orchiectomy: part 1 - the consultation

it's official. i'm kicking the lads out. they've overstayed their welcome, so now it's time to go.

last week i met with a doctor and scheduled an orchiectomy. here's a breakdown of the visit:


i arrived at the clinic and filled out a form—not so unusual for a first visit. i had about a five-minute wait, and then the doctor called me in.

it started with some of the usual getting-to-know-you stuff. then we moved on to the pertinent questions.


doctor "why do you want an orchiectomy?"

sami "well, i've been taking anti-androgens for almost two years now and—"

doctor "oh, gotcha. because after an orchiectomy you wouldn't have to take them anymore."

doctor "so when do you want to get it done?"

sami "how about december? like around the 29th?"

doctor "we're all booked up then. what about something in this neighborhood?"

he waved his hand around early december.

sami "can we do the 17th?"

doctor "great. you're scheduled for 3pm."

at this point, i still hadn't asked any of my burning questions. so i figured i should give it a go before any more lightning fast decisions got made.

sami "how much will it be?"

doctor "i'll give you a special discount: ¥105000." (normally it costs about ¥150000)

sami "the surgery lasts about 30 minutes?"

doctor "yup. oh and you can't drive yourself home. you live close?"

sami "yeah, i walked here."

doctor "hmm. i guess that works."

sami "or i could take a cab?"

doctor "of course."

sami "is there anything special i need to do to prepare for surgery?"

doctor "the receptionist will brief you on that. but first we'll need to do some blood work today."

yay! surprise needles!!


he was actually quite a nice guy—and really easy to talk to. he was just...a little faster than i had expected (^o^)

the surprise blood work set me back another ¥10000, bringing the total cost to ¥115000 (roughly $1400).

stay tuned for part 2!