drop of on its own. Lies, it was invented by NASA never to drop off.
Everybody pleased it was over. Get dressed and sit in the waiting room. But to cap it all Mrs P was offered tea and biscuits before the star performer. I ask you was that right?

[Tizer]

Well done Plaques - is the video available on YouTube yet?

[Cathy]

Thinking of you Plaques and Mrs P.
All my best to you.

[Stanley]

Lovely! I know the feeling Ken. I have no problems now dropping my pants anywhere. As I said to Susan a long time ago , every nurse in the Northern Union has seen my willy so I am used to it!
Now the wait while highly qualified people examine the entrails and eventually report back. When they did the same procedure for my bladder tumour the first report was that it was that it was the most serious grade and I was in deep shit but then after a recount they decided it was almost benign so bear that in mind if they sound serious....

[Big Kev]

The Burnley Urology Unit sounds much more civilized than Blackburn. That was 'lay on your side and the first injection will feel like a bee sting'. Not a day out I'd like to do again

[plaques]

Thinking of you Plaques and Mrs P.
All my best to you.

Thank you Cathy. Mrs P Gets very worried about me and its hard work turning the volume down so that it doesn't place too much stress on her. Fortunately we have found an excellent lady Doctor who so far has not made any mis-steps. Probably in about four months things will get bck to near normal.

[Tripps]

Best wishes to you for a quick recovery and to Mrs P - from Cambridge too.

[Stanley]

Ken, It's my experience that when it comes to matters in the waterworks Lady doctors are preferable to men. It was an excellent lady in Bacup who knocked my Cystitis bug on the head many years ago.
You sound good, please give my love to Mrs P....

[plaques]

A planned trip out to Blackburn Royal hospital tomorrow (Friday) for a top up blood transfusion. Technically my blood count should be 80 but is showing 81. Its actually dropping by one unit a day. My Doctor told them to stop playing silly buggers and get it done. The advice was to to get there early before the queues build up so hopefully I should be there before the doors open at 7.00 AM. Taxi arranged for 6.15 AM. How long it will take to top me up we'll just have to wait and see.

[Big Kev]

How long it will take to top me up we'll just have to wait and see.

If it goes in the same as it comes out, I used to donate one unit in around 5 minutes. Hope all goes well

[Stanley]

I'm thinking about you Ken and will have my fingers crossed when I do my early doors shopping.