Thanks Gabes. I wasn't sure what the Australian policy was.
Gloria
path to take?
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
wow interesting reading thanks Tex.
Makes complete sense & makes me glad I walk barefoot so often - hopefully will avoid these all-too-common immune related diseases later in my life!
thanks for all the other replies as well, your interest/support means a lot.
I don't think the latest drugs are really having any effect, I've asked my mum to ring and book the next consultation available as it is likely to be months away.
So frustrating as not only do we waste months each time these bloody GIs go down the wrong path, but I think it puts her further and further away from being willing to take Entocort - I'm scared that by the time we find a sensible doctor who can see this is the most effective treatment that she won't be willing to take it.
and then what? ...
I will ask her though if she is willing to take it if I get it in from overseas.
Makes complete sense & makes me glad I walk barefoot so often - hopefully will avoid these all-too-common immune related diseases later in my life!
thanks for all the other replies as well, your interest/support means a lot.
I don't think the latest drugs are really having any effect, I've asked my mum to ring and book the next consultation available as it is likely to be months away.
So frustrating as not only do we waste months each time these bloody GIs go down the wrong path, but I think it puts her further and further away from being willing to take Entocort - I'm scared that by the time we find a sensible doctor who can see this is the most effective treatment that she won't be willing to take it.
and then what? ...
I will ask her though if she is willing to take it if I get it in from overseas.
hi everyone,
I hope you've all been well & had a good holiday season.
Apologies for not posting in so long, I thought I had posted an update at the end of last year :) I also feel bad for only posting when I need advice, so I've answered as many of the Polls as I could (on behalf of my mum) - so good to be able to contribute to research.
Since my last post I got in contact with Crohns & Colitis Australia (http://www.crohnsandcolitis.com.au) as although they only mention UC on their website, I thought I'd give them a call anyway. They have a great phone line run by a volunteer who was so nice & helpful & knew about MC not just UC. She was outraged at the treatments the previous 2 GIs had given her, and said she really needed to come down to Brisbane (3 hr drive) to see one of only two Queensland specialists they recommend (not sure if I am allowed to post names on here so I will leave them off for now).
So we made the next appointment possible in November, and I flew over to go down with her. Few dramas on the way including the car breaking down but we made it in the end. The GI has given her methotrexate (brand name: methoblastin) 2 x 2.5mg tablets twice weekly (so 10mg/week). He wants her to stay on it for 6 months, and have monthly blood tests during that time to make sure it's not wrecking her liver.
So far it has helped with the BM but side effects are making her not real happy - sensitivity to the sun and it makes her depressed/mood swings.
Any advice/experience about this drug for CC?
On another note she has had skin issues for a couple of years now (they look like mosquito bites that have been scratched) - very itchy and a biopsy with her GP wasn't helpful - they came back with "the biopsy showed they are inflammed cells". She asked for a referral to a dermatologist and got one to Royal Brisbane hospital (3 hrs drive). She had been waiting months for an appointment and finally sent an appointment date with one week's notice (next week)
I hope you've all been well & had a good holiday season.
Apologies for not posting in so long, I thought I had posted an update at the end of last year :) I also feel bad for only posting when I need advice, so I've answered as many of the Polls as I could (on behalf of my mum) - so good to be able to contribute to research.
Since my last post I got in contact with Crohns & Colitis Australia (http://www.crohnsandcolitis.com.au) as although they only mention UC on their website, I thought I'd give them a call anyway. They have a great phone line run by a volunteer who was so nice & helpful & knew about MC not just UC. She was outraged at the treatments the previous 2 GIs had given her, and said she really needed to come down to Brisbane (3 hr drive) to see one of only two Queensland specialists they recommend (not sure if I am allowed to post names on here so I will leave them off for now).
So we made the next appointment possible in November, and I flew over to go down with her. Few dramas on the way including the car breaking down but we made it in the end. The GI has given her methotrexate (brand name: methoblastin) 2 x 2.5mg tablets twice weekly (so 10mg/week). He wants her to stay on it for 6 months, and have monthly blood tests during that time to make sure it's not wrecking her liver.
So far it has helped with the BM but side effects are making her not real happy - sensitivity to the sun and it makes her depressed/mood swings.
