Mea culpa #1

I suspect I will issue many of these over time. Let me say that, in my last post, I do not mean to imply that I have VHL, or that many people do have VHL with any certainty. (I believe there are stats on the National Institutes of Cancer site given below). I fit the profile for VHL in some ways (it's more prevalent amongst those of Scandinavian descent, which I am, and often expresses itself as different cancers in different generations, which is certainly true on both sides of my family). There are many other indicators for VHL that are not present for me, however, so it's a toss-up. The only way to know for certain is to undergo genetic testing.

Also - and importantly - there are no easy diagnostics for the "why do I have RCC". It is a difficult cancer to detect; the most certain signs are sudden spikes in blood pressure and the presence of blood in the urine. But so far no fast-and-sure cause has ever been established. More will follow on this later, I promise.