Medical Journal: 11/13/18

Saw Dr. Sanfilippo (the radiation oncologist) and his team. They weren’t surprised that the voice was coming back slowly, but they were surprised and worried by the persistent productive cough. Recommended a chest X-ray to rule out an infectious bronchitis or pneumonia. Did that; film came back ambiguous. I’m prepared to wager it’s the same radiation scarring that showed up on the X-ray three months ago, but I’ll ask Dr. Sulica to check when I see him Thursday. Dr. Sanfilippo suggested that the cough might be self-reinforcing through continued irritation of the throat, which certainly seems to be what’s happening. If that’s the case, than an asthma inhaler such as Advair might suppress the irritation long enough to suppress the cough long enough to relieve the irritation. Again, a question for Dr. Sulica.

The voice should continue to improve. In the long run, I now learn, it might be a little bit deeper, which would definitely be an improvement. It also might be a little bit softer, but I’ve always had volume to spare.

Yes, Dr. Sanfilippo will write a letter clearing me for the transplant. It’s close to certain that this tumor is gone, but there is some risk (10%?) of a recurrence over the next couple of years, so I’ll have to see him and Dr. Sulica every few months just to get checked out.

Author: Mark Kleiman

Professor of Public Policy at the NYU Marron Institute for Urban Management and editor of the Journal of Drug Policy Analysis. Teaches about the methods of policy analysis about drug abuse control and crime control policy, working out the implications of two principles: that swift and certain sanctions don't have to be severe to be effective, and that well-designed threats usually don't have to be carried out. Books: Drugs and Drug Policy: What Everyone Needs to Know (with Jonathan Caulkins and Angela Hawken) When Brute Force Fails: How to Have Less Crime and Less Punishment (Princeton, 2009; named one of the "books of the year" by The Economist Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results (Basic, 1993) Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control (Greenwood, 1989) UCLA Homepage Curriculum Vitae Contact: Markarkleiman-at-gmail.com