Any advice/experience about this drug for CC?
On another note she has had skin issues for a couple of years now (they look like mosquito bites that have been scratched) - very itchy and a biopsy with her GP wasn't helpful - they came back with "the biopsy showed they are inflammed cells". She asked for a referral to a dermatologist and got one to Royal Brisbane hospital (3 hrs drive). She had been waiting months for an appointment and finally sent an appointment date with one week's notice (next week)
Hi Shona,
I'm sorry to hear that your mum is still having problems, but after seeing the last symptom that you mentioned, (inflammed cells in the skin), it's clear to me why she is having so many issues. Your mum almost certainly has either mastocytic enterocolitis, (ME), or MC/CC combined with mast cell activation disorder, (MCAD). Unfortunately, the odds are close to zero that the dermatologist she is scheduled to see will even be aware of either of those conditions, let alone understand how to treat them, since they are an intestinal issue, not a skin issue, (even though they often cause skin symptoms).
You can do a search of the archives of this board to find many, many past discussions about these issues, but briefly, ME is a condition where there are too many mast cells in the lamina propria of the intestines, and MACD occurs when there is a normal level of mast cells, but they tend to degranulate when they shouldn't. When mast cells degranulate, they release histamines, and sometimes other inflammatory modulators, which can cause all sorts of digestive problems, and also systemic problems, (such as skin inflammation problems - especially itchy skin problems). MACD is activated by eating certain foods that promote the degranulation of mast cells, and it can also be caused by eating foods that have a high histamine content. The sites at the following links contain lists of foods that are likely to cause problems for someone with either ME or MACD:
http://www.michiganallergy.com/food_and_histamine.shtml
http://www.urticaria.thunderworksinc.co ... tamine.htm
Many medications can also cause mast cells to degranulate, (including common aspirin). I have a list of such medications that I would be happy to send to you in a PM, if you need it, but I don't want to post it here, because it's from my book, and if I post it, I could be accused of self-plagiarism, (as silly as that concept appears to be), when the book is published.
Methotrexate is not on the list, but I wonder about it, because sensitivity to the sun is just one of many mast cell disorder symptoms.
The point is, if she has either ME or MCAD, the mast cell disorder could be the cause of all or most of her GI symptoms, and the skin problems, to boot. As far as advice/experience with methotrexate is concerned, I don't have any experience with it, but personally, I wouldn't take it - it's a very powerful chemotheraphy drug, with some serious side effect risks. Here's a list of some of the possible side effects, from the site at the link below:
And yes, theoretically, methotrexate could improve her symptoms, because it is a powerful immune system suppressant, and an antiinflammatory drug, as well, so it can suppress mast cell activity. However, using methotrexate to suppress mast cell activity is like burning down the barn, to get rid of the rats. There are much safer ways to go about it.
Thanks for the update.
Tex
I'm sorry to hear that your mum is still having problems, but after seeing the last symptom that you mentioned, (inflammed cells in the skin), it's clear to me why she is having so many issues. Your mum almost certainly has either mastocytic enterocolitis, (ME), or MC/CC combined with mast cell activation disorder, (MCAD). Unfortunately, the odds are close to zero that the dermatologist she is scheduled to see will even be aware of either of those conditions, let alone understand how to treat them, since they are an intestinal issue, not a skin issue, (even though they often cause skin symptoms).
You can do a search of the archives of this board to find many, many past discussions about these issues, but briefly, ME is a condition where there are too many mast cells in the lamina propria of the intestines, and MACD occurs when there is a normal level of mast cells, but they tend to degranulate when they shouldn't. When mast cells degranulate, they release histamines, and sometimes other inflammatory modulators, which can cause all sorts of digestive problems, and also systemic problems, (such as skin inflammation problems - especially itchy skin problems). MACD is activated by eating certain foods that promote the degranulation of mast cells, and it can also be caused by eating foods that have a high histamine content. The sites at the following links contain lists of foods that are likely to cause problems for someone with either ME or MACD:
http://www.michiganallergy.com/food_and_histamine.shtml
http://www.urticaria.thunderworksinc.co ... tamine.htm
Many medications can also cause mast cells to degranulate, (including common aspirin). I have a list of such medications that I would be happy to send to you in a PM, if you need it, but I don't want to post it here, because it's from my book, and if I post it, I could be accused of self-plagiarism, (as silly as that concept appears to be), when the book is published.
