One down, one to go

We spent yesterday working on Jamie’s medical issues because (awww…) my recommended doctor was out healing the poor. 

We headed to Star Medica, which was a journey of its own.  We got lost at least 3 times, stopped at a Comex (paint) store to get directions where the guy even drew me a map and following the map we ended up on the road to Progreso.  Eventually we found a giantly tall building with a big star on it.  At this point we weren’t really sure but figured it was a tall building and had a star that that was probably a good indication that it was the hospital.  We found an excellent parking space directly in front but outside (what we thought was) paid parking and as we walked in we found a teeny tiny itsy sign at the bottom of another (non identifying) sign which indicated that the building was most likely the hospital we were seeking.  I’ll take a picture today – coming from Quintana Roo where the hospitals have giant signs, we were a little confused.

We started with a gastro who came very highly recommended and he told us that he is almost completely certain that Jamie’s ass mass is most likely benign.  The fact that it goes almost completely away and comes back only with exercise leads him to believe it can’t be a malignant carcinoma.  And it is so small right now he can’t really find it.  So the plan is for Jamie to make it big (bike ride) and then then get an ultrasound.  He has a colleague who he knows personally in Cancun and we’ll head there to investigate the ass mass when Jamie manages to make it big.  He is pretty good at making it big so I don’t think that will be a problem.

The gastro also gave us a recommendation for an ENT who specializes in neuro-related ear issues who has been working in Mexico City and Star Medica is apparently very happy to have here.  I’m hoping to avoid a very expensive MRI so I think this is the guy to do that.  I made an appointment with him for this morning as yesterday he was out fixing ears of all the poor little children in all the surrounding areas.  With a smile on his face, angels on his shoulder and a chorus of heavenly voices following in his footsteps.

The gastro also recommended a general ortho group for Jamie’s back pain which has sidelined him for at least a week of bike riding.  I didn’t realize how incapacitating this pain was for Jamie – he gets back pain from time to time and within a week he’s good (or better) to go.  Not so much this time.  The ortho really didn’t speak much English (the gastro spoke English the whole time) so I happily translated back and forth.  Jamie was sure that he had back cancer which radiated to his stomach, thus resulting in both back and stomach cancer just eating away at his insides.  But with the ass cancer coming first I wasn’t so worried about the back and stomach.  The ortho did a thorough examination and from the very start identified a chronic muscular situation.  He had us get x-rays, however, just to make sure it wasn’t anything spine-related.  By this time it was noonish and I was dying to get back to the kids at the hotel.  Besides, I figured that the x-rays would be much cheaper at a clinic than top-of-the-line Star Medica.

The kids were happily watching Simpsons episodes streaming on the super fast DSL connection here at the hotel and I think they were actually unhappy to see us back.  We swam a little, I water jogged in a vain attempt to lose some of the kilos I’m packing back on (due to rich food and lack of exercise) and dragged the kids to what the hotel attendant assured me was a laboratorio with x-rays.  They HAD to have x-rays, she assured me.  We were able to see some beautiful colonials and the lovely Santiago park, but alas, no x-ray clinic.  So back to the hotel, into the car (where I avoided a parking ticket from the cops who, Jamie tells me, thought I was running from the law) and off to a local (CMA) hospital and clinic.  Let’s just say I don’t think we saved any pesos and might have actually paid more than we would have at Star Medica AND got lousy x-rays to boot.  Sheesh!

Dragged the kids to Star Medica (only made about 23 wrong turns and at one point took each and every road at an intersection) and headed up to the ortho who confirmed his earlier diagnosis (no back cancer, no stomach cancer, everything bone-wise looks good) and prescribed 2 weeks of physical therapy and some drugs.  Good drugs, according to Jamie.  We were able to walk into the physical therapy clinic and have his first session last night.  So we’ve got Jamie totally lined up for his back issues and once those are fixed he can ride his bike again and make his ass mass grande and we’ll get an ultrasound to see if it is a cyst (water filled) mass or simply fatty tissue and fibers.  Which, incidentally, is exactly what the original doctor in the hyperbaric chamber way back in Playa del Carmen told us for $250MN.  But we LOVE to spread our pesos around the medical community.

Coming back from the hospital we had a marvelous dinner (handmade tortillas and incredibly good food) and then I took Pike and the girls out to walk in the center of town.  Walking the streets of Merida at night is the only way to go.  Cool, and not a person on the streets until you’re directly in the main plazas.