Tuesday, September 3, 2013

PSA 4 colonoscopies by Gregg Kravitz

PSA 4 colonoscopies by Gregg Kravitz
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Good man Gregg! As a political guy you know how important a well crafted Public Service Announcement is.
[And everyone should note that cancer isn't the only thing they look for during a colonoscopy.]

This is my story, Gregg, reflecting well on the value of your earlier post.

I'm 65 now, first colonoscopy was around 50, then 56, but my third was the "one that saved my life". No indication of any problem previously, but this time each clean out never was complete, never enough to adequately see the (amazing! complex!) inside surface of the colon. I had to do it again every few weeks, each w an increased aspect to the prep — the final, successful one resulted in a "gold strike"; the tiny slim flexible 'scope w camera and light bumped into what had been giving me toilet troubles over prior weeks: something blocking the way! They took a sample (for biopsy) of it, told me about it being confirmed as a typ colorectal cancer and explained options (essentially none).

So I was operated on after pre-surgery lab tests & a big meeting w 3 onco docs + 3 others (social services, etc.). i.e. URGENT.

In between I learned of the free services from the Fairmount Park "Cancer Support Community of Philadelphia". You can get & customize a brief yet broad template of questions & matters to help you through that meeting!
Two years after diagnosis, and 11 months after the end of my excellent and thorough multi-modal treatment, I feel good and as yet have zero measurements or symptoms of any kind of cancer!!

If my colonoscopy hadn't been done, this little PSA (Public Service Anncmt) would have been written by me after I was painfully dead…

Any questions on WHY a regular series of colonoscopies is important to YOU?
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Bill Marston LEED AP via iPhone 3GS
209 S. 24th St. Phila
267.304.4193
WMarston@verizon. net