diagnosis and follow-up, not in that order

I woke up in a fiesty mood this morning!  I appreciate all the support from my friends about "blogging whatever I want".  Yeh, sure, I wanna be luved!  But, my blog is my blog, so, here goes.....

My friend whose daddy has recurrent lymphoma.....

You had a question about follow up.  As I said to you, follow up after cancer diagnosis is for life.  If I understand correctly, the diagnosis was non-hodgkins lymphoma of the stomach lining.  Wow.  Not all that common.  But the guidelines for follow up are

1.  Patients with NHL should be followed closely every 3 months for 3 years, every 6 months for an additional 2 years, and annually thereafter for evidence of relapse.

2.  Every clinic appointment should include the following tests and procedures:

• Medical history and physical examination.  That would include "how have you been since I last saw you" and any signs and symptoms that need to be addressed.
• Blood tests...CBC, chemistries, liver panel, and BUN/Creatinine.
• Chest x-ray
• CT every 6-12 months for at least 5 years
• Optional:  Ultrasound, bone scan, biopsies of suspicious or new mass

That answer your question, hunny bear?

Now, for a rerun of yesterday, with a little bit more...  Awww, the size of the pix don't do them justice at all!

Mammogram

After the mammogram

This is not meant to offend!  Sorry if it does!  But, oh, if it offends you, just suck an egg! 

The truth of the matter is, this is not all that funny.  I have seen what a man looks like that has penile cancer and had, um, surgery....  Not a pretty site!  Really, really bad for the ego!  So, wouldn't this be a good idea for diagnostic purposes?  Dontcha think?