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| Date Entered at Shared Experience: 04/21/2003 |
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UTERINE |
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Actually, I've had cancer twice. The first time, thyroid cancer. I was 19. Second time, I had a 6 inch x 4 inch tumor. I told my doctors that I felt pregnant to the left. Still, they misdiagnosed me with beginning cell form Cervical cancer. The MRI saved my life. Paralysed from the waist down post treatment. I was over radiated. |
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I opted for experiental instead of chemo. |
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Surgery removed 7 tumors, my thyroid, para-thyroid and 5 lymph nodes. To combat my 6 inch x 4 inch uterine tumor, I had high dose inner and outer radiation, radioactive seed implant, plus two implant surgeries. The first one fell out. |
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The moment I left the hospital, I had no health insurance,could not work in any branch of government and couldn't get hired full-time. Even part-time jobs asked more medical questions then employment history. This meant working jobs nobody wanted. I wore the same eyeglasses for 15 years. Paid outragiously high prices for meds and forget going to the dentist or doctor. It also meant that because I had cancer; my only child was born with no health insurance and couldn't get any until 7 years old! Poverty was guaranteed. However my second bout was a nightmare. It was 1993-4. I had to quit my job to undergo treatment. I had just got medicaid coverage, but was ordered to go back to work while going for treatment by the State of Michigan. My doctors said no, but the State said yes or they'd immediatly drop our only health insurance. I recieved a letter from the State capitol, it stated " we are aware of your medical concerns, but there are no exceptions and no excuses to Governor John Englers' mandatory work progran." My heartrate dropped to 50 Bradycardiac and it was my first of many stints in hospital. I was ordered by the State of Michigan to leave the hospital to attend a job program. I didn't . I was suppose to eat red meat daily. This was impossible on $90.00 a month for two in food stamps and $167.00 to pay the rent, heat and electric. Now, we were going hungry. Desparate I called the American cancer society. They refused. I called the next day, and they told me that they do not help cancer patients. Every t.v. talk show host told outright lies about people on welfare. Montel told his veiwers that "it must be nice to sit at home all day and collect $12,000.00 a year for doin' nothin'! He never corrected nor apologized for his false statements...but they were all guilty with two exceptions: Oprah and Donohue. The poor were being physically and verbally attacked. I recieved both. On two separate occassions both men said that they'd rather see me dead then have their tax dollars pay for my radiation treatments. After being paralysed and working for 27 years, I appled for my Social Security Disability. The Social Security Administration claimed I never worked and the only way I could "prove " I worked was with old income tax returns. I proved all but 8 years. My highest earning years. Two years later, SSA depleted my bank account without notifying me until ten days later. Faceing homelessness, I moved us out of our apartment.Yet, the quality of our lives has only diminished. Winters without running water and heat. No transportation, telephone or television for years. Even now I have an old black and white Zenith I can hear, but can't see! I've outlived my doctors expectations. |
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My own medical records. |
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My Mother took DES. A drug to prevent miscarriages, it later gave cancer to the very children it saved. My Mother(and brother) died when I was 1 1/2.This wasn't discovered until my second bout with cancer. I've loved 36 people, friends and family members who've died of cancer; including my Father (prostrate). |
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