DEAR DR. ROACH: My husband was diagnosed with ampullary cancer. He has a tumor the size of a marble. We are told this is an aggressive cancer. My concern is that they are giving him chemotherapy before the Whipple surgery. Is this standard practice? — P.T. ANSWER: The ampulla of Vater is an opening in […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 77 and have been suffering from an enlarged prostate for 20 years, waking up six times each night to use the toilet. Because my prostate is “extremely large,” according to my urologist, he suggested that I see my vascular surgeon (who previously cleared my leg artery blockage) for a prostate […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: A person who works in the medical field told me that she is against vaccinations. The reason she gave is that when you put a specific vaccine into your body, your resistance to any other virus or bacteria is severely diminished. Thus, if you get a COVID vaccination, you are then much […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: For four years, I have been taking 2 mg of alprazolam at night to sleep. For the past six months, I have noticed that if I take it at 10:30 p.m., I usually cannot fall asleep until 2:30 a.m. Is it safe to simply stop taking this, as it has lost its […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 80-year-old male in excellent health. I’ve had a colonoscopy every five years following my first in my mid-50s, in which five benign polyps were found. I was told colonoscopies are not recommended for men after 75, but I could continue if I wanted. I kind of got burned out […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’m an 88-year-old female who has been diagnosed with ventricular fibrillation. My cardiac electrophysiology doctor, who implanted a conventional pacemaker four years ago, has noticed several episodes of VFib (up to 30 seconds, read via a bedside monitor) and recommends replacement of the current pacemaker with a combo pacemaker and defibrillator. I […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: My wife, 69, has had issues for several years with high counts of red blood cells, hemoglobin and hematocrit. This all started back in 2017. Recently, she had severe pain in her shoulder that wrapped around to her upper abdomen. After a visit to the ER, they ruled out heart attack and […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have been told at the age of 70 that I have early stages of the eye disease macular degeneration. The doctor told me to take PreserVision AREDS 2 vitamins. He said I will be taking them for the rest of my life. I started them immediately, and in a few nights, […]

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 80-year-old woman. Three years ago, I had breast cancer surgery. After surgery, my oncologist said I should take medication for five years to prevent cancer recurrence. After three-and-a-half years on this medicine, I began having terrible shoulder, lower back and hip pain. I tried two other medications, but nothing […]

DEAR DR ROACH: I was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1987 at the age of 39. I was treated with a lumpectomy, radiation and 5-FU chemotherapy (seven treatments). Nine years ago, in the same breast, I had a small tumor and elected to have a bilateral mastectomy followed by a prescription of tamoxifen for […]