DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 71-year-old male who is a nonsmoker and a social drinker. Other than a statin, I am not taking any medications. I have been getting colonoscopies every five years as each time several benign polyps have been found. When I was 67, a couple of precancerous polyps were found along […]
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Internist suggests PET scan after PSA level raises slightly
DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 90 years old. About 20 years ago, I had prostate cancer and went through 43 weeks of radiation. My PSA level in the past year has risen slightly from .03 ng/mL to .09 ng/mL. My internist has suggested that I get a PET scan. Do you think this is necessary? […]
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Nasal packing might have caused a cerebrospinal fluid leak
DEAR DR. ROACH: My son has been diagnosed with a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak. I had never heard of this. He has been told that his brain pressure is lower than normal. This caused him to have severe headaches, and he says that his ears feel like they are going to explode. He can only […]
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Claritin-D greatly reduces cold symptoms for 84-year-old man
DEAR DR. ROACH: I have found what seems like an almost-magical way to stop the progression of the common cold and a cure for it. I am a reasonably healthy 84-year-old male with a medically sound lifestyle. Historically, I have gotten about two common colds per year that always starts with nasal congestion. It rapidly […]
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Man notices that his urine has become quite foamy
DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 78-year-old male in relatively good health. I only take losartan for my blood pressure. Over the past year, my urine has gotten quite foamy. The internet suggests that this means a high amount of protein from protein drinks, high physical activity, or a kidney problem. I saw my primary […]
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Being insistent about a scan saves the life of cancer patient
DEAR DR. ROACH: About 12 years ago, I had a scan done to look for the cause of a problem that I was having for many months: pain in my abdomen and vomiting. (It turned out to be Barrett’s esophagus, which was found with a scope.) Fortunately for me, I read the report from the […]
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Vitamin K12 might help with the calcification of blood vessels
DEAR DR. ROACH: I was diagnosed with advanced osteoporosis years ago. I started taking vitamin K2 because I read that it helps move calcium from the blood into the bones. Fast forward to last year, my doctor had me do a scan to check for arterial plaque because my total cholesterol went over 300 mmol/L. […]
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Staying on medication saves the life of patient with blood clots
DEAR DR. ROACH: In 2016, I was fortunate to survive a saddle pulmonary embolism (PE). I was sent home from the hospital with an Eliquis prescription. My medical providers ran several blood tests, but no known reason was found to have caused the PE. My cardiologist recommended staying on Eliquis for one year because of […]
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Antimalaria drug taken for travel causes an itchy side effect
DEAR DR. ROACH: My wife and I are planning a three-week trip to South Africa and three other countries nearby. We need to take the antimalaria drug Malarone for 26 days, so we did a trial run of four tablets each. Shortly after our first dose, my wife got very itchy skin on her head, […]
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Lobular protrusion causes concern for a spontaneous rupture
DEAR DR. ROACH: I am an 80-year-old woman in good health with low blood pressure, and the only medication I take is levothyroxine. A 6-by-5.5-mm aneurysm was discovered in my brain, and the scan shows one lobular protrusion that may be of concern for rupture. I am trying to decide if I should go through […]