Friday, May 15, 2009

Isn't It Romantic?

There's at least one good thing about being diagnosed with pneumonia: Everyone knows what it is.

No need for long-winded explanations or that snooze-inducing word, eosinophils. If you think that coughing turns you into a social pariah, try dropping the word "eosinophils" into a conversation at a cocktail party. Eyes will glaze over. Heads will nod off to sleep. Gin and tonics will need to be refreshed. Long-lost friends from across the room will suddenly appear.

But, at the risk of putting all the new Cancer Banter followers into slumber mode, I don't think I have pneumonia. I believe that the cloudy x-ray with the infiltrates and the shortness of breath and the coughing and the fatigue are the work of those pesky little eosinophils. The prednisone has battered them down in my white blood, but I think they may have infiltrated my lungs.

My doctor, a hematologist, disagrees with me. He thinks that it's a simple case of pneumonia and that the antibiotics will have me healthy again in no time. I hope he's right.

I just saw my doctor on Farrah's Story, the Farrah Fawcett documentary of her struggles with cancer. He's shown at the City of Hope in a consultation with Farrah and her long-time love Ryan O'Neal. Now that's a love story.

But hematologists have nothing over Farrah and Ryan in the romance department. Don't forget that the "Eos" in eosinophils is from the Greek Goddess of the Dawn. And the "phils" is from the Greek word for love. As a matter of fact, two other components of the white blood end in love: neutrophils and basophils.

What's that you say? You need to refresh your gin and tonic? Alright then.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for keeping us informed, Susan. Have you started tapering off the Pred - or are you waiting till you feel better - or another reason?

Susan C said...

Janet, I'm doing a slow taper off the Prednisone.

Sue G said...

It would appear that you and (eosino)Phil have been having a love/hate relationship for quite some time.

I, for one, am hoping that you are wrong about the eosinophils and the doctor is right about the pneumonia and a simple resolution. Like most relationships, it is good to remind "Phil" that he is NOT the boss!

Take that, fickle "Phil!"

Daria said...

I watched Farrah's story last night ... it was difficult to watch.

The tears did flow ...

Take care of those pesky little eosinophils ....

Anonymous said...

I thought you looked very well...

Susan C said...

Sue, You're so right about my "love-hate" relationship with "Phil." He does get very bossy sometimes.

Daria, I thought the documentary was very moving too. (And good use of eosinophils in a sentence!)

AH, I am feeling better, but still get short of breath and tired easily. I'm glad I look "well."

obiavi telefoni said...

nice

Shawna said...

I hope you feel better soon!

Marcy said...

A "Toast" , with gin & tonic raised high,;) To Susan, ( hrrm trying desperately to remember the Greek terminologies to apply them to this toast )..here, here,...May the "Eos" of all your tomorrows only bring more "phils" into your world, than what we already "feels" for you! Blessings for you Susan, and a speedy healing. xo~ ( PS: It's not really a gin & tonic, it's a late evening tea, and I'm old enough to remember the early days of Ryan and Farrah! uuggh )

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2young2die said...

i think that you look very well

Mari Mansourian said...

New blogger. Husband with lung cancer stage 4. City of Hope patient. I'm glad I found your blog. You have a great outlook, one needs humor at times like these... :)

Susan C said...

Thanks, Shawna. I woke up feeling better this morning, but still trying to pace myself.

Marcy, Thanks for the wonderful toast! I loved it.

2young2die Ya' think so?

Marinik, I'm so sorry to hear about your husband's diagnosis, but am so thrilled that you've also found your way to the City of Hope. What a great place! And welcome to the world of blogging.

Marcy said...

I'm back! I hope you're feeling better! Argggh blogger isn't as fun when you're not on! ;)

Trish said...

glad you're trying to take it easy.

gatherings are hard---especially when those long lost friends show up across the room...had that happen plenty of times---and after someone has asked for info. Or worse, when they argue with you about your treatment...not that I know anything about all this. ;-)

seriously sucks about "phil". I love that my oncologist listens to me most of the time, so we don't have to argue about phil vs pneumo.

Have not had time to watch Farrah's story---pre-empted here with baseball. I'm old enough to remember when Ryan and Farrah were together the first time. Just wish they had a better time to hang out together, but am glad to see they are committed to fighting this together.

Susan---rest some more and pester the doc to check "phil" for you, just to be sure.

Nelle said...

Susan,
I once had walking pneumonia and it lasted a long time before diagnosis. If you remember recently I had something of a nodule in my lung that went away that was declared a possible pneumonia. Am hoping you are feeling better and better!

Nancy said...

Hi Susan, I watched Farrah's Story. It was heart wrenching and hopeful all at the same time. Well Done...

I'm glad you are feeling a little better. Why do you think the infiltrates are Eos'? Is there some way to know for sure or would that subject you to more testing such as lung biopsies, etc? I know how your coughing spells behave and I think I'd want to know for sure... (although, I am the one who turned down the thyroid needle biopsy!)

Hang in there and let's hope it clears up once and for all! Are you on Bactrim??? That's what I was on when I had PCP Pneumonia. They still have me on a preventative dose.

Did you feel the earthquake? Take care. love, nancy

WTHsupLala said...

I really like the way you look at your situations ...

My aunt had cancer and everyone treated her differently when she would mention any part of her situation. either that or they would get very bored with her story .

Everytime I was around her . I would just treat her like my normal auntie, because that was what she was, my auntie. I know that having people treat you differently for something like that is just somewhat ... sad...

well ..
i really hope you get better =]]

-lala

zhanglinnetwork said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Ronni Gordon said...

I'm coughing a lot too. Got a chest x-ray today to see if there has been any growth of the fungal pneumonia which they are treating with an anti-fungal and an antibiotic right now. I know how incredibly exhausting and frustrating it can be to cough all the time. Hope you get to the bottom of this.

Hey thanks so much for mentioning my blog. I'm sorry it's a belated thanks...as I posted yesterday, it's hard to get in blogging mode when I'm not feeling well, and I didn't get on the computer for a few days.

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April Capil said...

I think Pneumonia is almost as awesome as Shingles. There's something disturbing about your oncologist not even needing to take a swab or sample before they prescribe you something for an ailment. Makes you want to say, "Wow. Guess you see a lot of this around here, eh?"

Nomad said...

After seeing Farrah Fawcett's documentary I am convinced that she is a lot better person than i would have assumed before