Not yet a cancer survivor

Another month is almost over, the first month of 2008. I'd love to post that there has been remarkable improvement, but I cannot.

The only difference is that the back of my leg no longer feels like like a lump of cardboard with rocks embedded in it. The leg is a little bit softer now, but the fiery internal lumps are still there.

Thankfully the external wounds also have now healed and stopped oozing puss.

I thought I perceived an improvement in the condition of my leg on Monday of last week when I traveled to the PAH oncology clinic. However I returned home with a temperature of 38 ° C. The highest since leaving hospital. This week I have also been uncomfortable in bed at night, almost a throwback to where I was at in early December.

I've also been confronted with a plethora of other afflictions and symptoms :- massive itches in my legs; flare ups of inflammatory pain in various parts of my leg; stinging pain and the most ghastly purple-red colour at the top of my calf; flare ups of radiation burn pain; thrombosis type pain in the calf; severe fluid swelling sometimes partially affecting mobility. I am also experiencing loss of skin sensation in a 2 to 3 inch band along the length of the wound from the buttock to the back of the knee. There is also loss of sensation over large parts of the lower calf, though this is variable. The latter is sort of weird as the skin sensation is almost normal at times but the underlying tissue feels dead. At times the whole lower calf feels dead. I think sitting at this desk for more than a couple of hours has a bit to do with this. More restrictions.... :(

As to being a cancer survivor, the radio oncologist told me it looks like there might be a little bit they missed, hence further radiotherapy in February.

My visit to ortho-oconcology today, was next to useless and a general waste of time compared to other recent medical encounters...... I'm not happy :(

More later.... to be continued.

Rob