Relapse and Radiofrequency Ablation

Support cat and me.

Pet scan of February 2025 was a slight disappointment. Although I had a clear scan 6 months prior and no symptoms, I think my subconscious mind had been filled with negative possibilities because I knew that most people don’t make it for this long on ribociclib. I had made my worst dreams come true with the belief that this is the end of ribo for me. The scan showed that 2 of my biggest tumors in my liver that had went away, were now growing and active again. I handled it like a champ until I didn’t. My private hospital oncologist gave me a sturdy plan: radiofrequency ablation or histotripsy, no radiation due to poor location, let’s stay on ribo until any further recurrence to maximize its usage. This made so much sense and gave me confidence. But when I took this plan back to my public hospital follow up, I was torn apart by the doctor who told me: their standard course of treatment was to change meds, localized treatment is not proven effective, after this second line of treatment it’ll be chemo, oh and by the way you have osteoporosis and it’s severe and not reversible no matter how hard you try. I came out of this meeting in tears which lasted for 2-3 days at least. I learned right here in this week that despite their white coats, doctors can be wrong. They can be selfish, reckless, careless, ignorant, and wrong, despite what their credentials say. If I want to make it out alive, I just cannot believe everything people say and let beliefs that are not mine affect the cells of my body. The only voice that is true, is mine. Anyone who tells you that something is not possible, simply isn’t acting in your best interest. Who other than the highest power has a right to tell you that something cannot be done?

So I pulled myself together and while public healthcare was taking their time having meetings about whether or not radiotherapy was possible for me, I had already met with Jimmy Yuen, the best interventional radiologist at sanatorium hospital, and scheduled my RFA surgery for Feb 13 2025. He was amazing. He studied my case hard and his serious explanation but light humor told me he’s the kind of person I want on my team. In the surgery room while prepping, the humorous and casual banter between jimmy and the nurses made me so at ease. The anesthesiologist came in and stroked my face gently, telling me that this is gonna be a great surgery. I asked the nurses to say positive words to my subconscious while I was under and they all loved the idea. Let’s just say it was a very cozy moment! I am beyond blessed to be able to afford to choose who treats me, and this idea of money, how you spend it and how it serves you, has never before been so altered and clear in my life.

When I woke, I was in a lot of pain. 2 needles guided by ultrasound were inserted into my liver from my right side, one into each of my tumors, and microwaves were turned on for around 10 minutes to burn the tumors to smithereens. The tumors were close to my diaphragm, and because of the gentle movement of my abdomen while breathing, the heat penetrated and damaged my diaphragm a little. After I was wheeled into my room, my daughter came to visit, and I put on my best face with her because I could already tell she was scared. After she left, the ache in my liver was unbearable. They gave me ibuprofen which had no effect, then they gave me tramadol, which took effect after 1-2 hours. My mother stroked my back and it gave me some comfort, feeling like the child I am again. I had requested morphine, but they couldn’t give it to me after the tramadol. Phew it was intense. With the tramadol I drifted in and out of sleep the entire night and felt so much better the next day. I was discharged on Valentine’s Day and spent the next 14 days in bed with extreme fatigue and flu like symptoms. They told me that this surgery will cause fluids to buildup in the lungs, and flu like symptoms because the body is working hard to eliminate all those now dead cells. My abdomen above the treatment site became numb. And I started to have vaginal spotting after a few days at home. Although the oncologist and gynaecologist could not give me answers, quick trips to my osteopath and acupuncturist solved the mystery and stopped the spotting. Apparently the liver is connected to hormone production, and messing with the liver can start and stop a period, even for someone in menopause like me. My osteopath my was able to induce and reduce the bleeding just from touching the area above my liver. This really shows me that science is amazing, but anything in this universe is possible! If you feel like something is unlikely to be true, it is only unlikely to be true for the non believer.

After 2 weeks of intense rest, I am back to normal again. My tumor markers are the lowest they’ve ever been because the tumors are now not just inactive, but actually destroyed. I am stepping up my diet to involve some new interested things I’ve learned, such as high polyphenol foods and oils, food rich in coenzyme q10, quercitin, selenium, zinc, and vitamin E, all good things that can help the immune system become more efficient at identifying and attacking cancer cells. I have also been trying to reverse my osteoporosis on my own. I have been going hard at it with strength training, weighted vests, prunes with high boron content, all kinds of calcium intake, and most importantly, visualization. If you can see it, and truly believe it, then it is possible to manifest it. Amazing achievements are coming i can almost feel it.

xo

Carrie