Immortality check.
As most of you know, I have pretty much lived my life as if I was bullet proof. I have done some incredibly stupid things and survived to talk about them. I have slowed down considerably but age has apparently not brought with it, wisdom.
I would like to share my latest near-fatal adventure with you, so that you might benefit from my mistake.
Four years ago, I started noticing small amounts of bright red blood in my morning constitutions. I looked up the possible causes for this phenomenon, and because it was bright red, settled on the likelihood of hemorrhoids’. Two years later, the blood was a regular event. Yes, I let it go on for almost two years without going to the doctor. It has to do with the “stupid” and “bullet proof” thing. That and the aversion to the idea of having a six foot rod shoved up my @&&. I was 48 and my insurance was not going to cover the procedure. I felt fine. I also knew that there should not be blood in my stool on such a regular bases.
I was able to stay awake for the colonoscopy and therefore saw first hand the reason for the blood. I had a 2” tumor in my lower large intestine. They took a biopsy and scheduled me for surgery. They removed a 12” section of my colon and luckily were able to reconnect it. (It was a possibility that they would have to install an external bag.) A biopsy of lymph glands from the area showed that I had stage three Colon Cancer. With stage three, the cancer has not yet invaded other organs.
(A side note for your post-surgical stay at the hospital. You have to ask for pain medication. You also need to ask for it before you think you need it because it will take the nurse longer than you think you can survive, to bring it to you.)
They installed a port in my chest with a tube running into the large vein in my neck. Apparently the Chemo drugs are so harsh, that they will destroy veins the size of the ones in your arms. After six weeks of recuperation from the surgery (a 12” incision in my abdomen), they proceeded to poison me.
My Chemo treatments consisted of two sessions every other week for six months; three hours in the “chair” at the office, and two days with a computerized pump that I got to take home with me. The type of Chemo treatment that I was getting was, one drug that increased the production of cancer cells (sounds crazy to me too.), and another drug that wiped out all rapidly reproducing cells. This is apparently why some people loose their hair.
Most of the way through the treatment, my body developed an allergic reaction to one of the chemicals and I went into shock. Luckily I was at the office when it happened. They had to put me on a different chemo drug. It came in pill form. The cost went from $7500 every other week, to $4000 every other week. Fourteen pills that came in the mail for $4000. They should at least send them via courier.
One in 19 or 20 people will develop Colon Cancer. If caught early enough, it is curable.
A colonoscopy is not a pleasant procedure, but it is much better than being gutted like a fish. It is your best chance to remove the polyps in their early stage and prevent them from becoming malignant tumors.
As you might imagine, I have done extensive research about cancer. Fortunately, a healthy body will take care of most types of cancers before they can take hold. Unfortunately, most of us do not have truly healthy bodies. The best thing you can do for you health is to eat the foods that will provide your cells with the nutrients they need and to avoid eating things that prevent it. This is way easier to say than to do. Here are a few things to be aware of:
-Salt enters your cells and prevents them from absorbing nutrients.
-Sugar does nothing for healthy cells and it feeds cancer cells.
-Chemical additives cause your liver to spend most of its time filtering chemicals out of your system and therefore not have the time to do its job, breaking down fats and creating proteins. Unfortunately, alcohol falls into this category.
-Most processed foods are high in salt, sugar and chemicals.
-Any kind exercise is better than no exercise.
A good web site for Colon Cancer information is, https://health.google.com/health/ref/Colon+cancer
Learn from my mistake, eat better, drink less, exercise more and get a colonoscopy.
Your friend
Doug Mackenzie
