Eight months after discovering a malignant growth behind her ear, a registered nurse in British Columbia thinks the province’s healthcare system has to make some significant adjustments by recruiting more personnel and purchasing more equipment.
Things are reaching a turning point where adjustments are required, according to Fayra Krueger. “People’s lives are at stake.
The government must put more effort into finding professionals, and we require additional diagnostic tools like PET and CT scanners.
It’s imperative that people are aware of the types of delays that are occurring because, in my circumstance, it truly may mean the difference between life and death.
It began with Fayra Krueger noticing a small scab on the top of her ear in late 2021, which was not healing.
“I’ve had this issue before.
Usually, when I visit a dermatologist, they treat it with liquid nitrogen, said Krueger.
The licenced practical nurse then visited her family physician to request a recommendation for a dermatologist visit, but it took more than two months to schedule an appointment.
The dermatologist chose to employ the common liquid nitrogen method despite her request to have the scab surgically removed because it had been a reoccurring problem for her.
Three months later, when Krueger went back for a checkup, the scab had developed into a pea-sized tumour.
The dermatologist next collected a biopsy sample from the tumour. The tumour had enlarge to the size of a “big grape” twelve weeks later, according to Krueger.
I was shocked a lot (at how quickly it had grown). I did some research and saw the type of skin cancer I had grows the quickest,” Krueger told Global News.
“It was throbbing, gushing, and terrible.
The dermatologist quickly scheduled me in a clinic at Vancouver General Hospital that specialises in removing these particular tumours.
They gave me an eight-week plan, but I was fortunate that they had a cancellation, which brought the surgery forward by about a month, according to Krueger.
She then got surgery to have it removed and thought it was all over until she felt a lump in her neck a month later.
Three of the approximately five lymph nodes in this area have tested positively for malignancy, according to Kreuger.
There were still other tests to run, each needing a long wait.
Now, three months later, another holdup happened, this one while waiting for the BC Cancer Agency to give the go-ahead for a pet scan. She can’t have surgery without it.
Officials from BC Cancer stated that while they are unable to comment on specific cases, individuals who have been referred for a pet scan are given top priority.
According to Dr. Kim Nguyen Chi, BC Cancer’s chief medical officer, “wait times for CT/PET vary depending on urgency, however the majority of patients wait 28 days or less, with urgent cases waiting fewer than 14 days on average.”
To deal with the province’s ongoing problem with a lack of medical staff, health professionals have been urging the government to improve the working conditions for doctors and nurses.
The health minister for British Columbia spoke to the media on Monday.
We will also be putting together a 10-year cancer plan. You’ll soon observe that some of the increases in demand are being addressed. The cancer budget saw large increases in each of the previous two budgets,” B.
Adrian Dix, the minister of health, stated.
A licenced nurse from BC discusses the medical approach to a cancer diagnosis
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