Happy New Year Fellow Cancer Warriors
December 30, 2010Oh well, 2010 is almost over. For some reason I’ve been thinking about my kidney cancer a lot lately. It has nothing to do with fear or anything like that. I guess one of the things that still confuses me is as to why I was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, what was it caused by. As I said before, there is no way to conclusively determine the cause of kidney cancer. However, when I met with my oncologist at New York Presbyterian we both agreed that a potential cause could have been my exposure to asbestos about 20 years ago.
Let me back up a little here to explain the context. As you know, I’m a native German who relocated to the United States back in 2005. So when I was in my late teens I was working on this construction project which required me to cut and trim asbestos sheet rock all day long. That stuff was very popular around that time and used for all kinds of insulation purposes. I didn’t wear any protection gear and therefore ingested and inhaled little pieces of asbestos over a prolonged time period.
Kidney cancer, mesothelioma and some lung cancers have one thing in common. They all grow very slowly with latencies up to five decades. Now let’s fast forward 20 years. The first symptoms of kidney cancer I encountered were this weird kind of dull pain in both sides of my lower back alongside some general discomfort. I wouldn’t call it nausea, but I was inadequately tired all the time. Nonetheless, I didn’t think too much of it. Because in addition to that, I was also working on fixing our patio, which required me to do some heavy lifting – certainly not something I’m used to as I’m usually sitting on my butt all day long in my office.
But the blood in the urine plus those little pieces of bloody tissue that I discharged suddenly eventually prompted me to see an urologist. Well, you know the story, a cystoscopy and Cat-Scan later I received my kidney cancer diagnosis. The left kidney was then removed via a laparoscopic radical nephrectomy in late November of 2010.
My latest scan came back clear, so I guess I can start into the new year cancer-free. My wife is scheduled for another round of ultrasound imaging at Dr. Bard in NYC in early January. If that comes back clear we have reason to celebrate. Because that would bring us to the magical 2 year mark. After 2 years, the risk of recurrence drops significantly. So that would be a major milestone. I’m still very scared thinking about my wife’s breast cancer. She is in great shape, as you know she had radically changed her life-style, living and eating very healthy alongside all the supplements that she’s taking rigorously. I am not as strict as she is, however, I stick to my principles: no alcohol, no meat, cutting out all crappy foods to the extent possible, trying to eat a lot of raw organic food.
A lot of people ask me why I believe in alternative cancer treatments. I actually don’t like to talk about it because most of the time I get weird reactions. A lot of people don’t agree with me that cancer is not something that just randomly happens. I don’t think that things just happen for no reason. And further to that, I do believe that the stuff we put inside our bodies and the way we treat them has a major impact on our health. Hence, cancer can be treated by eating right, boosting the immune system and supplementing it with natural substances that are proven cancer fighters.
Am I against conventional cancer treatment options? No, of course not. I opted to have my kidney removed. And after all, surgery is a conventional cancer treatment option. Would I have undergone chemotherapy and/or radiation? It depends. Those can be highly effective, but it depends on the patient’s situation.
Anyway, I digress. I wish you all a Happy New Year, even though it’s a little early at this point. I hope you’re all doing okay and in good spirits. Keep up the fight against cancer!
Let me back up a little here to explain the context. As you know, I’m a native German who relocated to the United States back in 2005. So when I was in my late teens I was working on this construction project which required me to cut and trim asbestos sheet rock all day long. That stuff was very popular around that time and used for all kinds of insulation purposes. I didn’t wear any protection gear and therefore ingested and inhaled little pieces of asbestos over a prolonged time period.
Kidney cancer, mesothelioma and some lung cancers have one thing in common. They all grow very slowly with latencies up to five decades. Now let’s fast forward 20 years. The first symptoms of kidney cancer I encountered were this weird kind of dull pain in both sides of my lower back alongside some general discomfort. I wouldn’t call it nausea, but I was inadequately tired all the time. Nonetheless, I didn’t think too much of it. Because in addition to that, I was also working on fixing our patio, which required me to do some heavy lifting – certainly not something I’m used to as I’m usually sitting on my butt all day long in my office.
But the blood in the urine plus those little pieces of bloody tissue that I discharged suddenly eventually prompted me to see an urologist. Well, you know the story, a cystoscopy and Cat-Scan later I received my kidney cancer diagnosis. The left kidney was then removed via a laparoscopic radical nephrectomy in late November of 2010.
My latest scan came back clear, so I guess I can start into the new year cancer-free. My wife is scheduled for another round of ultrasound imaging at Dr. Bard in NYC in early January. If that comes back clear we have reason to celebrate. Because that would bring us to the magical 2 year mark. After 2 years, the risk of recurrence drops significantly. So that would be a major milestone. I’m still very scared thinking about my wife’s breast cancer. She is in great shape, as you know she had radically changed her life-style, living and eating very healthy alongside all the supplements that she’s taking rigorously. I am not as strict as she is, however, I stick to my principles: no alcohol, no meat, cutting out all crappy foods to the extent possible, trying to eat a lot of raw organic food.
A lot of people ask me why I believe in alternative cancer treatments. I actually don’t like to talk about it because most of the time I get weird reactions. A lot of people don’t agree with me that cancer is not something that just randomly happens. I don’t think that things just happen for no reason. And further to that, I do believe that the stuff we put inside our bodies and the way we treat them has a major impact on our health. Hence, cancer can be treated by eating right, boosting the immune system and supplementing it with natural substances that are proven cancer fighters.
Am I against conventional cancer treatment options? No, of course not. I opted to have my kidney removed. And after all, surgery is a conventional cancer treatment option. Would I have undergone chemotherapy and/or radiation? It depends. Those can be highly effective, but it depends on the patient’s situation.
Anyway, I digress. I wish you all a Happy New Year, even though it’s a little early at this point. I hope you’re all doing okay and in good spirits. Keep up the fight against cancer!
Posted by Tony Ulrich. Posted In : My Kidney Cancer
In March of 2009, my wife Ann got diagnosed with breast-cancer. I dedicated a website and blog to our breast-cancer journey - in case you're interested: www.ourbreastcancer.net.
After three surgeries, countless hospital visits and consultations with health care professionals and an empty wallet thereafter, we finally thought that things were about to get better. But another surprise was waiting for us - after I encountered blood in my urine I was sent for a CAT Scan that revealed a 6.2 cm tumor in my left kidney.
On October 1 of 2009, I was officially diagnosed with kidney cancer. This website and blog will keep track of my attempt battling the disease. In case you have questions or comments, please email me at: planetcaravan@gmx.com
