WOW! My parents have been married for 46 years. In just a few hours, Sue and I will take them out to dinner to celebrate this special day. It is something that we will celebrate even more after everything that we have been through in the past 8 months. It's been a trying year, but Mom and Dad have made it through it together!
Mom continues on her road to recovery. Her hair is beginning to come back. Did you take bets which color it would come back as? She is walking a bit every day to help build up her energy. She is in training for the 5K Susan G Komen Race for the Cure. I know that with all of the support of the team members, she will do it. And speaking of team members for Pauline's Posse, the team is growing! Thank you! Also, thanks to everyone who has donated so far!!
Mom is still battling the insurance companies about the generic brand for Arimidex and now she received word that her insurance company wasn't going to cover the Onctotype DX test that was performed on her tumor after her mastectomy! The insurance company "lost" the paperwork that was sent by her surgeon and her oncologist! So, now Mom will be going through appeal one for this test. The test without the insurance is $4,500!!! With her insurance covering it, the cost to mom is $75.00. It is just incredible that nearly 7 months after the surgery and completing the treatment, the test was not covered? I wonder if this happens to every patient like my mom? Now it is waiting to hear back from the insurance company. Next is the battle for a lower cost on the Arimidex generic. It is never ending......
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
The Runaround
Mom is still in the middle of the "runaround" with her Arimidex prescription. She received her monthly supply from Diplomat late last week. Instead of it being the generic that she thought it would be, she received the Arimidex again. This is just more and more confusing. The "generic" that she recieved from the regular pharmacy, anastrozole,is the same thing as the arimidex. I believe that the one is the active ingredient of the other. If I'm confused and my mom is confused, can you imagine how people who don't really pay attention to the costs and the drugs are fairing? Mom went to her pharmacy for other prescriptions today and checked on the cost of the arimidex "generic" and it was now up to $377.00 for a 30 day supply! Now that is just a bit over $130 less than what it would cost for the regular drug. Not much of a savings yet is it?
Other than having to deal with all of this craziness, Mom has been having many more good days than bad days. Yesterday, wasn't a good day for mom as she was suffering from lots of nausea from the Arimidex. However, she is feeling much better today. This must come in waves for her. Once her body gets used to the drug, then she can get her other medications under control. Slow progress, but the prospects are looking better and better!
Other than having to deal with all of this craziness, Mom has been having many more good days than bad days. Yesterday, wasn't a good day for mom as she was suffering from lots of nausea from the Arimidex. However, she is feeling much better today. This must come in waves for her. Once her body gets used to the drug, then she can get her other medications under control. Slow progress, but the prospects are looking better and better!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Really???
I know, it's been awhile since I've posted an update on the blog. Actually, that would be a good thing, as it means that Pauline is chugging her way along to recovery. And, I'm happy to say that she is slowly getting back to her usual routine. She is slowly getting her energy back. These are all good things that I am very happy for.
However, it is taking Mom's body longer to get used to the arimidex. She has been getting nausea every early afternoon since she started the drug. Thankfully, she still had some anti-nausea pills from her chemotherapy. These seem to be helping the nausea. Mom said that the nausea was actually worse than what she felt during her chemotherapy. She felt like she had morning sickness. The oncologist said that it will take about 60-90 days for her body to get used to the drug. Other than that, the side effects have thankfully been minor.
We thought that she was all set with the $25.00 a month from Diplomat for the arimidex. She was officially approved for that going forward last month. However, yesterday, she received a call from them saying that there is now a generic version of the active ingredient in arimidex, anastrazole. Since there is a generic available, Diplomat will now not cover the arimidex. Mom's insurance company won't cover the generic at the moment, because it is so new, it isn't in their drug tier program. So, where does that leave mom and the cost of the drug? She is up-in-the air at the moment. I can't find alot of research on the generics yet, since it is so new. What I have found is that the generics are only slightly less cost than the brand name. How does that help my mom out with the cost of the drugs? Not much. So, now, she is back to working with the oncology nurse, the insurance company and the drug store to figure out something. That is why the name of the blog is "Really???" I just can't believe all that she (and I know that it isn't just her, but millions out there) has to go through to get the treatment that she needs. It's so frustrating!!
However, it is taking Mom's body longer to get used to the arimidex. She has been getting nausea every early afternoon since she started the drug. Thankfully, she still had some anti-nausea pills from her chemotherapy. These seem to be helping the nausea. Mom said that the nausea was actually worse than what she felt during her chemotherapy. She felt like she had morning sickness. The oncologist said that it will take about 60-90 days for her body to get used to the drug. Other than that, the side effects have thankfully been minor.
