Testing, Testing - Part 1

Renal cell carcinoma is a puzzler. The cause is unknown. The symptoms are vague and don't seem to add up to anything, so it's hard to detect. For instance, my symptoms included:
- sudden spike in blood pressure
- fatigue
- sharp pain in the lower back and right side
- insomnia
My doctor at the time didn't add these up though I asked repeatedly; maybe I can forgive him those. What he didn't follow up on was a test result showing blood in the urine - that should have been checked, though he said the amount was "negligible." Doctors I've worked with since then have said any blood in the urine should be considered an indicator that something's wrong, somewhere.

Research is underway that may lead eventually to a simple blood test for kidney cancer. It's in early stages yet and the mechanisms of the test are complicated beyond my comprehension, but I'm glad to hear that it's more than a rumor in the community. Will it come in my lifetime? Probably not. But two new therapies have been developed and approved in my lifetime since diagnosis, so maybe that's not such a farfetched possibility.

I seem to be adjusting to the increased dosage with little more than the expected side effects - commensurately increased number of diarrhea episodes, increased fatigue. I'm making certain I have plenty of Immodium on hand; we'll see how things go.