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Ibrance and Letrozole: Newly Diagnosed Treatment

Breast Cancer | Last Active: Jan 22, 2023 | Replies (104)

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@callalloo

Hi PJ,
I saw that post about the 1000 mg of vitamin B12 and figured it was an error but you got it corrected before I could post ;-).

Kaiser Permanente was a kind of gold standard for a model for comprehensive care a long time ago. Sorry to hear that it's lost its luster and totally agree with you that health issues are already stressful enough. We should be able to count on the medical establishment making things as easy as possible. But I think that one possible contributing factor was lockdown. Every doctor I know is trying to take care of as many patients as possible because most people postponed any medical thing that wasn't an emergency during lockdown, when the last place people wanted to go to was medical facilities. So now there's the added burden of pent-up demand for medical services. Two years worth of tests and surgeries and such that couldn't get done easily during lockdown. And a lot of cancers that might have been caught earlier if routine annual physicals had occurred on time. And a rogue covid that is still on the move and usurping hospital beds.

Can you get an ombudsperson at Kaiser to help navigate the system? Hospitals have them but so do some non-hospital medical providers? Or a patient advocate from the oncology department? Even a friend to help you keep track of appointments and go to them with you when helpful can make a difference in getting the attention that you deserve. For what it's worth, I have a friend who twice appealed an insurer's rejection of coverage for an unusual surgery and won the second time.

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Replies to "Hi PJ, I saw that post about the 1000 mg of vitamin B12 and figured it..."

Hi callalloo, New pulmonologist today actually went over the truth , from January's CT and PET scans pathology rept , and its much worse than I had been led to believe , which is so infuriating and disappointing . Why lie or hide the truth , it IS what it IS , and like it or not , cancer must be faced head on and the options explained honestly . New oncologist I start with next Tues. , so that is hopefully going to give me some new guidance and a 2nd opinion .

* callalloo, I did need to hear what you said about lockdown . I'm going to print that out to reread again ! So much truth there , in your words , and I can always override that with " but this is my LIFE I'm fighting for" , not a diff job , or cheaper rent , or a new relationship .... My neighbor in Fla called today , my wonderful house that I suddenly couldn't clean out and sell , when I went back for that purpose in Feb/Mar 2020 , has a ROOF LEAK . Ugg. Spending $$ to fix a house, knowing I'll prob die before I ever get to go home again , is so hard too.
We've all been thru the ringer , and I feel so cheated that I don't get to sell off my antiques, that I've worked 30 years learning about , collecting and selling . That's why I want just 1 or 2 more years , to clean out , tie up loose ends , reap the benefits of protecting and restoring these items . I have hope the Ibrance /Faslodex treatment would buy just a little time , to put my affairs in order , and not stick my two (adult) children with so much . Cancer doesn't care . Sorry for all the whining ,rough day