Rectal cancer

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List:

It has just been confirmed that I have rectal cancer. I highly

suspected it for some time, but my HMO misdiagnosed it for six months

claiming that it was nothing but internal hemorrhoids. I have easy

access to virtually anything I need for medical purposes, but I

thought I was being prudent by letting my HMO take care of anything

that insurance covered. It has been quite an experience. I had a CT

scan done in Mexico which my US HMO refused to look at because it

wasn't done at the HMO. I had the radiology report from Mexico which

they refused to look at because it was in Spanish. They didn't see

fit to do a simple digital exam to feel the invasive 5.5 cm tumor

because their gastroenterologist did a colonoscopy in April and told

me I have hemorrhoids and to come back in ten years. I requested a

CEA (blood tumor marker test) but they turned me down because they

say this test is for assessment and not diagnosis. If I were anyone

else I would be outraged, but my opinion of US conventional medicine

was already so low, that all I can do is shake my head.

Every one of my HMO docs was really nice as they told me they did not

do this and they couldn't do that. A couple of days ago I received a

25 item questionnaire from my HMO asking me to rate my last visit to

my primary physician. Every one of the questions pertained to

doctor-patient interactions, e.g., Did he/she give you enough

time? Did they listen to you carefully? Did they try to answer all

your questions? Was the receptionist cheerful? I had to rate my

physician extremely high on everything according to this

questionnaire, but if they had asked questions about competence I

would have had to flunk him. One of my board members informed me

that although the HMO is a non-profit, the physicians that work for

them are for-profit, thus all the money they save from not doing

tests goes into their own pockets. I'll look further into this.

Now I have been sent to the HMO oncologist who recommends chemo and

external beam radiation. I asked what they do to protect immune

function (nothing), to protect against multiple drug resistance

(nothing), to protect against lymphedema (nothing), to protect

against impotency (nothing), and to protect against anal canal

fibrosis (nothing). Halfway through the treatment they will see if I

am in danger of dying from hemolytic uremia. If so they are willing

to consider reducing the dose.

I asked the oncologist about doing medical treatments in China

including neutron beam (what's that?), BSD-2000 hyperthermia (what's

that?), photodynamic therapy (what's that?), fulguration (what's

that?), sub-unit vaccines for SCC (what's that?), but he offered me

plenty of pain killers and stool softeners.

I told the HMO oncologist that I immediately started myself on rectal

Newcastle virus (what's that?), on dithiodinicotinic acid (what's

that?) on CaPterin (what's that?), on GcMAF (what's that?), on

Miltefosine (what's that?), on benzaldehyde (what's that?), on

artemether (what's that?), on hyperthermia with Lonidamine and

dipyridamole (what's that?) and on cimetidine to help prevent

metastasis (he didn't respond), and reticuloendothelial detox (what's

that?). I invited him to my seminars. I am probably making early

headway as the bleeding has stopped.

The nature of this cancer had eluded me for some time as I have no

known risk factors. I have no stress, no emotional trauma, I don't

smoke, never any STDs, I'm exclusively heterosexual, my diet isn't

the worst. There is plenty of cancer in my family though. Squamous

cell carcinoma (SCC) of the rectum is rare and often starts from an

unknown primary such as a head and neck cancer.

If there was ever a person on this planet not to feel sorry for, it

is me. I have access to almost everything and can make about

anything, and of all the things I could worry about at least I don't

have to worry about me suing myself. Does this mean I'm out of the

woods even before I start? Not by a long shot. One of the biggest

and most common mistakes in alternative medicine is to assume that a

particular treatment/strategy/combination is going to work. The keys

to beating cancer usually revolve around collecting and weighing

credible information, careful assessment and analysis, avoiding

missteps that can't be corrected, timely action, patience. So far

there has been only one area in which I could have improved: I should

have made a much greater nuisance of myself at the HMO.

Has any of my thinking changed since being formally diagnosed? There

has been a bit of a sense of relief that I now have a clear target to address.

In about two weeks I plan to go to China for about a month. I will

conduct my regular seminars and treatment program this coming week,

November 8th-14th. On November 15 I will watch the LA Lakers beat

Houston -- but without any beer and pizza. (Who knew that life would

be this hard..!!!) Then it is off to China.