Hello!
I’m a hematology/medical oncology fellow physician at University of California, Irvine. Blog posts are my own.
I’ve always wanted to write, but I’ve always had excuses. I don’t know how to build a website. I’m afraid my writing will suck. I had to study for medical school (maybe that’s a legit excuse). So enough is enough, and now I’m just going to write. Here are my unfiltered thoughts on medicine, mindfulness, family, love, and life.
doctormikesblog 
Hi, I’ve heard the word Resident in quite a few hospitals… And here, you’ve got that on your I-card..
I was just curious to know what it meant?
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Great question! Yeah even some of the staff at the hospital I’m at don’t even know it (The residency here is only 3 years old).
Basically, to become a medical doctor, you go to undergraduate college for 4-5 years, medical school for 4 years, residency for 3-7 years, fellowship for 1-3 years if you want to specialize.
I just graduated medical school last year, so I’m a first year resident in a three year program for Internal Medicine. I have a medical degree, take care of patients, and I do get paid (but very little). Hope this clarifies things!
You can find more info here on wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Residency_(medicine)
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with literally zero or very less sleep i believe?
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I forgot what sleep feels like.
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Haha, I guess that’s something quite understandable!
Well, tbh I was in the navy and sleep was a privilege! But the best part it, during the job sleep is something we never think about!
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Hello Mike! I just read your post ‘Looking down a trachea’ and I think it’s great! I love that you are incorporating your work experience into other aspects of your life. I have always been interested in medicine, not so much in a practical way but more as an observer and I like reading about the field. I’m really keen to see what else you have to say as I like seeing things for your perspective.
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Thank you! Yeah, I’m interested in cancer and when I read about your mother, I can only imagine how huge a pivot in your life that must have been. To be honest, traveling the world seems A LOT more interesting than medicine, but that’s just me.
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Glad you decided to just do it Doctor Mike. There will always be an excuse. They never get old, but we do!!! I read a quote the other day, in fact…it’s now one of my Sparky Blips.
“You Don’t Have All The Time In The World.”
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I wanted to let you know that I have nominated your blog for the Liebster Award. The Liebster is all about discovering new blogs and bloggers. The details are here: https://rev2point0.wordpress.com/2016/04/24/the-liebster-award/
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Hey I like the new set up on your website!
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Thanks! My girlfriend found out I was writing a blog and changed it for the better overnight!
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Haha that’s awesome dude!
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Hi Doctor Mike, I just read the article you recently published in the Annals of Hematology & Oncology about the “Late Bleeder” which is in association with the PAI-1 insertion/deletion 4G/5G polymorphism mutations. I think you wrote a fabulous and easy to understand explanation of this abnormality and would like the ability to share with a few of my physicians.
I understand your time restraints as a resident, since I remember the days when my brother in law was in your shoes. I would greatly appreciate a way to get in contact with you… as I am a 4G/5G rarity, as like Ms. Y… only I could provide you with an abundance of additional information as had been described in your article.
I additionally have an adult daughter who is a 4G carrier, besides 2 other children who have not yet been genetically tested; however, they obviously carry 1 abnormal gene, considering I don’t own a normal PAI-1 gene allele to have provided for them.
I would be happy to provide you with abundant information pertaining to a multitude of complications, believed to be associated with this misunderstood abnormality. I can support my history with copies of my medical records, as they correlate with various unique complications.
Unfortunately, doctors, surgeons & hematologist alike typically LACK a formal understanding about this abnormality, which imposes additional risk onto my health. I am both a bleeder and a clotter! I have a unique medical history with examples of past complications that to some; they might appear as though I invented some unbelievable circumstance… when in fact I have medical records to validate many of the unbelievable things that complicated my medical history.
My biggest concern centers around adverse and unanticipated circumstances… including those relating to trauma & surgery, since many question the possibility of delayed hemorrhagic bleeds in addition to increased probability of clot formation & fatal embolisms.
Regrettably, an uneducated physician can inadvertently render inappropriate treatment which could enable a catastrophic situation. Without knowledge towards how one’s blood may react to a dose of Amicor ( providing a hospital carries that drug on-site), the body’s decision to bleed then clot, to then bleed again and so on could potentially provoke an excess of hypercoagulation, leading to a sudden demise.
Because of the abundance of unknown, I believe many have died prematurely… including some of my relatives without a clue towards their potential ownership of genetic mutations and other rare blood abnormalities….
Kudos to you as a new resident…. Your desire to learn about rare catastrophic problems is fantastic! Never loose insight with your compassion towards others, as patient’s like me desperately need inquisitive doctors like you! No body can imagine the frustrations I’ve experienced in attempts to delineate my complications, and then find appropriate medical expertise… simply because no one has spent a day in my shoes!
I would do anything to find a way to educate the medical world, as I believe the incidence of inheriting these mutations are far greater then what is believed to be 1 in a million!
I reside across the country, but would appreciate making contact with you as I could use a better understanding in certain areas and am willing to provide detailed data besides donating my blood for research purposes.
With Best Regards!
Uniquely Me
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Wow it feels really cool to meet someone who has PAI-1 deficiency. It’s really rare and even the hematologist I wrote the article with had to dig deep to find more info on it. The office let me know that you called in. Feel free to email me on doctormikesblog@gmail.com and we can chat more there!
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Where have you been Dr. Mike?
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