With California law, I actually have the right to request a referral to a whole other provider if they get to the point where they feel it’s no longer treatable … and Kaiser has to pay the bill. I know someone who did just that. He went to City of Hope for a new cutting edge procedure and is still cancer free 7 years later. I will take that route if push ever comes to shove.
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Is that cutting edge procedure something they do with your cancer? Do you have to wait until Kaiser says they’re at the end of the line to go to CoH?
Yes and yes. So there’s always hope. My friend Rhonda from St. Louis is being treated at Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC for late stage 4 lung cancer that has metastasized to her spine. Surgery is not an option and St. Louis University’s oncology teams told her to get her affairs in order… quickly. That was a year ago and she is holding her own… still working and running a lucrative marketing business. The only difference between life and death in her case is the treatment facility. She may still succumb, but the point is that there is always hope.
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Wow. There is also the MD Anderson Cancer Center.
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I’ve heard that Kaiser doesn’t like you doing that, so they make it hard and everybody plays dumb so you almost need an advocate everytime you walk in the door. But that wasn’t the same hospital.
Nobody really likes doing it, but too bad. It’s a potential life or death situation. I discussed it with my surgical team early on and they agreed to do everything they can to streamline things should it ever reach that point. They know it’s not a reflection on their abilities. It’s a matter of having the tools and technology at their disposal to do different things. They are far more limited than places like City of Hope, UCLA, Anderson, MSK, etc.
The real problem is that Kaiser Permanente is an HMO and as such self contained. It’s a lot easier just going down 2 floors from oncology to radiology than traveling all over the city to get 2 things done.
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How true. My friend spent all her time driving from one place to another. It’s wearing.
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This chemo is kicking my ass this go around. Just too long a layoff. Bad nausea, vomiting and fatigue. I may have to lay off the posting for awhile. Please keep me in your prayers and good thoughts. Love y’all.
Nick
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You got it Daddio, you just take it easy and be cool, and let the medicinal Roundup do it’s thing.
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Absolutely, Nick. I am praying for you right now. I pray that the effects lighten up, that god/the universe gives you strength, that your body gets in perfect sync with the healing process, that your spirit stays as resilient as it has been so far. 
You deserve the best possible outcome.
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All the good thoughts we can muster are coming your way Nick!
Kick some ass!
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I hope you’re trying some weed along with it, might help with some of the side effects, take care of yourself.
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You are in our thoughts Nick. Just take some rest now.
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Just a bump.
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Hey, @D_M. I hope you’re hanging in there. I see you’ve dropped by, but haven’t posted. I hope the chemo isn’t kicking your ass too horribly. I’m pretty sure I can speak for us all when I say we’re all thinking of/praying for you! Keep up the good fight!
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What Lotus said. I try to leave you to your rest. So, just a quick post.
Hey Buckaroo, I hope to see you back in the saddle soon.
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FIRST!
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I love the classics
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Our friend is enjoying some nice peaches
unlike us
who have to deal with a (sometimes) cranky one
I scrolled through this thread to see if he’s been absent this long before (7 days now) – and indeed he has. Also, there’s that^^^^. So I’m going to try to just hold positive thoughts and prayers.
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