"Many of my clinic memories are coloured by the unclouded summer light of southern Texas. Its oppressive heat was never fully suppressed by the double-paned glass of the exam room, so we cranked up the air conditioning, telling ourselves this equilibrium could be maintained indefinitely, that the burning intensity of that far-off star could be denied by will alone. I think about that amorphous, undifferentiated energy when I remember the first time I met Warren and his wife in my suburban oncology clinic."
"He'd begun having pain about 10 weeks prior, a sharp stab every time he tried to have a bowel movement. He'd tried home remedies, but the pain had only worsened. His primary care doctor had thought the issue was an anal fissure, but the treatments hadn't helped. Eventually, he'd gone to see a gastroenterologist for a Botox injection to relieve the pain, but on evaluation there, the specialist had found a mass in the terminal portion of his rectum. A biopsy had shown invasive adenocarcinoma."
Clinic memories are colored by bright southern Texas summer light and oppressive heat mitigated by cranked air conditioning. A 48-year-old South African patient, Warren, presented withdrawn and physically changed by cancer, with tightened cheeks, a hunched posture, and restless foot jiggling. He reported a ten-week history of sharp pain during bowel movements that resisted home remedies. Primary care providers initially suspected an anal fissure and attempted treatments that failed. A gastroenterologist, evaluating for a Botox injection, discovered a rectal mass; biopsy confirmed invasive adenocarcinoma, and prescribed Norco did not relieve his severe pain.
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