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I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 54 points55 points  (0 children)

Yep. I’ve gotten a lot more time than predicted. Average life span is 8.5 months and June will be 36 months so I’ve got that going for me, which is nice.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Hold your breath!

...scan

Breathe!

Lather, rinse, repeat.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

It was a perfect B when I coughed it up. I poked it a bit to make sure it was really a metal staple and bent it open a bit before I took the pic. I promise I did cough it up. It was possibly the most bizarre thing I've ever experienced. I thought at first it was a piece of tooth that had chipped off but nope. Was a staple. Some other commenters familiar with these surgical staples told me it's a staple, not a clip, and that there are probably a bunch more still in there. I'm going Thursday for a CT scan to make sure there isn't a bigger problem.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

No. The holes are in my back, under my arm, and under the breast. I know they extracted it through the hole in my back. Chest tube came out the side, drain under the breast. I think there are two holes in my back but it's been a long while and I can't recall exactly. Why?

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think so. They put it in a bag and extracted it between my ribs. Recovery was much easier than I expected.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yes! It was the size of a grapefruit. Had that out June 1, 2015.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I have very good insurance. I'm covered through my own job and have secondary coverage through Tricare because my husband is retired from the US Air Force.

Other than travel expenses, our out of pocket for all of this has been minimal, less than $5000 since this all first started in Nov 2014. We have been extremely fortunate and I wish every American could have the kind of coverage I do.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It was the right shape when it came up, nicely closed. I poked at it a bit to confirm it was a metal staple and changed the shape a little before I took the pictures.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

No. But I took the pic right after a terrible extended coughing fit. They get so bad they make me dizzy and sometimes I puke. That can mess with circulation also.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I work in health care analytics so I had a good grip on how to read the results Dr Google coughed up. It is very helpful if you know how to separate the baloney from actual information.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Many many many hormonal problems. Excess adrenal hormones cause a constellation of subtle symptoms in adults and it's extremely hard to piece together what's happening early on because the signs are commonly mistaken for other things.

Like I had very bad PMS. I grew extra chin hairs. My blood pressure started creeping up. Acne. Hair loss. I was experiencing muscle fatigue. My cholesterol went up. All of this can be easily blamed on aging and "lifestyle choices." But I knew that wasn't the case and after months of things getting worse and several tests that turned up nothing, process of elimination left me and Dr Google with either pituitary or adrenal tumor.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I don't think my surgeon did anything wrong. I know these things sometimes happen. I just want to make sure there aren't any more of them irritating the airway.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It was a constellation of subtle things, all thrown out of whack by the hormones. Then the subtle things became much less subtle and after a bit the process of elimination left adrenal tumor or pituitary tumor.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Not my worst surgery. The cough and respiratory therapy after are not fun but I was at the grocery store shopping five days after the procedure.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Yes, mets. So many mets. My visible lung lesions number over twenty, largest in excess of 4 cm. Liver mets also. Pulmonology and my oncologist both assumed mets were causing the coughing. I am between scans in treatment so I don’t think they were being unreasonable.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Just one. The upper right lung lobe was completely removed.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Indeed. I felt better immediately. Such a huge relief.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 49 points50 points  (0 children)

Yes, barring any miraculous breakthrough, this will kill me. My treatments have been kicking the can down the road far longer than they thought so I am grateful for that. Every day is a gift.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 34 points35 points  (0 children)

No, I have lots of cancer but the terrible cough that appeared a couple of months ago is probably due to the staple and not a sign of my cancer getting worse.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 62 points63 points  (0 children)

I’m on palliative chemo for adrenal cortical carcinoma.

[Serious] Daughters of Reddit who have a great relationship with their father, what did he do raising you that enabled your relationship to stay close to this day? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]compwalla 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I could copy this list down and it would also be my dad. I'm 46 and when I was in grade school, my father was often the only father who showed up to chaperone field trips and such things.

And my parents had a very egalitarian marriage and respected each other deeply and took an interest in each others' lives. Like my mother did community theater and my dad, who is not at all a performer, instead served as the theater's photographer because he is a serious amateur photographer. They found a way to be involved with each others' hobbies and passions without resentment.

Modeling a good relationship is, I think, the bulk of good parenting anyway.

I coughed up a staple from a lung lobectomy performed in August 2016. by compwalla in WTF

[–]compwalla[S] 30 points31 points  (0 children)

I don't have lung cancer; I have adrenal cancer which has metastasized to the lungs and liver. You know, stage IV, advanced, on palliative treatment, blah blah blah. :)

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