Question re. Lungs

I think lung nodules are common.  I have them.  So far they have not changed.  They watch for any changes in them. i had them before cancer though.  They are very common in people that live in the Midwest and a few other areas.  Many people in my family have them.  They are watching me for changes since I've had anal cancer.  My cancer mentor has also had them and has had surgery for them.  She got them a couple of years after treatment.  She is fine but they watch her lungs carefully.  Hers required surgery because she was having symptoms.  She had a bothersome dry cough and was getting alot of respiratory infections.  I believe I have seen several people on here mention having these.  Hope all goes well at your appointment.

sandysp said:

Lungs

I have had problems with bouts of pneumonia and severe bronchitis pretty much every year since childhood. I was diagnosed as an asthma patient since my 40's when I went to my first ENT but stayed in denial until my 50's. Then when I had the pelvic scan, they referred to part of  the bottom of my right lung on as having a "mass." We didn't deal with it but just watched it until the size of the mass changed, when it increased itself by another 66% at the time of my scan in June during the period I lost my hearing on the left side, which was of an idiopathic cause. At that same time I had a terrible bout of bronchial inflammation and was put on strong antibiotics and prednisone.  Six months later, I had a follow up scan just of the lungs at the hospital where they are set up to screen for lung cancer only. I was concerned not only about cancer but that more scilia had also died in my lungs.

I had that scan on my birthday, January 21st, when it was 6 degrees and the wind was blowing 20 miles an hour and the streets were slick with ice. My birthday present was that the scan showed some improvement in the condition of my lungs. I was very pleased to hear this as well you can imagine. My lung on the right side is experiencing "thickening" which my My Pulmonologist believes the thickenining is caused by Bronchiechisis, which my mother also had and is often hereditary. I don't think any of these lung issues was caused by cancer treatment and doubt it is caused by cancer either but cancer is an opportunistic disease and is linked to inflammation and there is always a possibility of metasis to the lung from anal cancer, so it was a pragmatic call on the part of the Oncologist to do the scan. Since I now know about the small "mass", I also want to keep an eye on it.

I have learned the need to be very careful about air quality and have an air quality alert sent to my phone. It is so interesting because on days I don't feel well, quite often the alert is on for "sensitive types". Often they advise people not to go out of their homes until after 10 a.m. and be back in before dusk as the air quality is often worse at those times.

I am doing Bikram Hot Yoga now and since it really works the lungs thoroughly as well as every other aspect of the body.  I am hopeful to continue to see improvement in their condition. Sometimes people with Bronchiechisis have to have lung surgery to remove the blocked portions. At that time, I am sure they biopsy the tissue.

Anyway, I am happy there is no cancer diagnosis to my lungs, but all they say is that they show improvement. No one knows without a biopsy what is definitely going on. 

I know you just had your first lung inflammation. Take good care of your lungs. There is more to it than staying away from second hand smoke. Personally I believe the CT scans provide valuable information.

Good luck,

Sandy

Hi! 

I have had asthma since 40, but other than that I can't comment.

I hope nothing significant shows in scan. 

Here across the stormy pond thinking of you.

Liz x

pializ said:

Sandy

Hi!

Good to see you here again. I hope your ssnhl is being helped by your gadget (sorry, but I can't remember it's name).

Your type of yoga sounds very demanding.  Good on you for your determination.

Kind regards

Liz x

Ha, ha! the Gadget . . . it's called a Baha which is an abbreviation, I believe.

I have the tutanium screw in my head. The operation was performed in December and it was no big deal. I only had local anesthesia. My surgeon at Mt. Sinai Hospital, Dr. Smouha, a Neuro-Otologist really knows his field and is an excellent surgeon. But I have had to be very patient. I will get the "gadget" February 20th and I am counting the days. It takes three months for the skull to become one with the screw so there should be no danger of it falling out ever.

All in all though it has been a remarkable experience to see how the mind works and the body works to compensate for a loss like this one. I have done a lot of singing and have forgotten what it was like to have two ears. I get so many compliments on my singing now I wonder if I really am singing better or if it is just that people in church know all the medical problems I have had and are just moved by my determination. But I am applying some of the breathing exercises from Yoga to my singing and it could be that the singing is more vibrant. I meditate more and that may be helping also.

Again, I feel lucky to be in New York where I received such expert care. One of my physicians believed the problem was hysterical rather than real sudden hearing loss. My behavior from the vertigo, etc. could have had me institutionalized in some parts of the country. I was very weird for several weeks after the attack but it was because I never knew when the floor was going to become the ceiling! 

Thank God, Dr. Smouha specializes in hearing and balance disorders and I was hooked up with him early on. It's bad enough to be sick and suddenly handicapped without your doctor believing you are psychotic.

Psychologically, though, I did seek help and still see therapists at MSKCC for depression. I cannot take anti-depressants due to family history for bi-polar disorder so they gave me a mood stabelizer which was good but that caused my white blood cell count to drop in half. It is a rare side effect and a possibily fatal one. Had I not had the pre-op check up before my surgery for the screw, I would not have known how fast and far the WBC had fallen.

Now I feel much better adjusted even having had to abruptly stop the medication back in December, and am looking forward to the gadget! I told my husband we need to celebrate when I get it and have insisted he come with me since it truly is a gadget and he is really better with them. It will be operated from my phone, though which is Android and he is an Apple guy so we'll see.

Thanks for thinking of me. Good luck along the way. Having this board really helps with anxiety, even when we run into problems along the way of our healing. I am glad I could come back with a good report about my lungs.

Fondly,

Sandy

Very interesting.  I have NOT had any lung issues before or after treatment.