Weddingbee boards

• Okay so this is totally random. But I have to go to an oncologist/hematologist to get a followup on my bloodwork because it looks like it is showing some cancer markers.

  I started getting sick about 6 months ago and thought it was allergies. So I went to the allergist who basically said I didn't have allergies but I was hypothyroid. So I went to my primary doc who retested and confirmed. So other labs were off, so they had me come back for a follow up a few months later. Well then January rolls around, and I go in for more labs and I'm still having all the same problems (exhaustion---sleeping CONSTANTLY, weight fluctuations, nausea and other unsavory stomach issues, hot flashes/chills, joint pain, etc). I basically complain that I feel worse, not better. So they do more blood work, and basically it has gotten worse, and there are a few markers that warrant me going to the onco/hemat for a blood smear and poss a bone marrow biopsy.

  Now, of course I am a little nervous since basically everyone in my family has had cancer, including ones in the family that they are looking for.

  But one thing that has me really tripped out is that right around when I got sick, all of my deodorants started failing. I have tried:

  Dove

• Dove Clinical
• Secret
• Secret Clinical
• Sure
• Degree
• Mitchum
• Tom's
• Ban
• Philoshophy
• Prescription
• Mens variations of all of the above!

I still cannot get rid of the smell. My left armpit is fine, but my right armpit is like, awful...it's not like a total body odor smell, it's weird (this might be TMI, but its not like OMG BO, its just not a good smell).

I thought maybe it was a skin infection, so I started cleaning it with rubbing alcohol and using neosporin in the hopes that it would clean up the area, but it just didn't do anything. I tried to stop shaving, or do waxing, and that didn't do anything either.

I am wondering if I should tell the oncologist about this since they are looking at my marrow and lymph nodes, but I don't want to seem totally stupid. But you have  ton of lymph nodes under there? I am just wondering if any one else would have advice or heard of a smell that comes along with these diseases.  I really don't want to say anything if it seems totally dumb.

I worked in Oncolgy for almost 4 years, mostly giving chemo. That is not a symptom that I have heard, but to be honest tell them everything. Sometimes the littlest thing can be something and things you think are  a big deal aren't. Always be on the safe side and mention any changes you are noticing. Don't be embarrassed they have probably heard everything before, and won't think anything of you asking. Best of luck to you!

@Eva Peron:  I actually just dont wear deodorant anymore. There is no point! It doesn't do anything, so I figure I might as well skip it.

@MissPumpkinPie:  I've tried the Degree Natural Effects but it doesn't work :(

@MrsMeNow:  Thank you for letting me know. I guess I could just mention it! 

@janie-janie:  (good info on the deod vs antipers stuff!) &  @Miss Orchard:  I'm going in tomorrow and I've been a little hand wringy all week. I haven't been able to get too much information out of anyone yet.  Basically my TSH was bouncing around, just going up and down between 1.0 and 5.75 or so...just swinging back and forth and everywhere in between. They caught that when I went in and I was complaining how I was so tired that I could sleep through the entire weekend...basically, if FH doesn't wake me up, I can sleep 22 out of 24 hours, and just wake up to drink and eat and go back to bed. They were all set to diagnose me with some sort of hypothyroid condition (not sure which or cause), but the levels never stayed even close to one place.

At the same time I had a serum protein electrophoresis run and a regular CBC run. All of my CBCs have been coming back with super high cholesterol for the past 2 years, even though I am on a low cholesterol and low sat fat diet. My platelets went up to 675 which they said is high, and it said somethign about them being large. Then my SPE came back off, that the IgM was like 3x's what it was supposed to be. They checked some other stuff (like vitamin D) and it was just 'in the crapper' (thanks doc) even though I am on supplements for it already. There were some other values that came back wrong, but I don't know what they were. On top of all of this, I keep getting these red spots and bruises all over, and I'm still just totally exhausted all the time! My blood work has just been getting worse the whole time, but no one can say why, and it all seems like these random things (high IgM, high platelets, poor clotting times but still getting clots and bruises...) that I just don't understand to be honest. Monoclonal and polyclonal what? M-spikes? It might as well be in Portugese or Mandarin.

Meanwhile if I didn't have to work or FH didn't wake me up, I could probably sleep through my whole life without even realizing it. We even went on vacation and as much as I wanted to get up and even sit on the balcony, I was too exhausted and just slept. It's awful. If I try to get up, it's like I go into a stupor and I have a hard time focusing. But the alternative is that they are looking at all of these absurd rare cancers (myeloproliferative disorders). It's like, damned if I do and damned if I don't almost. I don't want to have cancer, but I wish they would at least find out what is wrong!

Sorry for the long rant! I guess I had a lot more to say than I thought.

Uodate: Well, they basically said they wanted to do a few more tests and then I should come back when they are done. Bascially right now he didn't give me any information at all, just took like 8 vials of blood and told me to come back. I wasn't super impressed with him as a doctor and may go to someone else just because I didn't feel like he had a good bedside manner? I'm thinking about it...

I told them about the BO thing and um...it was funny. The dr basically said "Um, I don't know what would cause that. If it really bothers you then you could see a dermatologist about it." I basically told him I had already done that and the prescription didn't work, and that was that.

But the way he looked at me it was like I was a total wackadoodle!! Luckily, I just thought it was hysterical and laughed about it. And in the interim I'm still hunting for the perfect deodorant. :)  Thank god it's not obvious or offensive, or else I would be totally embarassed!!