I think I finally decided that today, this day, i hopped on board the boat of terminal patient freedom. First of all, you get the swinging Sword of Damocles hanging over your head. If that's not enough, you have to deal with the unbridled bs of the insurance industry questioning why I decided to let my "experimental" treatment (remember: though it's not standard yet, it is in phase III clinical trials). I guess that's not good enough in a period in which High Grade Glioma patients have a hilariously short period of time to live. How does three more months matter if my hair's gone, I'm a skeleton with skin, I'm throwing up regularly, and worst of all, I live the dreaded existence of a poor little cancer patient. Three more months of that? No thanks. I'm good with what I've got.
"Why would he say that" you may find going through your mind, but the important fact that I've left out is simply that no known chemo or radiation treatment is a cure. If the docs could tell me, "Hey we'll do this and you have a 50% chance of being cured." I'd say, "Sign me up." They can't say that though. What they can say is that there's no cure. None of these treatments are curative. If I was in a business office and someone was selling me a device that couldn't even offer me a 50% chance of fixing my problem. In fact, there was no chance it would fix my problem. It would only worsen my life while lengthening the problem. Why in the hell would I buy it? Well I'm not buying it right now. What I will offer them, though, is the fact that I will do the fractionated radiation route, if it comes down to it. I'm far from ready to throw in the towel yet though.
Unfortunately, this notion comes with loads of insurance problems. It's all crap, and it's the last thing anybody actively battling a terminal illness needs. Cures are possible, especially with something as poorly understood as brain cancer, so why not let me try some possibilities out before relegating me to a pitiful five-year existence destined for the grave? Seems somewhat unfair if you ask me.
Monday, January 18
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