I went back to the obstetrics and gynecology department before the Chinese New Year. This is an annual cancer follow-up. Although it has been more than six years, every time I go back, I still feel like I am taking an exam and getting my report card. I thought there should be no problem with the blood test, but I didn’t expect the CEA index to be high. What is CEA?
The article linked below explains it clearly
https://www.ttcc.org.tw/health_column/cea/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA_NC9BhCkARIsABSnSTbUBMfSVh3XczN7xQHywTM-qap3bUT73Q3O8TNfzM6P3bQ-z9hoNIAaAqGYEALw_wcB

At the beginning of January, I couldn’t get an appointment at the National Taiwan University Hospital, so I had to go to the National Taiwan University Cancer Center. I had a blood test and a smear done that day. Dr. Zhang felt that there should be no problem with the blood test report and said that I could ask Dr. Chiu to see it next time. This way, I wouldn’t have to make an extra trip to the cancer center. Later, I looked at the report from the National Health Insurance Express Pass and found that the CEA was abnormal. I thought it was a gynecological cancer problem, so I went back to the cancer center to see Dr. Zhang. As a result, the doctor said that this abnormal index was related to the gastrointestinal tract and asked me to see Dr. Chiu. I am grateful to my personal manager who helped me contact, inquire, and add Dr. Chiu’s outpatient clinic during this period. I originally thought that Dr. Chiu would tell me that it was nothing and not to worry… After entering the consulting room, Dr. Chiu seemed to have grasped the situation and immediately told me: Arrange a low-dose CT scan for lung adenocarcinoma. I asked in confusion: I have endometrial cancer, how can it be related to the lungs? Doctor Qiu explained: Endometrial cancer, colorectal cancer, lung adenocarcinoma, etc. are all glandular cancers, so the cancer cells may spread, but we have to be cautious and do tests to rule out the possibility. After hearing this, I immediately began to worry. Doctor Qiu looked at me and said: Are you worried again? Ha ha! Doctor Qiu is the one who really understands me.
The original examination was scheduled for the end of February. Before the New Year, I accidentally mentioned it to Ms. Chang in 13B when I was messaging her. She immediately helped me contact the examination room to see if it could be done earlier. I really appreciate Ah Chang’s enthusiastic help in allowing me to do the test earlier in early February. The report is out now, and it looks like the summary shows that I am not experiencing a recurrence of cancer. However, I still have to wait for a return visit to see Dr. Qiu in early March for confirmation. However, it has relieved me of a lot of weight. I just went through a big battle of clones last year, and I really don’t want another one to happen. After all, my intestines have been quite stable recently. Although I felt a little uncomfortable during the Chinese New Year, it was because I ate food that was difficult to digest. After recovery, I am doing well now.

Recently, there are a lot of influenza, norovirus, etc. viruses spreading outside, and the weather changes a lot. It is indeed easy to feel uncomfortable. I hope that I and all my fellow patients can get through it safely.
The news has been reporting recently that the emergency rooms of almost every hospital are overcrowded, there are not enough beds, and there is a shortage of medical staff. I am very worried. I remember that when I was hospitalized last year, Dr. Chiu would always chat with me every time he came to make rounds. He repeatedly mentioned the shortage of medical staff, coupled with the unfairness of the National Health Insurance points, which has led to an increasingly serious wave of medical staff leaving their jobs. Dr. Chiu performs more than a thousand colonoscopies a year. He asked me: Do you know how much money the National Taiwan University Hospital gets from the government for each colonoscopy? About fifteen hundred! You girls spend more than this much to perm your hair, right? If Taiwan’s health insurance system and medical system are not changed, everyone will really perish together if they continue as they are. Many people think that doctors make a lot of money. Since Taiwan has had health insurance, the profession of doctor is no longer a profession that everyone envies and aspires to. To put it bluntly, it is a job of selling liver and exploiting manpower. It was only after I got sick that I realized how hard medical care is, but their salaries are not proportional. Can you imagine… In the future, there will be a shortage of medical staff, and even if you go to the hospital, there will be no one to help you treat it? This report points out the problem but it seems there is no solution yet… https://www.twreporter.org/a/national-health-insurance-global-budget-system-point-value-reform

I think for fellow patients, medical staff are like family, or even more important than family members. Just as I often say that I cannot live without NTU hospital, I don’t even have the courage to move to central and southern Taiwan, fearing that I won’t have professional medical care when I get sick. Let us care about and fight for the rights and interests of medical staff, and hope that their initial determination and passion to become doctors will continue to shine.