The evening of March 20, 2025, I drove myself to the Emergency Room at Sutter Tracy Community Hospital (STCH). I was experiencing extreme pressure and point tenderness in my abdomen near my liver. The pain had started as a 2/10 at 6:30 and progressed to 4/10 by 8:30, reaching 6/10 by the time I was seen by an ER physician around midnight.
The physician at STCH arranged to have me transferred to California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) where last year I had been hospitalized and treated multiple times for blockages to my liver and pancreas due to gallstones, and had my gall bladder removed.
Unfortunately, blood tests, a CT scan, MRI, and biopsy revealed that I have Stage 3 Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). It’s a type of liver cancer that originates in the liver’s main cells, and is the most common type of primary liver cancer.
How did I get it? It’s apparently a high probability that it started due to my Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and the associated Cirrhosis, and possibly the Metformin and other medications that I have been taking over the past few years.
The Hepatologists and Oncologists at CPMC have told me that this is a better diagnosis than bile duct carcinoma, which is more aggressive. So, I am grateful to GOD that this is the case.
On Monday, March 31, I have my first consultation with an oncologist in Tracy, where I hope to discuss how we can start immunotherapy to shrink the malignancy.
So, in addition to actively pursuing a new career, if possible, as a Data Scientist — or as a Lead/Sr. Business Intelligence Analyst, I’ll be looking to do what I have to do to tackle this medical condition.
Wish me luck — or include me in your prayers, if you’re so inclined. I’ll be grateful for either one!
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