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FROM THE PRIME BISHOP
Colon cancer and me:
a reflection
By Bishop Edward P. Malecdan, D.D.
In June 2011, I visited Dr. Isidoro Passion at Saint
Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) for check-up.
Passion is the doctor of the Episcopal Church in
the Philippines since the 1950s. Hence, he was
the doctor of Saint Andrew’s Theological Seminary
when I came as a first year seminarian in 1971.
I was prompted to see the doctor because of
recurring pains on my upper back, my shoulders and
neck and on the left side of the head just above the
ear. Sometimes I could hardly move my left hand due
to numbness and a tingling joint pain in the joints of
both hands.
My blood pressure and weight were taken by the
doctor’s medical secretary. When Passion arrived that
evening he immediately commented on my having lost
so much weight such that he could not even recognize
me at the hallway where I was seated. I weighed
130 pounds, way below my normal weight of 165.
Something was wrong.
After hearing what’s bothering me the doctor
explained that these were caused by nerves pinched
by vertebral bones which created bothersome pains.
It is called cervical “radicolopathy”, if I got him right.
The medication he prescribed was effective. I was
totally relieved of the discomforts after a few days of
religiously taking the doctor’s prescriptions.
After a week, I visited Passion for a follow-up check
up. Routine exams were conducted where I found out
that my blood pressure was higher than normal. At the
same time the doctor noted from my medical files that
I haven’t been examined during the past two and a
half years and my previous records showed that my
blood pressure and blood sugar level were high more
than a couple of years ago – “radically inconsistent and
unstable”, he said.
He suggested that I undergo “Dime 8”, a blood
laboratory exam which I did. It was discovered that I
had 390 blood sugar level in contrast to a normal range
of 106. It was staggeringly high. Passion recommended
that I be admitted for at least three days to monitor the
problem and at the same time determine if I could be
insulin dependent or not. I did not like the idea. I hated
hospitalization all my life but I had no choice especially
now that I know I am a “borderline diabetic” as he
termed it.
In my first day as an in-patient, I went through a
Pet C.T. Scan to determine the conditions of my liver,
lungs, pancreas, heart and kidney. The findings were
all negative. I was relieved. Meanwhile, my borderline
diabetes was monitored which showed that my blood
sugar level went down but was shooting up and down
despite the fact that I was subjected to insulin injections
once a day at the hospital for three days.
Because Passion was not satisfied with the results
of my C.T. scan and the other exams, he recommended
that I undergo ultra-sound laboratory exam. Nothing
about illness was discovered by this examination. The
doctor suggested that to complete my executive check
up I should undergo colonoscopy. I argued that I was
already healthy as testified by the negative results of
the examinations I already went through. He stated
that the colonoscopy is a different thing and that what it
can find may not be seen by the previous exams.
On June 24, my third day at Saint Luke’s, I underwent
colonoscopy as insisted by Passion. I was placed on
deep sleep and did not know what happened after that.
When I woke up, I was back in my hospital room with
my wife seated across the bed. I was a bit dizzy but I
cannot normally survive in a hospital room for too long.
I insisted to be discharged that afternoon. The doctor
relented but I had to continue with my insulin injections
at home. It was Dr. Jonalyn Mendez who taught me
how to inject myself with insulin every morning.
On June 30, a Thursday, I returned to Passion
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