TG,
I'm glad to hear that you decided to look into radiation soon. I looked at the menu on the left under Radiation , and don't see any Drs. listed in Texas, but I'm sure you'll find a radiation oncologist that might be able to help you. If you find one that is willing ,but is not experienced with Ledderhose and/or non-malignant tumors, ask people in this forum to post the protocols that were used in their radiation treatment.

Keep us posted. I will gladly share the details and protocols of the treatment that I received at Scripps with Dr. Tripuraneni.

Take care
Luba

You might start calling radiologists and ask if they do radiation for non-cancerous conditions. If they do it for other non-cancerous conditions, I think they would be likely candidates for doing RT for Dupuytren's and Ledderhose.

TangoGirl..."Life isn't about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain"

Luba,

Thanks for the protocol. I'll keep you (and the others) posted. By the way, as of this evening, I now have 8 nodules each approx. 1.5cm across. The most recent are more on the inside arch of my foot as opposed to the bottom side of the arch, if I've described that clearly. Other than the first node discovered last year, I've now developed 7 more in about 8 weeks. Is that unusual? Has anyone had that many small nodules treated with RT? Everything I read says RT is most effective when the condition is active and I certainly think my case would qualify as active. The pain, itching and burning continue and don't seem to get better other than with pain meds. I can't take those often because they knock me out. On a lighter note, I did go to dance class tonight. I figured if it hurts no matter what, why not do something I enjoy and help keep my mind off things for a bit. Of course, I've had to avoid certain moves or dances entirely, but really feel the movement helps stretch out my muscles. If anyone can weigh in with their opinion or experience on the rapid development I mentioned above, I would appreciate the input. Otherwise, I'll post on Friday after the MRI, though I may not have any contact with the doctor until next week. I will try to see if I can get some preliminary information from the radiologist.

Again thanks Luba, Flojo and you others who are following my case.

Best regards,
TG

I have had dupuytren's in both hands and Ledderhose (nodules & fascitis sp?) for about 14 years now. I also have a frozen shoulder. (I am 44 and female). I have had hand surgery so far.

The hands and 1 foot are both fairly painful and I have too many nodules to count. I have had alot of inflammation and tightness. My hands hurt to open and close and it hurts to walk on my foot. I tend to wear heels b/c the nodules in my arch are lower than the ball of my foot.

Anyway, recently I started drinking ginger peach oolong tea(Zhi is the company that we order the leaves from) because I liked the taste and I wanted to give up aspartame from the diet sodas I was drinking. I started adding turmeric to my roasted vegetables or chicken occasionally as well. I was looking to change my diet a bit b/c I noticed the tightness in my hands was much worse after eating out so I started thinking ant-inflammatory. Well, I have only been doing this for around 3 weeks so far and I have noticed a huge difference in the nodules in both my hands and feet. I think they feel flatter, less sore, and somewhat softer.

I have more inflammation when I eat salty things esp. soups, restaurant food, chips, hot dogs . . . so I am trying to give up adding any salt and making my own broth and soups so I can control the sodium.

Someone mentioned Arnica to me as well and I found it in a lotion or gel form. I have only used that twice now on my foot but at this point, I am up for anything that will help.

I may have changed too many things to know for sure what has helped but I think it is the ginger and the turmeric and giving up diet soda.

Good luck.

TangoGirl..."Life isn't about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain"

Thanks Jimh, Susan and Jetzt for the input. Jimh, though I've been diagnosed by two doctors now with Ledderhose; I too question the quick progression. I was diagnosed last year with the one nodule, which responded to oral steroids. I've been able to feel the nodule ever since, but the pain and swelling went away until March. The first flare up in March was the same nodule. My current doctor thinks perhaps the steroid or the Marcaine caused an allergic reaction (I've had past trouble with local anesthetics, all except Marcaine.) He thinks that may now be clouding the diagnosis. Whatever it is, I sincerely hope they are able to confirm with the MRI so we can work on a solution. For the moment, I am holding at 8 nodules but am developing a small depression in the middle of them, probably not remarkable except that I seem to be looking at my feet a lot more these days.

Susan and Jetzt - I appreciate the info on foods and herbals. One thing that caught my attention is diet soda. I might have one per day, but did switch over about 6 months ago to Diet because the high fructose corn syrup in the regular drinks upsets my stomach. Unfortunately, I am one of those people with a lot of allergies and PABA is one of my allergies. I can't tell all of you how much I appreciate the kind words and information. I don't feel I know enough yet to be of much assistance to anyone else, but intend to gain as much knowledge as possible to pass it forward. I hope that I get some more information, however preliminary, tomorrow after the MRI. When I do, I'll share with y'all.

Regards,
TG