Tag Archives: hearing

The Situation, 5/12/15

The Summary.
I can hear again. My blood is still not lethal. Insurance sucks as usual.

The Details.
The good news first. My three-month HepC virus check came back all clear. So I’m still down one lethal disease. My liver functions are all normal too.

I also had the wick removed from my ear, and the surgeon said the inflammation has cleared up. I can hear again, which should make the husband happy.

And now your semi-regular rant about “health” insurance. The bastards decided the scans that I was supposed to have today were too near my last set, so they denied them. I found out two hours before I was supposed to have them. Gee, thanks. If I hadn’t needed to go to Boston to see the surgeon too, I’d be even more furious.

They’ve been rescheduled for next week, giving Betty more time to regroup. I think they’re in league with her. On that thought, could attacking an insurance company be considered self defense if you suspect they’re trying to wait out your death?

I Have A Wick In My Ear

I have no important updates yet. I’ve called my oncologist’s office three times in the last week trying to find out what’s going, and my doctor has not responded. Even his administrative assistant told me she’s unhappy about this, probably because she has to keep fielding my annoyed calls. How did we go from hands flailing, you-must-get-down-here now to silence? I don’t know, but I’ll be calling tomorrow. Again.

Meanwhile, last week my ear started getting clogged again after two weeks of blissful not being clogged. By Saturday morning, it stopped draining completely, and I haven’t been able to hear out of it since. (My husband just loves that I’m constantly asking him to repeat himself.)  Surgeon #1’s office directed me to Surgeon #2, and I saw him today.

Apparently, the skin graft in my ear canal is swollen. So he put a wick (basically a spongey stent) inside the canal, and now I’m on antibiotic ear drops for the next two weeks. Also, my ear canal is cold because it’s propped way open. Also, also, I still can’t hear because of the stent.

I might be paranoid that a bug will fly in. Hopefully, this paranoia is unfounded and ridiculous.

The Situation, 3/13/15

The Summary.
Surgery is scheduled. I can hear. Things can always get worse, and that’s actually good.

The Details.
My surgery has been scheduled for Monday, March 23, in the afternoon. This is me giving the world’s quietest cheer. I’m in pretty much constant pain at this point, so even the surgeon (#1 for those keeping track) suggested I might feel less pain post-surgery. I might need an overnight for this one, but they will make that determination the day of. I have never needed an overnight hospital stay in my life, so this is weird.

My CT scan showed what the surgeon expected to find, which is not great (great would be “Hey, looks like Betty has gone into spontaneous remission!”), but it’s not as bad as it could be. With cancer, so long as things could be worse, there’s reason to remain hopeful, I suppose. Anyway, Betty has not reached my bone so I won’t be losing any bits of my skull, and she’s not too deep into my ear canal. Basically, she hasn’t gone anywhere yet that makes surgery impossible. Surgeon #1 and my oncologist are still hopeful that they can eventually cut out all of her. Given those circumstances, they might not opt for radiation yet.

In more minor news, I had my hearing tested on Wednesday after my CT scan, and I was told I have perfectly normal hearing. It’s nice to know something about my health can be described as normal.

Thank you to everyone who has sent me cards and photos recently! I love the baby photos! 🙂

The Situation, 3/3/15

The Summary.
Met with an ear surgeon today. Met with another ear surgeon today. Betty travels more than I do. Insurance sucks.

The Details.
Both my biopsy sites came back positive for Betty. On one hand, not surprising. That’s just my luck lately. On the other, I was surprised to hear they found more cancer in the area they cut last year. Regardless, this does not please me. Betty needs to learn her place, which is out of my body.

As for surgery, it still isn’t a guarantee at this point, but everyone seems to agree surgery followed by radiation is the best option. So I think it’s safe to assume it’s coming. Ear Surgeon #1 says it would be a tag team effort between him (outer ear guy) and Ear Surgeon #2 (ear canal guy). And yes, he did comment about how crazily specialized everyone is.

What this means is that I will have a hole in my head. (Because I need that like I need a hole in the… Never mind. It’s too easy to make jokes.) All the cartilage in the bowl of my ear, plus the skin, and maybe some bone in my head will be gone. The docs probably won’t know how much to remove until they go in.

I should still have a ridge to hang my glasses on, and it should not affect my hearing or balance except temporarily while I heal. Skin grafting might be involved, and as always, the docs want to assure me that they can build me a new ear. I guess people worry about these things? I can see being concerned if it was my nose they had to remove, but I just want Betty out. Priorities, people! I’d rather be alive and freaky looking than pretty but dead.

Surgeon #1 suggested it was okay to say “no more.” To be sick of being cut open and to leave things be or try other treatments. Ha. If this is the best option, then it has to be done. If my ear must be a casualty of war, then I accept it as collateral damage. (Ask me whether I regret typing that while I’m recovering.) 

Surgeon #1 wants me to have another CT scan so he can see what’s left in the area post-biopsy, but as usual, my insurance is balking. I tentatively have the scan scheduled for next week. I’m fairly sure my insurance’s master plan is to fight everything in the hopes I’ll die sooner and they’ll have less to pay out. Fuck insurance right along with Betty.

Surgeon #2 wants me to have my hearing tested in both ears to generate a baseline. Surgical complications could result in hearing issues in my ear that would need treatment over time. Also, if Betty goes deeper into my ear, then eventually it could affect my hearing. So establishing the baseline is important for monitoring changes.

I read an entire book yesterday while on the bus and waiting for appointments, and I drank three cups of coffee because I had to be up at 4 a.m. and didn’t get home until 6 p.m. I’m still exhausted. If this post is incoherent, that’s why.