Really??

I was ready to keep moving forward

Dear Cancer,

If I’m being honest, I’m angry. I’m frustrated. I don’t understand. Yesterday, I was supposed to start radiation - begin the final phase of my treatment because of you. But twenty minutes before I was supposed to leave for my appointment, I was informed that my insurance denied my specific radiation request.

But why??? As if having you and dealing with everything because of you wasn’t hard enough.

All I kept thinking was: What right does an insurance company have to deny me, or anyone for that matter, their doctor-recommended treatment? How can they think they know better than Mayo Clinic? How was my radiation determined to not be “medically necessary”?

I was referred to and accepted by Mayo Clinic for proton therapy (radiation) for several reasons: you were a large-sized tumor (larger than five centimeters in diameter), you were near my chest wall and therefore in close proximity to my heart and lungs, and I’m young.

It was explained to me that traditional (photon) radiation is like an x-ray and the radiation waves go whatever direction they are pointed. Since you were on my left side, I will receive radiation to those lymph nodes and chest wall, which with photon radiation, could radiate my heart, lungs, and esophagus. This could then increase my risk for heart and lung complications later in life. No thanks. I don’t want any more un-asked-for trouble resulting from you.

Because of this risk, my radiation oncologist said I was the perfect patient for proton therapy. This type of radiation is molecular in nature and therefore has weight. Since it has weight, the doctors can direct the radiation where to stop, so no unnecessary radiation to my heart and lungs. Yes, please. Anything to reduce future complications.

The amazing part - Mayo Clinic offers both forms of radiation for the same price because they don’t want insurance companies to make decisions based on the lowest cost to them. They want the decision made based on what is best for the patient, and in my case, the recommended best option for me is proton therapy.

But no, the expert recommendation of Mayo Clinic wasn’t good enough for my insurance company. They denied it, calling it “experimental and investigational” even though this type of radiation has been around for almost 40 years, and hospitals are continuing to invest in this type of radiation because it has been proven to reduce risk and minimize damage to surrounding healthy tissues and organs.

So clearly, I’m frustrated. I want to keep moving forward - to finish my treatments before summer really gets going. I want to keep putting more time and space between us. I want to finish treatment and heal. I want to make fun summer plans for my family because we’ve been through a lot and are ready for our next happy adventure.

I was so ready to start radiation yesterday. I had an amazing weekend with my husband and kids and was eager to tackle this next phase. But this is just a small setback. I hope and pray all will workout in the end. This last treatment helps ensure you will never come back.

Afterall, the most important thing is that there is no more you.

Sincerely,

Kaitie