Methotrexate is not on the list, but I wonder about it, because sensitivity to the sun is just one of many mast cell disorder symptoms.
The point is, if she has either ME or MCAD, the mast cell disorder could be the cause of all or most of her GI symptoms, and the skin problems, to boot. As far as advice/experience with methotrexate is concerned, I don't have any experience with it, but personally, I wouldn't take it - it's a very powerful chemotheraphy drug, with some serious side effect risks. Here's a list of some of the possible side effects, from the site at the link below:
http://www.drugs.com/sfx/methotrexate-side-effects.htmlSeek medical attention right away if any of these SEVERE side effects occur when using Methotrexate:
Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); back pain; black or bloody stools; blood in the urine; bone pain; calf or leg pain, redness, swelling, or tenderness; change in amount of urine produced; chest pain; confusion; coughing up blood; diarrhea or vomiting; difficult or painful urination; dry cough;enlargement of the breasts (in males); fainting; fever, chills, or persistent sore throat; menstrual changes; mental or mood changes; mouth or tongue sores or swelling; muscle weakness; night sweats; one-sided weakness; red, swollen, blistered, or peeling skin; seizures; severe or persistent headache, drowsiness, dizziness, or light-headedness; shortness of breath; speech changes; swollen glands; symptoms of liver problems (eg, dark urine, pale stools, persistent loss of appetite, severe stomach pain, yellowing of the skin or eyes); symptoms of pancreas inflammation (eg, severe stomach pain with or without nausea or vomiting); unexplained weight loss; unusual bleeding or bruising; unusual pain and discoloration of the skin; unusual tiredness or weakness; vaginal discharge; vision loss or other vision changes (eg, blurred vision); vomit that looks like coffee grounds.
And yes, theoretically, methotrexate could improve her symptoms, because it is a powerful immune system suppressant, and an antiinflammatory drug, as well, so it can suppress mast cell activity. However, using methotrexate to suppress mast cell activity is like burning down the barn, to get rid of the rats. There are much safer ways to go about it.
Thanks for the update.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
thanks Tex, thats very interesting. have been doing as much reading as I can find on it but there isn't much out there. The other bummer is that diagnosis of ME is by biopsy and I think I'd have fat chance of convincing her to get another colonoscopy.
Since my last post, she got down to the dermatology clinic and they looked at her & told her to get a blood test - she also took copies of her last 5 monthly blood test results (as ordered by her gastro to keep an eye on her liver while on the methotrexate) - the dermatologist looked at the blood results and told her to stop taking the methotrexate immediately as it is damaging her liver
Unfortunately her gastro is on holidays so she has decided to stop taking it and talk to him when he gets back.
Lastly, the dermatologist contacted her a few days after her appointment to tell her she has (wait for it!): Prurigo
Wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry at that!
She's been given a script for Diprosene (betamethasone) which seems to be healing the scabs so at least that's one thing, even if it isn't getting to the cause of the issue.
I'm going to talk to her gastro soon so I'll definitely ask him about ME and MCAD.
Thanks for listening :)
Since my last post, she got down to the dermatology clinic and they looked at her & told her to get a blood test - she also took copies of her last 5 monthly blood test results (as ordered by her gastro to keep an eye on her liver while on the methotrexate) - the dermatologist looked at the blood results and told her to stop taking the methotrexate immediately as it is damaging her liver
Unfortunately her gastro is on holidays so she has decided to stop taking it and talk to him when he gets back.
Lastly, the dermatologist contacted her a few days after her appointment to tell her she has (wait for it!): Prurigo
Wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry at that!
She's been given a script for Diprosene (betamethasone) which seems to be healing the scabs so at least that's one thing, even if it isn't getting to the cause of the issue.
I'm going to talk to her gastro soon so I'll definitely ask him about ME and MCAD.
Thanks for listening :)
Shona,
I'm glad that the methotrexate is out of the picture - that stuff is bad news for most people.
