Allison says I have a disgusting job, and I have to admit that today was a bit rough. I was sick already with the standard Curahuasi problem of diarrhea and vomiting. This time it hit me and David. David got to stay home from school, although he did go up to do a presentation that was due on the pituitary gland. Way to tough it out David! I could not cancel my patients so I went in as well. I figured that as long as I did not eat or drink anything that I would be OK. It worked for awhile until the above patient came in. She came to our hospital with her last hopes. She has had breast cancer with a mastectomy a year ago. Then six months ago she had a recurrence and another operation. Finally after her second operation this tumor began to grow. The picture does not do justice to how big it actually appeared. She also could not breath, and her oxygen level was low. I did an x-ray followed by an ultrasound to confirm that her right lung was full of fluid. So I took her to the ultrasound room again to take off a liter of bloody fluid just as a palliative measure, so she could breath better. So I was in the room pulling off the bloody fluid and there came a smell that is a common smell of blood and perhaps a bit of tumor that usually does not bother me. However today was not the day. I started to sweat, my forehead getting wet, my knees getting a little weak. I had just finished pulling off the liter when I realized my luck had run out and that I had better get to the restroom to vomit. I ran out, leaving the catheter in the patient’s chest wall to be cared for by the nurses, moving rapidly to the bathroom across the hall, and proceeded to dry heave about 5 times. I guess it was good I had not eaten anything, or I probably would not have finished the procedure. I came back to the patient care room, and the nurses and ultrasound tech had taken care of her well, pulling out the catheter and applying pressure to the small needle stick wound. The ultrasound tech, Lyndal, was talking to her about her prognosis, sharing the gospel, and trying to be sure this woman, who is sure to die, knew the truth. There is nothing we can do for her other than palliative, and I doubt there is any treatment that she can receive elsewhere that would help her. She needs to know the truth of the gospel and to live with her family in as much peace and comfort as possible until she is able to move into the gift of her heavenly rest. I will see her again, I am sure as she will come back for more drainages in the future. And we will treat her in a palliative manner with the resources we have as we pray that she will know the love of God.