Cancer is not my Friend

2015-08-21T08:15:00.000-07:00

My name is Karoliina and I live in Prescott, AZ. Anyway, I am very much of an outdoors person. I love to mountain bike and hike. In fact, my husband and I share that same passion together. There is nothing like the beautiful forests with fresh air filling your lungs and clearing your mind and the peaceful restful feeling afterwards.

Recently, I finished chemotherapy and radiation therapy for stage III b invasive ductal carcinoma breast cancer. The way I found out I had breast cancer was following: I was mountain biking and riding through some technical trails and I accidentally fell down hitting my chest on the handlebars. It really hurt, and I thought to myself how am I going to get home hurting like that. Fortunately, most of the remaining trail was mainly downhill, though quite technical, and so I headed down the trail and soon the pain subsided and I forgot I ever was in pain, like most mountain bikers do. Not long after this incident, I was showering I felt a bump on my right breast and my first reaction was it was from my fall from the recent ride. The bump was quite large. Because of the fact it was in my breast I decided to call my primary doctor to have her take a look at it.

She thought the same with me as well – probably a bruise from the fall – yet she may have been cautiously optimistic. And as any doctor would do for a precaution, she sent me for a mammogram and ultrasound. Both came back suspicious. I was referred then to a surgeon for a biopsy, which eventually came back as cancerous: invasive ductal carcinoma stage IIIb. We immediately scheduled surgery for not only for mastectomy, but I decided to go for a double mastectomy. And while the surgeon was performing the double mastectomy, he accidentally punctured a hole in my left lung while inserting a port, so I needed additional surgery to repair and expand my left lung. (I do not like to complain, but when I have to pay coinsurance and copays for the doctor’s mistake it does not settle well with me.) Lately, my life has been surgeries and healing. But I suppose it can be expected with a serious illness. When I first heard I had cancer it was like a cold shower kind of a shock, to say the least. I had to be emotionally cool during this time. After my double mastectomy, I decided that my life is more important than to start dwelling in a pity party over body parts.

Had I not gotten sick with cancer, my husband and I had been planning on visiting my mother in Finland and possibly visiting Yosemite National Park that year. But serious illness changes everything. Treatments come first and treatments are hard on finances. Plans must wait. As I sat with the radiation oncologist today, he noted that I had “extensive extracapsular involvement in multiple lymph nodes”. He said that all we can do is to treat it and then hope for the best.

My insurance, unfortunately, does not cover 100% everything but I have a $6,700 dollar deductible with a 20% coinsurance with $40.00 specialist copay for office visits. It is definitely better than nothing and I am glad I have it, for sure, but bills do ad up. My personal financial plan has been two steps forward and three steps back. I thank God for few foundations that are there to help people who are uninsured or underinsured. This is how I have been able manage some of my expenses. But many of the coinsurance / copayment costs have had to come from my own pocket or from my credit cards.

I have always been pretty positive, but this illness has shaken me through my core. There are too many what ifs and buts, so I have surrendered the complexities of this disease to the doctors and my future to God. But I still have a will to live and and want to enjoy life. And I will give my best to seize every moment I can. My husband has been an exemplarily caretaker and a companion. Cancer wears both people physically, mentally and emotionally. Not to mention financial drain: copays for specialists, coinsurances for surgeries, special creams for itching skin and coinsurances for PET scans and other imaging services. (Just a PET scan alone the coinsurance is $480.00 dollars.)

Another Xtreme Sportster Dead!

2011-11-06T18:30:00.000-08:00

Jim McNeill, a freestyle Motorcross Rider died today before his event while he was practicing. Not too long ago, Dan Wheldon, a NASCAR driver lost his life going at a high speed and ending up in a pile up accident. Antoine Montant, a French champion speed flier and thrill-seeking skier and BASE jumper, died during a solo BASE jumping expedition in the French Alps, presumably after his parachute failed to open in the end of last month. I love Xtreme sports, and I respect the people the does the sport. But, as far as I'm concerned in the thrill of it all, we keep losing too many talents and for what? I think the society has gone a bit too far, but is there turning back? These sports are paid good money by the sponsors to keep rolling and they keep on getting more daring and faster and more appealing to the public. What can I say. I hate to see the world to lose a young talent, a young life... even though I do not know them. That is just my opinion.

Organic Life

Cancer is not my Friend

Another Xtreme Sportster Dead!