I have to agree that the dermatologist's diagnosis was way short of being impressive, but at least he provided a prescription for a corticosteroid to treat it.
The odds of her gastro knowing anything about ME are probably pretty slim, and even slimmer that he may have heard of MCAD, but maybe he is exceptional, and he stays abreast of the cutting edge of technology in his field. If the pathology lab still has the biopsy slides from her last colonoscopy, (and they definitely should still have them), any pathologist can restain the slides with a special tryptase-based stain and count the mast cells in the lamina propria. If the count exceeds 20 mast cells per 100 enterocytes, then she has ME. The lab will probably have to special order the stain, because most labs don't keep it in stock, (that's why ME is rarely diagnosed). According to research roughly 70% of everyone who has MC, Crohn's disease, UC, or celiac disease, will also test positively for ME, (if the pathologist bothers to look for it). Here's a reference on that:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16519565
Here are a couple of references with basic information about mastocytic enterocolitis:
http://thefooddoc.com/mastoctosislinkpage.html
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2008/02/ ... idemic.htm
Texl
I'm glad that the methotrexate is out of the picture - that stuff is bad news for most people.
I have to agree that the dermatologist's diagnosis was way short of being impressive, but at least he provided a prescription for a corticosteroid to treat it.The odds of her gastro knowing anything about ME are probably pretty slim, and even slimmer that he may have heard of MCAD, but maybe he is exceptional, and he stays abreast of the cutting edge of technology in his field. If the pathology lab still has the biopsy slides from her last colonoscopy, (and they definitely should still have them), any pathologist can restain the slides with a special tryptase-based stain and count the mast cells in the lamina propria. If the count exceeds 20 mast cells per 100 enterocytes, then she has ME. The lab will probably have to special order the stain, because most labs don't keep it in stock, (that's why ME is rarely diagnosed). According to research roughly 70% of everyone who has MC, Crohn's disease, UC, or celiac disease, will also test positively for ME, (if the pathologist bothers to look for it). Here's a reference on that:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16519565
Here are a couple of references with basic information about mastocytic enterocolitis:
http://thefooddoc.com/mastoctosislinkpage.html
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2008/02/ ... idemic.htm
Texl
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2008/02/ ... idemic.htm
Hi Tex..:0) The link above doesn't work...do you have another? Thanks!
Hi Tex..:0) The link above doesn't work...do you have another? Thanks!
Hi Gay,
Dr. Lewey set up a new journal for his blogs, and he also set up a new main website. The first link below should take you to the article you're interested in, and the other one links to his main website, which has all sorts of info, but I selected the page on mastocytic enterocolitis.
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2008/02/ ... demic.html
http://www.thefooddoc.com/mastocytosis_enterocolitis
Tex
Dr. Lewey set up a new journal for his blogs, and he also set up a new main website. The first link below should take you to the article you're interested in, and the other one links to his main website, which has all sorts of info, but I selected the page on mastocytic enterocolitis.
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2008/02/ ... demic.html
http://www.thefooddoc.com/mastocytosis_enterocolitis
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Thanks for the links, they were one of the few I found in my search :)
She's had colonoscopies at 2 different places - when I rang them both, 1 said they probably still had the slides but the request would need to come from her doctor before they looked in the files and found out for sure. The other place I didn't get to speak to pathology directly but the hospital staff said there was no way they would still have them as they only kept them a few weeks.
Anyway, we may have some progress:
I spoke to her GI last week and told him about the dermatologist telling her to stop the methotrexate. At first he was quite annoyed, but then put me on hold to go and read her monthly blood test results for the past 5 months. When he came back he actually said he agreed with stopping it.
He then said that she needed to be on another medication and there was another one they used but it was quite expensive - I asked if he meant entocort and he said yes (hurray!) but he won't give it to her without seeing her again, which is fair enough.
The one thing that annoys me is that he said in November that he wanted her to get the monthly blood tests so he could monitor her liver, but then basically blamed us for not calling him, obviously we had a misunderstanding that he was going to call her if there was an issue.
I also asked him about mastocytic enterocolitis and he had heard of it but said it was very rare. I said that I wanted him to put a request in to the pathology lab but that we could talk about it at the appointment.
