CT Scan (was Re: Wire prices)

["Robert L Bass" <robertbass1@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I am far more worried about the urinal.
> Please hurry with your invention. The
> thought of accidental electro-cauterizing
> prostate and bladder surgery scares me.

You might be onto something there.  Though briefly painful, it might be more effective and certainly less expensive than the usual
surgical procedure.  :^)

BTW, it was prostate surgery which indirectly saved my life.  I had the "Roto-Rooter" surgery and afterward the doctor told me to
notify him at once if I had any unusual pains as these might indicate a blood clot.  A few weeks later I had a pain deep in the
right side of my chest which lasted more than a day.

Any other time I would have ignored a slight pain like that but just to be safe I called the doctor.  He said it was unlikely that
this was a clot but advised me to go to the ER (it was a weekend) and get an X-ray and a CT scan.  The X-ray showed nothing but the
scan revealed a tumor which had just breached the pleura (causing the pain).  The tumor had also invaded the blood vessels.

Because of that scan I found out about this cancer just before it metastasized.  It was literally a thin layer of cells away from
becoming inoperable.  I share in hopes that it will inspire some here to ask their doctors about doing annual CT scans.  Chest
X-rays are *not* enough.  The usually don't disclose lung cancer until the tumor is so large that it is beyond hope.  A CT scan
shows everything that's going on inside the thorax.  It's like passing the body through a meat slicer only without all the blood.
You can see every detail and, most significantly, you can find and treat cancer in time to save your life.

I was very lucky.  My doctor says that if I had not found out and taken immediate action I'd have been dead in less than a year.
BTW, I don't even smoke.  I quit almost 30 years ago.   With the invasion of the blood vessels it's reasonable to assume that
microscopic cancer cells have been carried throughout my body.  The chemotherapy was designed to kill those.  I won't know for sure
if I'm cured for another five years.  Meanwhile I'll be going in for quarterly scans and taking shark cartilage daily (I figure it
can't hurt and I don't like sharks anyway).

If you're a smoker or if you've ever smoked, do yourself a favor and have your lungs checked out.  Your life may depend on it.
Since this cancer came upon me nearly 30 years after I quit smoking, even those who never smoked ought to consider a little
preventive testing.  The procedure is painless, quick and actually kind of interesting.

This message is posted in hopes that it will inspire someone else to protect himself.  Perhaps those who like to flame will leave
this one alone.

--

Merry Belated Christmas,
Robert L Bass

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