Your long-suffering correspondent is starting to feel a bit like the Old Testament guy Job, a basically good guy that God torments ceaselessly with a series of horrible events.
Yesterday I had an appointment with my oncologist, and I mentioned that my left lower leg, ankle, and foot were swollen. She set up an appointment for an ultrasound to rule out any blood clots, conducted by a very experienced and professional tech lady, who followed the big vein in my right leg all the way down — all clear! — before turning to the left one. About half way down, near my knee, she stopped and said, “You have a blood clot. See, right there.” Sure enough, even I could see it, a round blob floating right in the middle of the vein (or is it an artery)? “It’s brand new,” she said, “I can tell by the way it looks. Newer clots look different than older ones.”
Blood clots are bad. Especially when you are on a chemo regimen that can create the risk of blood clots. So my oncologist and team mobilized to put in place a whole new additional anti-coagulation regimen. Not just pills, but shots too, dutifully given by Suzie right into the fleshy part of my stomach (no lack of choice there).
On top of the risk posed by the clot, this morning my lower left leg and foot were incredibly, over-the-top painful, an add-on to the regular persistent left leg pain I’ve been carrying for 4 months now. I found myself thinking, ‘This is impossible. Why is this happening? What the heck is next?’ But there’s no answer for that, which, now that I think about it, is what Job concluded too.
Things have to get better, right? Regression to the mean and all that? I’m tired of this.
Categories: SSS Health