So we are going there next week (I was visiting the east side anyway so managed to arrange something while I was there). Hopefully the entocort works because I don't know where we'll go from here if it doesn't - and it costs over $500 every time she has to fly down to see him.
She's had colonoscopies at 2 different places - when I rang them both, 1 said they probably still had the slides but the request would need to come from her doctor before they looked in the files and found out for sure. The other place I didn't get to speak to pathology directly but the hospital staff said there was no way they would still have them as they only kept them a few weeks.
Anyway, we may have some progress:
I spoke to her GI last week and told him about the dermatologist telling her to stop the methotrexate. At first he was quite annoyed, but then put me on hold to go and read her monthly blood test results for the past 5 months. When he came back he actually said he agreed with stopping it.
He then said that she needed to be on another medication and there was another one they used but it was quite expensive - I asked if he meant entocort and he said yes (hurray!) but he won't give it to her without seeing her again, which is fair enough.
The one thing that annoys me is that he said in November that he wanted her to get the monthly blood tests so he could monitor her liver, but then basically blamed us for not calling him, obviously we had a misunderstanding that he was going to call her if there was an issue.
I also asked him about mastocytic enterocolitis and he had heard of it but said it was very rare. I said that I wanted him to put a request in to the pathology lab but that we could talk about it at the appointment.
So we are going there next week (I was visiting the east side anyway so managed to arrange something while I was there). Hopefully the entocort works because I don't know where we'll go from here if it doesn't - and it costs over $500 every time she has to fly down to see him.
Shona,
I don't know how it's done in Australia, but in the U. S., it's the doctor's responsibility to notify a patient if a lab report shows that a drug should be discontinued.
Yes, your doctor has to be the one to request that the slides be restained and reexamined. I don't see how he can call mastocytic enterocoloitis rare, when 70% of everyone who has Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, or MC, has it. GI docs, (and pathologists), just don't keep up with research discoveries in their field. The red emphasis in the quote is mine, of course.
I hope the Entocort works, too. Good luck.
Tex
I don't know how it's done in Australia, but in the U. S., it's the doctor's responsibility to notify a patient if a lab report shows that a drug should be discontinued.
Yes, your doctor has to be the one to request that the slides be restained and reexamined. I don't see how he can call mastocytic enterocoloitis rare, when 70% of everyone who has Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, celiac disease, or MC, has it. GI docs, (and pathologists), just don't keep up with research discoveries in their field. The red emphasis in the quote is mine, of course.
I hope the Entocort works, too. Good luck.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Wow can't believe it has been over 2 months since I posted here 
Hope everyone is well and all you guys in the Northern hemisphere are enjoying coming into Summer.
The good news is that we got the Entocort
and positive results so far.
The script is being filled by the hospital pharmacy which is subsidized, bringing the cost from about $500 for 90 pills down to just over $5.
During the GI appointment I brought up ME and he fobbed me off saying that nothing in her bloodwork gave him an indication that she would have it, so he wasn't willing to order the test. All I can assume is that he thinks I'm too stupid to use google.
While we were there, we also managed to get an appointment at the dermatology clinic she attended back in Feb. The blood results were back in and the dermatologist happily reported to us "well all the tests were negative which means you don't have anything serious". Then proceeded to tell her that if she stops scratching the sores she won't get them anymore
Her very first colonoscopy was in my home town back in 2007, and I've managed to find out that our pathology place keeps biopsy slides for 7 years. I've got an appointment with the GP clinic who referred her for the colonoscopy on Monday, along with printouts of ME, and a letter from my mum saying I have permission to access her medical records & request tests for her. I think I'm going to need a lot of luck to talk them into requesting the test.
Thanks for reading, I feel as though we are finally getting somewhere and couldn't have done it without this board.
Hope everyone is well and all you guys in the Northern hemisphere are enjoying coming into Summer.
The good news is that we got the Entocort
and positive results so far.The script is being filled by the hospital pharmacy which is subsidized, bringing the cost from about $500 for 90 pills down to just over $5.
During the GI appointment I brought up ME and he fobbed me off saying that nothing in her bloodwork gave him an indication that she would have it, so he wasn't willing to order the test. All I can assume is that he thinks I'm too stupid to use google.
