Cycled home from the university hospital as the sun was setting after a day dominated by medical appointments. Grateful there are new options when I’ll need them. Home is just beyond the end of this tunnel.
Category: Cancer
Medical Billing: Entering a Black Hole
Realized that a few of the bills for the clinical study I’ve been on had been sent to and paid by my insurance company, rather than the study sponsor. Reviewed EOBs (Explanations of Benefits) online and found $16,000 in erroneous billings to be reversed and sent to the sponsor.
A Shout-Out for Evidence-Based Medicine
Spent much of the day on two head-to-toe body scans, including this PET scanner. Same thing, again, every 12 weeks for the study as long as I’m in remission. The study seems to be showing Lutetium-177 PSMA therapy can be effective for men at my stage in the prostate cancer journey. I’m grateful.
Kit Kat Conversation
The last time I saw my oncologist, he had a Japanese medical student in tow. Naturally, the conversation turned to Japanese Kit Kats. Today, I presented my oncologist and the study coordinator with this box of Japanese matcha Kit Kats, proving that I wasn’t kidding.
Fractional Milestones
Cycled to the university for medical appointments. A medical student from Japan observed while I met with my oncologist. Received the third of four radioactive infusions. Remarkably, the tumor marker halved after each of the first two infusions, and I feel no side effects.
Nothing New
Cycled over to the university for a CT scan and a PET/Bone scan. The whole process takes about four hours and I do this every six weeks for the study. Within a few hours, reports for both scans popped up in my phone app, with nothing new to report, which is good.
Payday
Today I received my monthly stipend for participating in the clinical trial. I feel uncomfortable being paid for receiving great healthcare, so the payments will go to a University of Minnesota Medical School scholarship fund.
Happy Places
Chatted with nurse Danielle about her upcoming trip to Portugal while she set up an infusion line. I’ve now had two (of four) Lutetium-177 PSMA I&T (!) infusions and early results are promising. Danielle is excited about her first trip to Europe on Friday.
Atomic Me
Got the first of four radioactive infusions. For a few days there’s no kissing or flying, which is easy, as I’m in Minneapolis and Dwight’s in Palm Springs. When I do return to Palm Springs, I may set off an airport radiation detector, which could be interesting.
My Atomic Superpower
Posted My Atomic Superpower.