Lung doc

I consulted on a 65 year old patient who came to the veterans hospital with longstanding cough but who had recently started coughing up blood. This nice gentleman had smoked for many years but had kicked the habit 10 years ago. We took Xrays and then CT scans and found tumor and lymph node involvement in his central chest and lung area which had spread around his main airways and around the pulmonary artery (the one that connects the heart & the lungs).

Cancer. In a guy who had tried to do the right thing, had kicked the habit. In a guy who at 65 years old still had a lot of life ahead of him. It was tough talking to him and his wife about his likely diagnosis, and the tests we needed to do to confirm it. He and his wife asked a lot of questions about prognosis, how tough the treatment would be, what were his options. I really felt for them during our discussions. They were searching for something to hold onto, something to help them make sense of the mystery, a life raft to guide them off the sinking ship, but there wasn't much to do but wait. I tried to be clear and realistic, empathic and patient. I think it helped a little.

The next day we did a bronchoscopy, the procedure whereby using a long-tubed camera we could look directly at the tumor and take biopsies. The visual evidence confirmed cancer, and a short while later the Pathologist sent the report: Squamous Cell cancer of the lungs. At this stage in my career I haven't yet become desensitized, so the news did affect me. I am going to strive to do my best to be there for this patient and his wife and to help them through this tough time of turmoil and turbulance.

Dr. K