While we were there, we also managed to get an appointment at the dermatology clinic she attended back in Feb. The blood results were back in and the dermatologist happily reported to us "well all the tests were negative which means you don't have anything serious". Then proceeded to tell her that if she stops scratching the sores she won't get them anymore
Her very first colonoscopy was in my home town back in 2007, and I've managed to find out that our pathology place keeps biopsy slides for 7 years. I've got an appointment with the GP clinic who referred her for the colonoscopy on Monday, along with printouts of ME, and a letter from my mum saying I have permission to access her medical records & request tests for her. I think I'm going to need a lot of luck to talk them into requesting the test.
Thanks for reading, I feel as though we are finally getting somewhere and couldn't have done it without this board.
Hi Shona,
That's good news about the Entocort. It's nice to see that your mum is finally getting some relief. If the GI doctors in Oz are anything like the GI specialists in this country, they're probably mighty hard-headed and set in their ways. The doctor who said that her blood tests didn't show any indication of ME displayed his ignorance, because there is no blood test for ME. A high serum tryptase level would show that mast cells were active, but that's not diagnostic evidence for ME, and tryptase levels are only high for a few hours immediately following a major mast cell event, so it's almost impossible to diagnose ME that way. Systemic mastocytosis can be diagnosed that way, but not mastocytic enterocolitis. The only way to diagnose ME is by staining the biopsy samples with a tryptase-based stain, and counting mast cells under a microscope.
Good luck with your mission to have her original biopsy samples reanalyzed.
Thanks for the update,
Tex
That's good news about the Entocort. It's nice to see that your mum is finally getting some relief. If the GI doctors in Oz are anything like the GI specialists in this country, they're probably mighty hard-headed and set in their ways. The doctor who said that her blood tests didn't show any indication of ME displayed his ignorance, because there is no blood test for ME. A high serum tryptase level would show that mast cells were active, but that's not diagnostic evidence for ME, and tryptase levels are only high for a few hours immediately following a major mast cell event, so it's almost impossible to diagnose ME that way. Systemic mastocytosis can be diagnosed that way, but not mastocytic enterocolitis. The only way to diagnose ME is by staining the biopsy samples with a tryptase-based stain, and counting mast cells under a microscope.
Good luck with your mission to have her original biopsy samples reanalyzed.
Thanks for the update,
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Good news on the ME front - I managed to talk the GP into writing the pathology request :) I could see him trying to weasel out of it, so ended up telling him the pathology lab had told me the request needed to come from his practice as they had referred her for the colonoscopy in 2007.
I should have the results in a few weeks.
Her GI also referred her for an ultrasound and MRI on her liver (not sure why, he was a bit cagey about details). When I rang the GI, his receptionist told me neither report had been received by them (weeks later) so I had to call both radiology clinics and ask them to send.
The pathology lab doing the ME test also managed to lose the request form, luckily I had faxed it through not posted it so could re-send.
The efficiency of the health care system never fails to amaze me! What is sad is that I have family members who despite knowing all these fails with my mum's care, will still say "I'm sure my blood test results were fine as the doctor hasn't called me and they are supposed to call if there's anything I need to know"
I should have the results in a few weeks.
Her GI also referred her for an ultrasound and MRI on her liver (not sure why, he was a bit cagey about details). When I rang the GI, his receptionist told me neither report had been received by them (weeks later) so I had to call both radiology clinics and ask them to send.
The pathology lab doing the ME test also managed to lose the request form, luckily I had faxed it through not posted it so could re-send.
The efficiency of the health care system never fails to amaze me! What is sad is that I have family members who despite knowing all these fails with my mum's care, will still say "I'm sure my blood test results were fine as the doctor hasn't called me and they are supposed to call if there's anything I need to know"
Shona,
Good for you for using a little psychological pressure on the GP and getting the job done.
They seem to lose a lot of paperwork, but I'll bet they never lose the bills. In fact, if they're anything like hospitals here, they probably bill the government twice for most expenses.
Tex
Good for you for using a little psychological pressure on the GP and getting the job done.
They seem to lose a lot of paperwork, but I'll bet they never lose the bills. In fact, if they're anything like hospitals here, they probably bill the government twice for most expenses.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.