Deep Vein Thrombosis

I'd been having excrutiating pain in my left leg. My assumption was that it was spreading down from the cancerous hip. Also the left ankle looked swollen all the time.

When I told my oncologist, she said that what was probably happening had to do with my being weaned from a high dose of steroids. The high dose of steroids had probably been preventing swelling and pain that was underlying from the cancer.

But that we should also rule out clots in the leg.

The plan was to go over to the hospital after my chemo on Thurs. to have a doppler of the leg, but chemo ran too long. So we went on Friday. Much to our surprise, there is a large clot in a vein that is running from the back of the thigh down to the calf.  The good news is that it is probably from chemo killing cancer causing "stuff" to break off and accumulate in my veins.  The bad news is that it puts me at risk for a pulmonary embolism if something breaks loose and makes its way to my lungs.

So now I am on blood thinners.  Several days of an injectible (remember Lovenox girls?) and then Coumadin.  I will have to have the Coumadin constantly monitored.  For the time being I have to stay in bed with my leg up, no weight-bearing for about a month (wheelchair), and take it easy.  Not being able to do stuff just makes me depressed.

But it's just part of the fight I guess.

Addiction

Along with drugs and alcohol, here are some of the other substances that I am addicted to and therefore abstain from.  Some folks have asked me.

Types, forms  of sugar

Ace-K
Acesulfame-k (Sunette, Sweet and Safe, Sweet One)
Alcohol, alcoholic drinks
Alitame
Amasake
Artificial sweetener packets (Equal, Sweet'n'low, Sweet Thing, Splenda)
Artificial flavors
Aspartame/NutraSweet
Augmiel
Barley malt
Cane juice
Caramel coloring
Concentrated fruit juice
Corn sweetener
Cyclamates
Date paste, syrup
Dextrin
Dried/dehydrated fruit
Evaporated cane juice (e.g., Florida Crystals)
Extracts
Fat substitutes (made from concentrated fruit paste)
Fructooligosaccharides (FOS)
Fruit flavorings (check with company)
Fruit juice concentrate
Glucoamine/glucosamine
Glycerine
Honey (any type)
Jaggery
-ides, any additive with this suffix:
monosodium glycerides, olyglycerides, saccharides (any), trisaccharides,
diglycerides, disaccharides, glycerides (any), monoglycerides, onosaccharides, etc.
Licorice root powder
"Light", "lite" or "low" sugar
Malted barley
Maltodextrins
Malts (any)
Molasses, black strap molasses
"Natural" flavors
"Natural" sweeteners
Nectars
Neotame
-ol, any additive with this suffix:
carbitol, glucitol, glycerol,  glycol, hexitol, inversol, maltitol, mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, etc.
Olestra (made from sucrose)
-ose, these additives with this suffix:
colorose, dextrose, fructose, galactose, glucose, lactose, levulose, maltodextrose, maltose, mannose, polydextrose, polytose, ribose, sucralose, sucrose, tagatose, zylose.
Raisin juice, paste or syrup
Rice malt, sugar or syrup
Rice sweeteners
Sorghum
Splenda (Sucralose)
Stevia
Sucanat (evaporated cane juice)
Sucraryl
Sugars, any type:
apple sugar, barbados sugar, bark sugar, beet sugar, brown sugar (any grade), cane sugar, caramel sugars, confectioner's sugar, date sugar, grape sugar, invert sugar, milled sugar, "natural" sugar, powdered sugar, raw sugar, turbinado sugar, unrefined sugar, etc.
Sunenette/Sweet-One (Acesulfame-K)
Syrups, any type:
agave syrup, barley syrup, brown rice syrup, corn syrup, date syrup, high fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, raisin syrup, yinnie syrup (rice syrup), etc.
Vanillan
Whey (as an additive)
Xanthum gum

Types, Forms  of Flour

Any bean, vegetable, nut, or grain that is ground into flour, meal, or powder is "flour" 

Starches and guar gum are also considered flour.

I do not consume any kind of flour.

Types & forms of wheat

Bran (if made from wheat)

Bulgar

Durum wheat

Gluten (wheat protein)

Kamut

Red wheat
Red spring wheat

Seitan (made from wheat protein, gluten)

Semolina

Spelt

Triticale (a wheat/rye hybrid)

Wheat berries

Wheat bran

Wheat flakes

Wheat germ

Whole-grain wheat

Winter wheat

Please note: This list is not exhaustive. If you are unsure about an ingredient, it is best to check with the manufacturer or forego the product.