Fatty Liver

Dr Lim is one of the oncologist on Dr Rosita's team. She is soft spoken and thorough in her investigation. I told her about the excess liver enzyme in my blood stream. She offered the following possibilities, none of which is conclusive without further tests:-

1. Hepatitis B or C virus is known to lie dormant in some people until activated by a lowering of the immunity system which can be a consequence of treatments like chemotherapy. When triggered the virus hits the liver. This could cause an increase in liver enzyme in the blood.
2. Cholesterol Medication which are statin based is also known to adversely affect the liver.
3. Fatty Liver which is a reversible condition where triglyceride accumulate in liver cells.
4. Tamoxifen, the hormone pill I'm taking to tame my Beast, is also known to damage the liver.

There is no two way about it. A blood test was ordered to check for Hepatitis B and C plus liver function. That was in early August. Blood tests sent the chill up my spine. You'd probably remember that the chemotherapy had damaged most of the veins in my good hand. I've never had issues with blood tests before but post chemotherapy changed everything. In my last blood test, my GP (Dr Choo) had had to stick a needle into a vein on my leg to get the blood because the veins on my good hand were blocked.

At this point, we need to talk about Faith. It doesn't matter what your religion is. Faith mattered. Notice that when you're in trouble, your last resort is always God? Watch those Hollywood blockbusters. When the world is in trouble, the President of the United States called out "God help us all!" Faith. Hope. This is what kept people from Despair.

So I prayed. Oh boy, did I pray. I prayed for my God to bless the hands of the nurses or doctors who were trying to find my veins. And Hallelujah! The staff nurse found a wayward vein and got my blood at the first prick. It wasn't even painful. Faith! See what I mean?

I discovered the liver trouble some time in early July when I wrote THIS POST. Dr Choo (my GP) advised me to stop my cholesterol medication to ascertain if it was the cause. He recommended BG 22 and I've been on it since. Some say BG 22 is not everyone. There were reports of people getting an increased incident of mouth sores, constipation, skin problems ... the whole shebang. Fortunately I'm okay probably because I drank lots of water, close to 2 liters daily.

Later, on the same day, the oncologist Dr Lim (bless her soul) called me to tell me the result of my liver function blood test.

"Your liver enzymes are on the downward trend. The cholesterol medication is a probable cause. I would recommend another blood test in two months time to confirm this. Then, you'd probably want to speak to your GP about a change in medication."

And what do you say to something like that?

You say "Praise the Lord!" is what you say.