-Caveat Lector-
** i received this from a friend, who had a friend who sent it to him...
passing this very interesting and important information on to all of you!!!!!
and also to the men who will need to know about it for their loved ones.
Linda
FOR ALL WOMEN!!!!!! PLEASE READ!!!!
As all of you know, I have Primary Peritoneal Cancer. This cancer has only
recently been identified as its OWN type of cancer; but it is, essentially,
Ovarian Cancer. Both types of cancer are diagnosed in the same way (with the
"tumor marker" CA-125 blood test), and they are treated in the same way
(surgery to remove the primary tumor and then chemotherapy with Taxol and
Carboplatin).
Having gone through this ordeal, I want to save others from the same fate.
That is why I am sending this message to you and hope you will print it and
give it or send it via e-mail to everybody you know. One thing I have learned
is that each of us must take TOTAL responsibility for our own health care. I
thought I had done that because I always had an annual physical, had my
annual mammogram and PAP smear, did monthly Self Breast Exam, went to the
dentist at least twice/year, etc. I even insisted on a moidoscopy and a bone
density test last year. When I had a total hysterectomy in 1993, I thought
that I did not have to worry about getting any of the female reproductive
organ cancers.
LITTLE DID I KNOW! I don't have ovaries (and they were HEALTHY when they
were removed!), but I have what is essentially ovarian cancer. Strange, isn't
it? These are just SOME of the things our Doctors never tell us. ONE
OUT OF EVERY 55 WOMEN WILL GET OVARIAN OR PRIMARY PERITONEAL
CANCER! THE "CLASSIC" SYMPTOMS ARE AN ABDOMEN THAT RATHER SUDDENLY ENLARGES
AND CONSTIPATION AND/OR DIARRHEA. I had these classic symptoms and went to
the Doctor. Because these symptoms seemed to be "abdominal," I went to a
gastroenterologist. He ran tests that were designed to
determine whether there was a bacterial infection; these tests were negative,
and I was diagnosed with "Irritable Bowel Syndrome." I guess I would have
accepted this diagnosis had it not been for my enlarged abdomen. I swear to
you, it looked like I was 4-5 months pregnant! I, therefore, insisted on more
tests. They took an x ray of my abdomen; it was negative. I was, again,
assured that I had
Irritable Bowel Syndrome and was encouraged to go on my scheduled month-long
trip to Europe. I couldn't wear any of my slacks or shorts because I
couldn't get them buttoned, and I KNEW something was radically wrong. I
INSISTED on more tests, and they (reluctantly) scheduled me for a
CT-Scan(just to shut me up, I think). This is what I mean by taking charge of
our own health care. The CT-Scan showed a lot of fluid in my abdomen (NOT
normal!). Needless to say, I had to cancel my trip and have FIVE POUNDS of
fluid drawn off at the hospital (not a
pleasant procedure, I assure you, but NOTHING compared to what was ahead of
me). Tests revealed cancer cells in the fluid.
Finally, finally, finally, the Doctor ran a CA-125 blood test and I was
properly diagnosed. I HAD THE CLASSIC SYMPTOMS FOR OVARIAN CANCER AND, YET,
THIS SIMPLE CA-125 BLOOD TEST HAD NEVER BEEN RUN ON ME ... NOT AS PART OF MY
ANNUAL PHYSICAL EXAM AND NOT WHEN I WAS SYMPTOMATIC. THIS IS AN INEXPENSIVE
AND SIMPLE BLOOD TEST!!! PLEASE, PLEASE, P-L-E-A-S-E TELL ALL YOUR FEMALE
FRIENDS AND
RELATIVES TO INSIST ON A CA-125 BLOOD TEST EVERY YEAR AS PART OF THEIR ANNUAL
PHYSICAL EXAMS. BE FOREWARNED THAT THEIR DOCTORS
MIGHT TRY TO TALK THEM OUT OF IT, SAYING "IT ISN'T NECESSARY." BELIEVE ME,
HAD I KNOWN THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW, WE WOULD HAVE CAUGHT MY CANCER MUCH EARLIER
(BEFORE IT WAS A STAGE 3 CANCER)!!! INSIST ON THE CA-125 BLOOD TEST; DON'T
TAKE "NO" FOR AN ANSWER. THE NORMAL RANGE FOR A CA-125 BLOOD TEST IS BETWEEN
ZERO AND 35. (MINE WAS 754 ... THAT'S RIGHT, 754!) IF THE NUMBER IS
SLIGHTLY ELEVATED, YOU CAN HAVE ANOTHER ONE DONE IN THREE OR SIX MONTHS AND
KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON IT JUST LIKE WOMEN DO WHEN THEY HAVE FIBROID TUMORS OR
WHEN MEN HAVE A SLIGHTLY ELEVATED PSA TEST (PROSTATE SPECIFIC ANTIGENS) THAT
HELPS
DIAGNOSE PROSTATE CANCER. HAVING THE CA-125 TEST DONE ANNUALLY CAN ALERT YOU
EARLY, AND THAT'S THE GOAL IN DIAGNOSING ANY TYPE OF CANCER- CATCH IT EARLY.
I hope I haven't bored you with all of this. But I hope I HAVE scared you
enough to motivate you to action. Do YOU know 55 women? If so, at least one
of them will have this VERY AGGRESSIVE cancer-and maybe, just maybe, it will
be YOU. I hope not. Please, go to your Doctor THIS WEEK and insist on a
CA-125 test and have one EVERY YEAR for the rest of your life. And forward
this message to every
woman you know and tell all of your female family members and friends.As
the Nike ads say, "JUST DO IT!" Please don't think youth will protect you,
either. Though the median age for this cancer is 56 (and, guess what, I'm
exactly 56),
women as young as 22 have it. Age is not a factor.
Thank you for your time. My best wishes for your continued good health.
Contributed by a Concerned Friend!
Sharon Ann Meyer, AS, AA, DTR, Certified HIV Counselor,
President, HIV ReSources, Inc.
"Improving the quality of life for HIV-challenged
individuals through effective nutritional services."
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
URL: http://www.hivresources.com
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