Treatment Update #1

Friends,

"Get busy livin' or get busy dyin'". (A quote from one of my all time favorite movies, The Shawshank Redemption.) Most of you can guess that I've chosen the former as sort of mantra for my fight against cancer. Deciding to focus on the positive has been a driving force that has seen me through these first few months of my cancer life. But the mind can only take it so far. In order for "gettin' busy" to really work, my body has to cooperate with my mind........and so far it has.

Last week I went over the results from my first set of scans & tests since I've been on chemo. The results show the cancer hasn't spread to any other parts of my body, no new tumors have developed, and the current tumors have not grown any bigger than when I was first diagnosed. My doctor referred to this as stabilization. This is good. A reason to celebrate.....for the weekend. I told my doctor that if I walked into her office for each visit and each time she told me nothing's changed, that means I'm living. But I want to do more than simply live. I want to to be a "survivor".

With stabilization our hope for the new norm, my doctor and I are on a new quest - shrinkage. Any adolescent boy would cringe with embarrassment at the idea of "shrinkage". As a guy, we've all been there at least once - as a girl, all I can say is: be glad you haven't been there. In my case, shrinkage is near the top of the charts when it comes to good news. With shrinkage in my tumors a couple things will happen: 1) I will be at less risk for future blood clots because the main tumor will ease up it's pressure on a major vein in the middle of my body 2) I will be a candidate for resection surgery at the Mayo. Remember, surgery was always the short term goal because data shows it is the best option for increasing life span.

The one downside is that I've continued to lose weight. I am now 133lbs (a literal bean pole). I was between 160 and 170lbs in college. It's not because I have lost my appetite. I simply have a hard time retaining the calories because of the cancer and the chemo. So I've started on a high calorie diet in hopes that I don't lose any more weight. If I do continue to lose weight, my doctor has threatened to put me on appetite stimulants. Do you know what her first recommendation was - marijuana pills. Can you imagine?! All the sudden I become the guy at work with cheeto stains on his fingers, a perma grin, and an "abstract" sense of style. No thanks. Luckily, there are other options. :)

In closing, people have often asked me if I'm a person of faith. I say yes, but probably not in the exact way they were referring to. Faith to me has always been the belief in something that can't be proven. I have faith in myself that I will get through this. But in a bigger way, I am able to maintain my faith because you (collectively) won't let it die in me. Your support, positive vibes, prayers, and thoughtful gestures are truly appreciated and your positive belief in the unknown of the future makes the fight an easier one.

Rhone