Cancer, Aging or Diabetes? Who Can Tell?

I've mentioned before the problems the Xeloda --- or previous chemo, who knows which? -- have caused for my fingernails. They're thin and they crack. Just putting my hands in my pockets or trying to open the dishwashing detergent jug can be enough to split them deep into my nail beds. 

But now there's a new twist. 

At risk of offending any old people out there, it's a fairly common side effect of growing old that your toe nails start to do weird things. Don't believe me? Go to Google, set it to images, and search on "old people toe nails." I may never sleep again. In any case, old people toe nails seem to get thick, turn yellow, and start to separate from the toe from which they are growing.

So given all the problems I'm having with my fingernails, I was sort of surprised to see my toe nails turning into old people toe nails. I was sort of expecting that if my fingernails were going to get thin and self-destruct, my toenails would do the same. But no. They're turning into mutant talon things. 

Given the choice, I'd rather have them thin and splitting. 

And I'm stating for the record that I'm drawing the line at amputation. I tried the chemo and I take the drugs, but as soon as some doctor tells me they need to take off one of my toes, I'm done. Even with my newly mutated toenails, I like my toes exactly where they are.