Breast Cancer Awareness month

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Breast cancer awareness month

Two years ago, at the age of 49, I had never had a mammogram and only sporadically did breast self exams. When I became aware of a painful lump in my left breast, I was certain it was a reaction to all the hype surrounding Breast Cancer Awareness month, which is October. Denial can be pretty darn creative, don't you think?

The MT school wars

Medical transcription schoolsGo on any medical transcription forum and you will find a war raging about medical transcription schools. The common opinion among the most vociferous is that there are only two choices one should make and no other school or program is worthy of consideration.

I’m not going to name names but let’s call those two schools Harvard and Stanford.

MT Exchange Updated

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I finally got totally fed up with the lack of service at my server hosting facility, so the past two weeks have been spent moving web sites to a new server.

Happy anniversary to me

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Happy anniversary to me. One year ago, I had a mastectomy.

Just saying that makes me feel like I'm in some kind of 12-step program. "Hello, my name is Julie Weight and I'm a cancer survivor."

I don't feel like a cancer survivor, although I'm not sure what cancer survivors are supposed to feel like. Every time I look in the mirror, move my left arm, get dressed and go to the doctor for a checkup, I'm reminded that I did, indeed, have cancer. In spite of all that, it's rather easy to forget I'm a cancer survivor.

Riding the cancer train

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So by now everyone knows my excisional biopsy was positive for cancer. DCIS with microinvasion, to be precise, with DCIS at every margin.

We all know what comes next. More surgery, punctuated by lymph node localization so they can do a biopsy at the same time.

It's better to be the MT than to be the patient

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April 25, 2007.

It's not like I forgot this "anniversary," but I did have to look at my medical records to find out the exact date. That was the day I had a biopsy for a lump in my left breast. I said I'd blog about it after a year and so here I am.

The biopsy itself isn't really the story. The real story is what leads up to the biopsy and what happens after the biopsy. The real story is about being the patient instead of the MT.

McScription: Catering to America's fast and cheap lifestyle

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MTExchange blog: McScription - fast and cheapBehold the poor burger. On the one hand, maligned by advocates of healthy living; on the other hand, consumed in record numbers by Americans. It seems people are saying the right thing in public - and doing something else when the rubber meets the road.

How is this like McScription... er, transcription? I am glad you asked.

How to Start an Unprofitable Business

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I'm pretty sure nobody plans on starting a business that isn't profitable. However, in medical transcription, I am pretty sure that a lot of small companies start up with no real plans at all.

Forbes: 10 Least and Most Profitable Businesses