Postby BrownBagger » Fri Nov 06, 2015 10:25 am
I had the ablation done on my left lung in NYC on Tuesday, then got chemo on Wednesday, back home. I was just relaxing following my infusion, when I noticed some weird kind of thing going on under the skin of my throat. It didn't hurt at all, but I thought it might be an infection of some sort. So, I went back to the infusion center and they told me that I have what's called Crepitus. It just means air under the skin. Apparently my incision started to leak, probably because I had developed a rather scratchy throat post-beaching tube, and was enduring sporadic coughing spells. I got ahold of an IR doc down at Sloan (Dr. Erinjeri), who suggested that I get a chest X-ray asap, which I did. The local radiologist said I had a small pneumothorax and evidence of air in my chest cavity, but that I could go home and come back in the morning for another look-see. Went back this morning expecting to be admitted, but they told me to go home and relax.
So, I'm cool.
You gotta love cell phones when dealing with different doctors at different hospitals in different cities. Now it's so easy for them to communicate and coordinate--assuming they're so inclined.
The RFA procedure itself went well. I had a bit more pain post-op than I expected, since the other two were essentially painless, but they pumped some fentanyl into me and that took care of the pain. It didnt come back. We showed up at the hospital on time at 11:30 and were back on the street again by 5:00. They discharged me based on two good X-rays, but that was before I started hacking.
Eric, 58
Dx: 3/09, Stage 4 RC
Recurrences: (ongoing, lung, bronchial cavity, ribs)
Major Ops: 6/ RFA: 3 /bronchoscopies: 8
Pelvic radiation: 5 wks. Bronchial radiation—brachytheray: 3 treatments
Chemo Rounds (career):136
Current Chemo Cocktail: Xeloda & Erbitux & Irinotecan biweekly
Current Cocktail; On the Wagon (mostly)
Bicycle miles post-dx 10,477
Motto: Live your life like it's going to be a long one, because it just might, and then you'll be glad you did.