Skip to main content

Four more years

I was reading an article in the most recent AARP magazine about Bill Clinton and his decision to become a vegan. Clinton traces that decision back to [angina] pain he was experiencing one morning in 2010 (6 years after quadruple bypass surgery), which resulted in him requiring a stent because one of [the grafted] veins "had given out".

I did some additional research (on the internet) and discovered the vein hadn't actually given out, as reported in the AARP article, but rather it had become clogged. Further research revealed
Cardiac experts say that the blockage of grafted heart vessels is not unusual in bypass patients. Depending on whether the grafts are veins or arteries — the former being smaller and less flexible than the latter — blockage could occur as soon as five years or as late as 10 years following the initial surgery. Schwartz said the bypass graft that was blocked in Clinton's case has about a 10% to 20% failure rate at five to six years.

Maybe I'll be luckier than Bill. Since I only had double bypass surgery, I'm hoping the one vein they did use, in my case, was bigger and more flexible, and it won't become clogged as quick. Plus a "10% to 20% failure rate" isn't such terrible odds.

To think only a short 11 years ago, I thought MCL would be my only concern. At the time, a few knowledgeable people told me I was more likely to die of something other than my lymphoma. I didn't believe them then, but now I'm quickly becoming a believer.

Maybe it's time I start thinking about becoming a vegan myself. At least I won't have to give up  my wine.

BIG SIGH :(
Labels:

Comments

Gina said…
Just wanted to say hi and that I am glad you are posting. I found you just this afternoon after following a link from another site. I am an MCl survivor. Diagnosed 1/2022, 4 rounds hyper-cvad-R, BEAM, Auto SCT, Now Rituxan. I am in heart failure because of the Adriamycin. Medication is keeping me feeling perfectly normal. I'm a wife and mom. I am a social worker and educator. Just wanted you to know finding you helped me today........ So, thanks. My best to you and yours,


Gina Blakeslee
2:58 AM
Marc said…
Thanks for the comment Gina, and glad to hear you're doing well despite the side effects of Adrimycin.

The only thing, somehow I don't think you were diagnosed in 2022. :)

Best wishes for the future.
3:09 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fatigue! Part II - Maybe it is real?

Or it's actually Motivational Deficiency Disorder, MoDeD (pronounced Mo-Dee-Dee) for short. In a report this week by Roy Moynihan who reports for the British Medical Journal Austrailian scientists may have come across the reason for extreme laziness . The condition is claimed to affect up to one in five Australians and is characterised by overwhelming and debilitating apathy. Neuroscientists at the University of Newcastle in Australia say that in severe cases motivational deficiency disorder can be fatal, because the condition reduces the motivation to breathe. Neurologist Leth Argos is part of the team that has identified the disorder, which can be diagnosed using a combination of positron emission tomography and low scores on a motivation rating scale, previously validated in elite athletes. "This disorder is poorly understood," Professor Argos told the BMJ. "It is underdiagnosed and undertreated." Who knew? Maybe I have MoDeD, from my attempts to become a...
Post a Comment
Read more

My concerns reaffirmed today

When I was first diagnosed with MCL, I pretty much read just about everything I could get my hands on, I attended various conferences, and I talked to anyone who would listen. One of the most important lessons I learned, and which I've mentioned numerous times before was No one cares more about you than you. But in addition to that, I learned to fear the drug Doxorubicin , AKA Adriamycin, Doxil, Hydroxydoxorubicin, or more affectionately the Red Devil. Besides being a deadly chemical, as is the case with most chemotherapy drugs, it is one of the few chemotherapy drugs known to cause permanent heart damage. I even heard Dr. Sandra Horning , a noted Stanford lymphoma specialist, state at the first lymphoma conference I attended in LA, there was no evidence Doxorubicin provided any added benefit to chemotherapy protocols. This was music to my ears, since Doxorubicin is very common in most lymphoma treatment protocols. And even though Dr. Horning has since changed her tune [which my sk...
Post a Comment
Read more

History IS repeating itself

I didn't grow up during the rise and fall of Hitler and Nazi Germany, so for me to claim it feels like those are the times we are living in now, must be taken with a grain of salt. But I have seen enough movies, and read enough history to know, if the times we're living in now are not akin to the rise of a Nazism and Facism in Europe in the 1930's and 1940's, then we're not far off. If you can't see the parallels with Nazi Germany, then you must be living in a different country than me. Republicans and other right wing extremists will stop at nothing to subvert the will of the majority, forcing their beliefs, that they are the superior race and have been appointed by God, to impose their will on America, while they blame all our problems on immigrants, blacks and Jews. As I speak, Mitch McConnell, and his minions are raising roadblocks to all legislation designed to help average Americans under the guise of fiscal responsibility. They condone violent and verba...
Post a Comment
Read more