– While running, I pray a rosary. For a wife – says the marathon runner Przemysław Torłop. – Yes, because it’s a miracle that I’m alive – confirms Małgorzata. He has years of failed therapies and misdiagnoses behind him. Doctors had no idea she had Cushing’s disease.
In February, for his fiftieth birthday, Przemysław ran his jubilee five hundredth marathon and fifty-fifth ultramarton. In the last meters he was accompanied by Małgorzata.
– I’m happy he’s with me. That he is alive – he confessed at the finish line.
Fear of crossing the street
– Until the finish line Małgorzata walked with small steps, and yet she used to run marathons – says Przemek.
– More than once, just before the marathon, my husband asked me if he should start. He was afraid of going back to the empty house. Each time I used to say to him, “Go!” – says Małgorzata.
The few steps she took, leaning on her husband’s arm, were for her a marathon performance. Until recently, she was unable to cross the street. Małgorzata: – There was no physical condition, but there was something else – I was afraid to leave the house, because Cushing’s disease leads to depression and anxiety, and that’s what happened to me. I was forcing myself to leave. My grandson was with me. I grabbed his hand, squeezing his hand, it was easier for me to take those few steps.
A list of problems to run out
Running was an escape from worries for Małgorzata. And there were many of them in her life. The son was born with Asperger’s syndrome, the daughter underwent surgery at the age of 2,5 years. – Can you imagine? The baby had ovarian cancer! – she says, still touched by her daughter’s disease.
Her husband interjects, “At the time, my wife was twins pregnant.” A month after her daughter’s surgery, she was shocked and gave birth in the sixth month. The children… did not survive.
And then a grandson was born with a whole litany of different ailments. The Torłop family decided to help their daughter and take care of the little one. Małgorzta did not give up running: – At the age of 38, I was running a marathon well under five hours after a rupture of the Achilles tendon.
She was afraid, but not for herself
The problems started around 2007. She kept getting weaker and faint. Several studies have shown that there is cancer of the cervix. More than for herself, she was then afraid for her grandson’s health.
The operation saved her life, but her body kept giving signals about the lesions. Małgorzata: – I started to gain weight on my face, neck and stomach, and my legs and arms were very thin.
Doctors started checking if the tumor had attacked again.
– They examined the large intestine and then also ruled out ascites. And nothing – he adds.
It attacks the stress hormone
In 2008, Małgorzata underwent an exercise test. The results were good, she did not mention to specialists that she used to run for years. A year later she went through a marathon with sticks. But Cushing continued to ravage the body. Diabetes mellitus, leg thrombosis, pressure raged.
Cushing’s disease is a rare condition. It affects eight times more women than men. The adrenal glands make excessive amounts of cortisol (the so-called stress hormone). Most often it is caused by a disturbance in the functioning of the pituitary gland.
– In 2012, I felt so bad that I called an ambulance. I will never forget the doctor’s malicious remark that I should lose weight – he recalls.
Each day became a challenge for her. Preferably, she would not get out of bed. Depression was killing her.
– The anxiety attacks were the worst. I was afraid to leave the apartment – adds Małgorzata. The oncologist even began to wonder if Małgorzata was suffering from hormonal changes. However, the examination did not reveal anything: – Unfortunately, they diagnosed something completely different. The tumor has come back. I think I was at the end of my tether then.
She just looked at her
And then Cushing’s disease was discovered by accident. Małgorzata will not forget a visit to a GP at Morena in Gdańsk. In July 2014, she went to get some kind of certificate for her husband. While waiting for the document to be written out, she began telling the doctor about her symptoms, and she looked away from the papers. She looked at Margaret and said it might be Cushing’s disease.
– I was totally surprised not only by the name of the disease, but also by the immediate diagnosis. After all, I had been under the supervision of specialists for years and they could not help me – she recalls still incredulously in her voice.
And surprisingly, the diagnosis was accurate. Blood tests for the presence of cortisol confirmed that its index is exceeded. A resonance study of the head found the cause. The tumor pressed against the pituitary gland. Małgorzata: – I was nervous, I went through so many different clinical trials, and only years later the cause was discovered. I can’t understand it.
She was referred to an endocrinologist. She had to go to a specialist in Warsaw.
– It was nervous. I had a recurrence of cancer and a tumor in the pituitary gland at the same time – he adds.
It was necessary to choose what to treat first. During the tests, the Warsaw doctor bluntly said: – Operate the tumor on the pituitary gland. Because this is the last moment …
In October 2014, Małgorzata underwent surgery. There aren’t even any visible scars.
– The operation was carried out with an innovative method – through the nose – he explains.
Returning from the hospital was also not a classic – Małgorzata did not take an ambulance. Despite the pain, she took the bus home six days after surgery.
It didn’t get through anymore
It seemed that the limit of diseases for Małgorzata had been exhausted. Meanwhile, in April 2015, she was hospitalized because of an infection. Initially, specialists suspected meningitis. They ordered more tests …
– And when I heard that it was a pancreatic tumor, I felt that it was indifferent to me. I shrugged and thought, “What’s going to get me?” I have undergone another, 10th operation – he recalls.
Return to life
I’m calling Małgorzata Torłop on Saturday morning. I am asking about the dates of the next operations, because I got lost in this list of diseases. There is a slightly wheezy but happy voice on the phone.
– I just took my morning walk with the poles. Longer and longer routes – the handset almost pours out energy. I ask Małgorzata about dreams. – Bring up your grandson. Although until adulthood and take part in the marathon with him. You have to live. It’s necessary to…