Patient & Researcher Blog
Here I aim to capture what I am learning as a newbie researcher from a patient perspective.
Living with a slow growing brain cancer
It is taboo for researchers to talk about their work before it is published.
I think that’s a bummer.
My favorite part about research is learning new things in real time. Here I share my observations as a learner and my n of 1 (personal) findings as a patient.
Note: I started blogging about brain cancer in 2008, at age 29.
I had no background or knowledge about healthcare when I began. Please excuse typos and other misconceptions. What you read here is me in real time, like a time capsule.
There are more than 500 posts here. Use this search to look for something specific. Good luck!
Spoiler alert, I'm still alive: 10 years later
I have had a brain tumor for one quarter of my life. I am the same person I was before but I am completely changed.
Pushed out of the nest: Leaving Kaiser for a PPO
Changing health insurance can be scary, but especially for people with pre-existing conditions, and those who are medically complex and “expensive.”
Surprisingly, no pre-scan jitters this time
Dr. L., asked if I would be OK having one of those super long MRIs... the kind that last for over an hour... Since I am a big fan of scans and medical procedures I said, "Hell yeah!" He already thinks I am crazy. Big long scan. New doctor to scrutinize my medical history. Should be interesting.
To have a slow-growing brain tumor
"But really, aren't there cases when grade twos just stay a grade two forever?" I implied that with my youth, health and intelligence, someone as awesome as I must be spared from this injustice.
A little tumble down the stairs can't keep me from fighting cancer
The HR people told me I should leave and go to the hospital to get checked out. But I couldn't... today was an important day because I had to go to the UC Davis AYA Cancer Advisory Board meeting. There was no way I was going to miss my first meeting. I didn't want to be a flake.
What is making me dizzy? The inner ear or the parietal lobe
After my alarm went off I got in the shower, dizzy still. I held myself up with the walls. I leaned on the counter as I brushed my teeth. I wrapped myself in a towel and watched Brett do his morning push-ups.
Dreaming about my friend’s brain surgery
My friend Erin is having her second brain surgery on Wednesday and last night I had this dream.