The purpose of this is to document my cancer journey: starting with the realization that I have cancer, to diagnosis and treatment, and through to my recovery.
Todd
I recently lost a friend, Todd, to cancer. A few nights ago, Suzy and I went to an event to celebrate Todd. Each of us was asked to say something. In retrospect, here is what I wished I had said, although I am 100% positive I could not have gotten through this without blubbering and crying. …
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i Forgot
Hope everyone had a great holiday, Suzy and I did. Well actually, we had an interestingly odd holiday, but that’s another story for another day. December 24th came and went. I didn’t think of it, “it” being cancer, and Christmas Eve being the third anniversary of the end of treatment. I am pretty surprised as the…
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greatest quote ever
Tuesday I had my two year CT scan, which is statistically a big deal as far as recurrence is concerned. As always, there was a lot of “scanxiety” prior to the test, but I got through it. In addition to images, they write a report on what the image shows. Here is the greatest quote…
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Cancer in the time of corona 
Hang in there Steve. Remember my daughter Kristin survived non-hodgkin’s lymphoma.
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Thanks Ralph. Hope all is well.
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Went through radiation earlier this year.Not my favorite way to spend a couple of months, but I’ve gotten only good news since. I wish you the very best results and a complete cure.
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Thanks Rick. Looking forward to playing poker cancer free!
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All I know Steve is that are going to come out the other side and play golf and poker better than ever.
I have to tell you ,I introduced good guy bad guy up here at our poker game and they love it. Every time I call good guy, bad guy I think of you.
Best to Suzy
Andy
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Thanks Andy. Looking forward to both.
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Steve, You and Suzy are, and need to be tenacious in your battle. In my former Law Office, I framed a plaque showing Abe Lincoln speaking. It read “Non Carborundum Illegitimi” Translation – “Don’t let the bastards wear you down.” looking forward to your creative games. I’ve got one new one you will like!
Bob R
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Thanks so much Bob. I miss playing poker with you guys. Hopefully I’ll be back in the
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Thanks Bob. We will have to be at the top of our game. I miss playing poker with you guys and hope to be back by mid to late spring. Thanks again. For the encouraging words.
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Hi Steve, how are you doing? Here 10 days since the last treatment. The recoooooveeeeryyyyyy is soooo sloooow! My neck is ok, I never got a hurting neck, just very dry, but my jaw hurts, I had a wisdom tooth removed before starting the treatment and it is still hurting plus what ever is around it…, I have difficulty opening my mouth to a good distance, mouth is dry, blisters are getting better. I’m always flushing my mouth or brushing my teeth or eating or doing exercises, it is a full time job! And I am so happy that I don’t have to do the radio anymore. That feels really good! I will have a scan April 5. And you? How is it going?
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Carla, so glad to hear that your treatments are complete. It’s a huge relief when they are finally complete.
My recovery was quite slow at first, as our understanding from my radiation oncologist is that the radiation is still very active for up to 4 weeks. For me, things started to improve about 2 weeks after the last treatment.
My neck is almost healed, with only one spot still in bad shape. My eating is ok, but I am still limited to what I can eat. I keep trying different foods, to ensure that I know what I can eat. The variety of things I can eat is still limited, as is the amount I can eat. I am losing a bit of weight since I am not drinking supplemental smoothies any more. The most difficult thing about eating is my taste has not returned. There are not many things that provide any flavor, which makes eating much less enjoyable and satisfying. I had trouble swallowing pills for quite a long time, but that has returned to normal (maybe the tumor is gone!). The hardest thing to be is patient for things to return to normal or what that normal will be.
I am worried, as I assume all cancer patients are post-treatment, whether the cancer is gone. My PET scan is March 29th, so we are just trying to be patient. It’s hard to relax and be patient for that day to come.
Stay patient, things will get better.
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