What Does A Tumor Look Like

Breast cancer patient denied Medicaid coverage … because of his gender

Disease does not discriminate, but apparently Medicaid coverage does.

A 26-year-old South Carolina tile-layer has found himself with breast cancer and out of luck for one reason: He is a man. While breast cancer affects an estimated 2,000 American males annually, Medicaid does not cover treatment of the disease in men.

Raymond Johnson does not make enough money to afford the five-figure price of the treatment his cancer will require. Charleston Cancer Center patient advocate Susan Appelbaum is working to help Johnson navigate the difficult path to coverage.

“We’ve talked about an appeal, but the Medicaid office didn’t really seem to think it would change the law, by filing an appeal,” Appelbaum told TheDC. “Somehow we need to find a way to add an addendum to the law or change the law altogether to include men.”

The South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said the discriminatory policy lies with the federal government.

“We are again urging CMS [the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services] to reconsider,” the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement. “It’s a very clear example of how overly rigid federal regulations don’t serve the interests of the people we’re supposed to be helping.”

A CMS spokesperson told TheDC his agency aware of the policy and wants to find a way to rectify the problem.

“The law governing this specific program is linked to a CDC screening program,” CMS’s Brian Cook told TheDC, explaining that while the Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act of 2000 allows states to provide Medicaid benefits to the uninsured, the CDC’s screening system restricts men from receiving coverage.

“We are working with the CDC and South Carolina to see what options may exist to address this situation,” Cook added. “We are committed to ensuring that all individuals who should be eligible for this program have coverage.”

While Appelbaum and others work to help his situation, Appelbaum pointed out that time is of the essence, especially when it comes to cancer — and Johnson is facing a tumor the size of a baseball.

“There is nothing that’s going to happen quick enough for this man,” she said. “He needs chemotherapy to shrink his tumor and then he will be eligible for surgery and then after that he will have to go through radiation …. I’ve been told that ‘we’re working on it,’ I don’t now whether or not we’ll get anything accomplished before this gentleman — you know, he is going to have a multitude of bills and it is going to be financially overwhelming for him at his age, 26.

I think I need serious mental help, can anyone ... - Brain Tumor Blog

A physical illness can actually induce OCD. I’m pretty sure the abuse you’ve mentioned could have definitely amplified your OCD and what sounds like depression. Unfortunately, as to the question of “Why we are here” no one really knows. Since you have OCD it unlikely that you can just say “Oh well I guess I’ll never know” so the best advice I can think of is research. Read up on different religions and what their views are as to “Why were here”, study history to see what other peoples views have been and how they lived there lives in the beginning, biology which will help you better understand how the environment ties itself together and works as one, or against itself. Basically, you’ll never get a straight forward answer for the question, no one knows, but you can get a better understanding of it and maybe answer some of your own questions along the way. Embrace your OCD and use it to your advantage to answer some of the questions you have. Hope this was helpful.

Posted by Super Kitten to focus on other things if they have already labeled you they are not going to give you another brain scan to prove that their treatments have damaged your brain, but I don’t know what to tell you about this really perhaps you just want other people to think?

Ok, I really feel like I’m flying off the handle here. I think its normal for people to delve into religion and philosophical thinking and the whole “why am I here?” “who am I?” questioning every now and then but with me it’s reached critical mass. I have been diagnosed OCD . I keep questioning things like the meaning of life to the point where I don’t reach any absolute answers I panic as if I’m heading straight into the sun or something. I can’t function at work, I feel immobalized. I have physical symptoms of fatique, headaches, nausea. I nearly died of pneumonia at a young age and I think my delusional obsessive thinking started at that age, could I have suffered brain damage when that happened? and with the physical, mental, and sexual abuse I went through afterwards amplify it? I already see a shrink and take pills but am deeply interested in a brain scan to check for damage but I’m poor as hell. What can I do to get this done? I feel like I’m at the end of my rope.

Hi,I did the following:

I admire you for posting this question,it could not have been easy for you.I am not a Doctor,but I believe you could have a combination of things going on here,depression, post traumatic stress disorder(from the abuse) and OCD,maybe your therapist could possibly point you in the right direction,and the fact that you want help and are willing to seek it out,puts you that much closer to getting well.Have you recently changed medications and or have you been put on something different entirely,sometimes its as simple as that(for a big portion of your relief) I think you should write down everything your going through,your concerns and exactly how difficult it is for you to function due to your symptoms,sometimes we have to be our own advocate to get the proper care that we need,and your therapist should be able to get you to a level of comfort and meet your needs.Hang in there,I think things will get better for you,you are doing the right thing by reaching out for the help….my heart goes out to you.

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