Yasemin (6): News from the tube

Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.

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"Fuck you, of all people!" Says Yasemin. Actually, the breast cancer drug Alpelisib should have shrunk her tumors, especially the larynx tumor. After weeks of torture with severe side effects, Yasemin first had to reduce the drug and then discontinue it.

An MRI has now brought bad news: the tumors have changed in their structure in part - but there is no trace of shrinkage. Instead, two new tumors have appeared: one in the breast and the other? "It's a bit embarrassing," says Yasemin, and you can hear her grinning: "Well, my ass!"

Yasemin Seber suffers from the very rare Proteus syndrome. Some parts of the body grow excessively and numerous tumors often form: How does she manage to maintain her courage to face life despite the setbacks? Will therapy be found that will alleviate the worst ailments? You can find out what happens next every 14 days at - or on Instagram: yasemins-verrueckte_welt. Read what has happened so far here.

Because of sore muscles!

The fact that one of the buttocks hurt like a sore muscles was due to the fact that she sat so much on her buttocks at the Tattoo Convention in Dortmund, where she set up her “Piercing Candle” stand.

Now she hopes that the structure, which has so far been around 5 cents in size, will not continue to grow. Who wants a third buttock? "The crazy thing is that I still said: Why can't the stupid tumor in the throat grow on the butt!" And - bam! - it is there, the ass tumor! Not instead, but as an additional greeting from the proteus syndrome, which keeps sprouting new tumors in your body.

Bloodbath before the MRI

Therefore, every twelve weeks, Yasemin is pushed into the tube for a tumor check. This time the procedure was particularly uncomfortable. It started with the doctors once again having difficulty finding a suitable vein and stabbing one of them.

“A bloodbath,” says Yasemin. "I felt somehow defenseless." The familiar procedure was particularly difficult to endure this time. In addition to the already oppressive experience of lying fixed on the head and body for one and a half hours in a narrow, drumming, pounding tube, this time came the corona mask.

Holding your breath as a challenge

For people like Yasemin, who are already having trouble breathing, this is an additional burden. And then the following announcement kept ringing in the tube: “Now hold your breath” for 15 seconds. This is probably not a problem for people with normal lung volume. “But after the tenth time I thought I couldn't do that anymore.” When the ordeal was over after an hour and a half, it was dark outside.

Yasemin quarrels that she had to stop taking the breast cancer drug. “The question torments me very much whether it would have helped if I had endured it.” But Yasemin's body simply reacted too violently to it: The serious side effects even brought her two hospital stays. The whole body rebelled against the drug. "I looked like a snake that is shedding its skin."

Tattoo-Con: "bombastic hygiene concept"

The Tattoo Convention, on the other hand, was a real bright spot: “It was nice to work like a normal person again,” she says. She has not regretted the decision to take part as a high-risk person even in times of Corona: "The hygiene concept was a bomb, even I felt safe."

The gaps between the stalls, which were greatly reduced in number, were large, and all people were out and about with masks. And when a nose peeked out from over the face mask, the security was quick and friendly, but definitely there. Meeting old friends again after a long period of restricted contact, making new acquaintances - that was urgently needed for Yasemin after the long break.

Off to your own home!

And there is still good news: Grandma, who Yasemin and her husband Dennis bought the house over a year ago, has now finally found a place in a supervised residential complex. Now it's time to renovate (especially for Dennis) and shop for furniture (especially for Yasemin).

For her two Chihuahuas Joko and Chica, Yasemin is planning something special: She wants to prepare an empty chest of drawers as a small cuddly palace for her "babies": upholstered and with curtains. All four of them want to spend New Year's Eve in their new home. What the next year will bring remains to be seen.

Tags:  symptoms dental care menshealth