We thought that she was all set with the $25.00 a month from Diplomat for the arimidex. She was officially approved for that going forward last month. However, yesterday, she received a call from them saying that there is now a generic version of the active ingredient in arimidex, anastrazole. Since there is a generic available, Diplomat will now not cover the arimidex. Mom's insurance company won't cover the generic at the moment, because it is so new, it isn't in their drug tier program. So, where does that leave mom and the cost of the drug? She is up-in-the air at the moment. I can't find alot of research on the generics yet, since it is so new. What I have found is that the generics are only slightly less cost than the brand name. How does that help my mom out with the cost of the drugs? Not much. So, now, she is back to working with the oncology nurse, the insurance company and the drug store to figure out something. That is why the name of the blog is "Really???" I just can't believe all that she (and I know that it isn't just her, but millions out there) has to go through to get the treatment that she needs. It's so frustrating!!
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Testimonial Speaker
As you know from previous blogs, my Mom has been going to a chiropractor since the fall of 2009, a few months before she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Mom has suffered with fibromyalgia for 15 years. She was having pains in her head the past 2 years. She attended a seminar about fibromyalgia by Dr. Brian Ruocco of Power of Life Chiropractic in the fall. She received a free consultation and the rest is history! The manipulation exercises that she did was helping her head pain and body aches dramatically. Then, the breast cancer diagnosis hit in December. The chiropractic therapy changed to help enhance her immune system before her mastectomy in January. Since then, it has been more of a recovery therapy to help her recover from surgery and the 4 chemotherapy treatments. She has been a very vocal supporter for the work that Dr. Ruocco has done. She even persuaded the oncology nurse, Cindy, to go to a fibromyalgia seminar with her. Now Cindy is a patient of Dr. Ruocco! (which in itself is a huge mixing of the chiropractic world and the medicine world!).
Dr. Ruocco asked Mom if she would do a testimonial that he could use in a fibromyalgia seminar that he was doing this week. She told him that she would do better than that. She would show up and give the testimonial in person. I don't think that Mom is afraid of talking in front of people. She must have passed along that talent to me, as well. The seminar was Thursday. I asked her how it went and she just shrugged it off as something that she would do everyday. She also told me that she has been speaking up in the seminars and support groups that she goes to at the Moll Center. She talks about going to The Gathering Place and what service they have provided for her.
I'm so proud of Pauline for doing all of this. Most people who just went through chemotherapy feel self-conscious wearing hats, etc. Pauline has embraced all of the emotions that go along with recovering from chemotherapy and has channeled them to help others who are going through the same thing. This is so great. The more that she gets out there and talks to people, I think the better she will feel!
Dr. Ruocco asked Mom if she would do a testimonial that he could use in a fibromyalgia seminar that he was doing this week. She told him that she would do better than that. She would show up and give the testimonial in person. I don't think that Mom is afraid of talking in front of people. She must have passed along that talent to me, as well. The seminar was Thursday. I asked her how it went and she just shrugged it off as something that she would do everyday. She also told me that she has been speaking up in the seminars and support groups that she goes to at the Moll Center. She talks about going to The Gathering Place and what service they have provided for her.
I'm so proud of Pauline for doing all of this. Most people who just went through chemotherapy feel self-conscious wearing hats, etc. Pauline has embraced all of the emotions that go along with recovering from chemotherapy and has channeled them to help others who are going through the same thing. This is so great. The more that she gets out there and talks to people, I think the better she will feel!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Pauline's Posse
I just started a team for the Cleveland Susan G Komen Race for the Cure for Pauline! The race/walk is on September 11, 2010 in downtown Cleveland. Our team's name is Pauline's Posse. Pauline is signed up to walk, so let's all encourage her as much as possible that she can do it!
Check out the action for the Pauline's Posse. When it asks you to join an existing team, you enter Pauline's Posse. You can sign up to join us in our walk or just donate to a great cause. More info to come!
Check out the action for the Pauline's Posse. When it asks you to join an existing team, you enter Pauline's Posse. You can sign up to join us in our walk or just donate to a great cause. More info to come!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Sunshine and Flowers
Every year for the past 8 years, Sue and I have planted flowers for my parent's patio. This year was no exception. Mom really enjoys seeing the flowers grow throughout the summer. Plus, all of her neighbors make comments about her patio flowers. The pictures are of the patio after we planted the pots this past weekend. I'll have to remember to take a picture at the end of summer to show how all of the flowers grew to take over the patio! Hopefully, mom's energy level will grow as the flowers grow over the summer.
