knee issues

✍️ Day 22: 40 Days of Thankfulness

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Today is the 38th anniversary of my pituitary surgery at NIH.

As one can imagine, it hasn’t been all happiness and light.  Most of my journey has been documented here and on the message boards – and elsewhere around the web.

My Cushing’s has been in remission for most of these 38 years.  Due to scarring from my pituitary surgery, I developed adrenal insufficiency.

I took growth hormone for a while.

When I got kidney cancer, I had to stop the GH, even though no doctor would admit to any connection between the two.

In 2017 I went back on it (Omnitrope this time) in late June.  Hooray!  I still don’t know if it’s going to work but I have high hopes.  I am posting some of how that’s going here.

During nephrectomy, doctors removed my left kidney, my adrenal gland, and some lymph nodes.  Thankfully, the cancer was contained – but my adrenal insufficiency is even more severe than it was.

In the last couple years, I’ve developed ongoing knee issues.  Because of my cortisol use to keep the AI at bay, my endocrinologist doesn’t want me to get a cortisone injection in my knee.  September 12, 2018 I did get that knee injection (Kenalog)  and it’s been one of the best things I ever did.  I’m not looking forward to telling my endo!

I finally got both knees replaced.  The left in 2023, the right on February 3 of this year

I also developed an allergy to blackberries in October and had to take Prednisone – and I’ll have to tell my endo that, too!

My mom has moved in with us, bring some challenges…

In early May of this year I got a cortisone injection in my right thumb.  Hopefully, this won’t turn into anything.

But, this is a post about Giving Thanks.  The series will be continued on this blog unless I give thanks about something else Cushing’s related 🙂

I am so thankful that in 1987 the NIH existed and that my endo knew enough to send me there.

I am thankful for Dr. Ed Oldfield, my pituitary neurosurgeon at NIH.  Unfortunately, Dr. Oldfield died in the last year.

I’m thankful for Dr. Harvey Cushing and all the work he did.  Otherwise, I might be the fat lady in Ringling Brothers now.

To be continued in the following days here at http://www.maryo.co/

 

❓What do YOU Think?

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Do you think allergies are worse post-op?

I posted on Facebook that I’ve learned the hard way that I had an allergic reaction to blackberries. I’ve known about my strawberry allergy for decades and have avoided them mostly successfully. Apparently, they’re both in the same class of allergens 🙁

These blackberries were in an ice cream. And it was a good ice cream. Drat!

I have a lot more steroids to take for a few days. Oh, joy! And, another wean at the end.

Someone responded: “The further we get from Cushings, the more allergies surface. So glad you got help. Scary stuff!

I said: “I guess it’s because we don’t have so much cortisone already running in our bodies.”

Someone else asked: “Is that true? I seem to be allergic to pollen amd mold now?“
And I responded: “I don’t know but it makes sense now that I think of it. I’m definitely allergic to more things than I was Before Cushing’s“
After my second knee surgery in 2025, I developed a terrible itchy rash which spread to both legs and abdomen but the cause was never discovered. Pain block? Glue? Stitches? Medications? Bandages? The implants themselves?
I sent photos to the surgeon every other day.  He finally got approval from my endo – Dr. Roberto Salvatori – to tale a Medrol Dose pack.  The concern was steroid overdose.  I was also taking Benadryl and slathering on hydrocortisone cream.  It turns out that amazon sells 1-pound tubs of the stuff.  Much easier than those tiny tubes.

 

So, in my informal poll – what do you think?  Are your allergies worse or are you having new ones after Cushing’s?