Friday, May 30, 2003

Yesterday I did a search in Google under the terms "etiology and colon cancer" and I got a link to this blog...it was kinda crazy. Then I did a search using the terms "etiology and autoimmune hepatitis." Of course I did not get this blog. In fact I didn't get much at all. It is amazing how little information there is in the world/on the web about autoimmune hepatitis. There are websites on liver disease that mention autoimmune hepatitis....webpages on lupus...and Crohn's disease...but not much dedicated specifically to autoimmune hepatitis. I find it frustrating. Fortunately there seems to be quite a bit out there about Colorectal Cancer. The unfortunate consequence of this is that a lot of the information out there is scary. And reading it without the interpretation of a physician is overwhelming.

I just realized I have been rambling about the lack of information on the web about my illness. I just have to say that I am librarian by training and that most of the medical information on the web would probably kill you. Always make sure what you read on the web is credible.

I had dinner with some close friends last night. We also got frozen drinks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the climbing of Mt. Everest. I got a virgin strawberry daiquiri of course. It was the first time I have really done anything social since my mom got sick. It was nice to see them. Now that we know we are in this for the long haul I have been trying to get back into the swing of things slowly. I emailed my book group.......I contacted my Walk for Research team etc., etc.

Ok back to my mom. She is having her stitches out today. She is also meeting with the Stoma nurse. I hope it goes well.

Thursday, May 29, 2003

My mother just called me. It appears she won't be meeting with the oncologist until the middle of June. They said she will need to heal a bit before starting the chemo. I went over to my parents' house after work yesterday. Everyone...my mother....stepfather......my partner and myself are all experiencing normal feelings. It's all very sad really. Mom said we should go ahead and reschedule our vacation plans. It seems she will have chemo for a few months...then they will reconnect her. My fear is that we will schedule to go away and something bad will happen while we are away. I wish this never happened......but we are here now. Being sick is awful...it's such a fight.

The name of this blog is etiology. Merriam Webster's online dictionary defines etiology as "CAUSE, ORIGIN; specifically : all of the causes of a disease or abnormal condition." When I first presented signs of liver failure 10 tens years ago they kept telling me that I had "liver failure of unclear etiology." Hmmm....what does this mean? WE HAVE NO CLUE WHY YOU ARE SICK! I know the medical community is working hard to rid the world of disease.....but it is really scary how far behind medical science really is. The goal of this blog is to act as an outlet for all that is going on in my life. However I also have many medical links listed on this page. My ultimate goal would be for this blog to be of some use for someone else. I hope that in the future no one will have to hear WE HAVE NO CLUE WHY YOU ARE SICK!.....or "...of unclear etiology."

Wednesday, May 28, 2003

My mom just called me at work. It appears that the growth they removed from her colon is in fact cancer. 13 out of the 14 lymph nodes they looked at were clear....however one of them did have cancer. So it looks like she will need to have chemotherapy. As far as when this will start.....for how long ....and when the surgery to put her back together again will be.........I have no idea. I'm feeling sad and scared for her. I was praying that the lymph nodes would be clear. What she is about to endure is scary and exhausting........I only hope it will be successful.

The following is a posting from another blog I was writing before I started this one. The blog was posted on May 20, 2003


My life has been turned upside down. My mother spent all day Saturday in the emergency room and was finally admitted to the hospital that night. On Sunday afternoon at around 3:30 p.m. they told her they thought she had colon cancer. At 5:30 p.m. she was in surgery to remove the growth. I went to the hospital yesterday afternoon and spent a few hours with my mom. She was on lots of morphine and was feeling really uncomfortable. I brushed her hair and helped her get out of the bed into a chair and helped her brush her teeth. I was a mess when I left. I had all these feelings about how she had taken care of me...and now she was sick....and I don't know what I would do without her etc., etc. I'm still a mess today...but I'm trying to get through the day.

Tuesday, May 27, 2003

My mother got out of the hospital on Sunday. She had been there for a week. While she was there they removed a growth in her colon..which they believe is cancer. We are still waiting for the pathology report