Good news on the Arimidex cost. Mom has been given a grant to reduce the cost of Arimidex to $25.00 a month via a speciality pharmacy called Diplomat. . The drug arrived this afternoon. What a HUGE relief this is for my mom. I really don't know what she would have done if this didn't come through for her. She will start taking it tomorrow and we'll see what side effects (if any-hopefully not) we will have to deal with. The official road to being cancer free starts tomorrow!!!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Survivorship
Mom is officially a breast cancer survivor. She made it through surgery with flying colors. She made it through her chemotherapy treatment. Now, she will be moving on to the next step of her treatment-hormonal therapy.
This morning was Mom's follow-up appointment with Dr. Bagai. It's been 3.5 weeks since her last chemotherapy treatment. She is still suffering from extreme fatigue and body aches from the treatment. Dr. Bagai says that the side effects will be going away and she will be getting more and more of her energy back. Dr. Bagai is recommending Mom go on the hormonal therapy drug, Arimidex. I did research on the drug and it's side effects. Since Mom is post-menopausal, this is the drug for her. There are not many other choices. She needs to be on this treatment to prevent the cancer coming back or everything that she has been through (surgery and chemotherapy)in the past 6 months will be for naught. Since Mom has a higher chance for recurrence (found in the test on her tumor), she needs to be on some sort of hormonal therapy. We talked about the side effects with the doctor. Major side effects include body aches (mom already has these, possible bone loss, hot flashes and higher cholesterol. He recommends that Mom will also start taking a Calcium and Vitamin D supplement. He kept reminding us that these side effects are not life threatening and can be controlled. (unlike the side effects of chemotherapy, which have a chance of being life threatening)
The biggest worry that Mom has (other than recovery) is the cost. Arimidex is a very costly drug. It could cost her up to $500.00 per month while she is in the donut hole with her Medicare coverage. The drug is not available in a generic form until the end of the year. The Oncology nurse, Cindy, is going to investigate lower drug costs either through the drug company or another pharmacy for Mom. This was a big relief for Mom and I hope released some of her anxieties about taking the drug. Now, we wait for Cindy to work her magic with the drug company.
Cindy also gave Mom information on a survivorship program that Moll Center provides twice a month. Mom will go for her first time in 2 weeks. I think that this is just as important for her as going to the other support groups that she goes to. Once the battle with the insurance company and the drug costs are under control, Mom can then focus on her full recovery, while learning new skills to make herself a better person inside and out!
This morning was Mom's follow-up appointment with Dr. Bagai. It's been 3.5 weeks since her last chemotherapy treatment. She is still suffering from extreme fatigue and body aches from the treatment. Dr. Bagai says that the side effects will be going away and she will be getting more and more of her energy back. Dr. Bagai is recommending Mom go on the hormonal therapy drug, Arimidex. I did research on the drug and it's side effects. Since Mom is post-menopausal, this is the drug for her. There are not many other choices. She needs to be on this treatment to prevent the cancer coming back or everything that she has been through (surgery and chemotherapy)in the past 6 months will be for naught. Since Mom has a higher chance for recurrence (found in the test on her tumor), she needs to be on some sort of hormonal therapy. We talked about the side effects with the doctor. Major side effects include body aches (mom already has these, possible bone loss, hot flashes and higher cholesterol. He recommends that Mom will also start taking a Calcium and Vitamin D supplement. He kept reminding us that these side effects are not life threatening and can be controlled. (unlike the side effects of chemotherapy, which have a chance of being life threatening)
The biggest worry that Mom has (other than recovery) is the cost. Arimidex is a very costly drug. It could cost her up to $500.00 per month while she is in the donut hole with her Medicare coverage. The drug is not available in a generic form until the end of the year. The Oncology nurse, Cindy, is going to investigate lower drug costs either through the drug company or another pharmacy for Mom. This was a big relief for Mom and I hope released some of her anxieties about taking the drug. Now, we wait for Cindy to work her magic with the drug company.
Cindy also gave Mom information on a survivorship program that Moll Center provides twice a month. Mom will go for her first time in 2 weeks. I think that this is just as important for her as going to the other support groups that she goes to. Once the battle with the insurance company and the drug costs are under control, Mom can then focus on her full recovery, while learning new skills to make herself a better person inside and out!
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