I like to re-read my blog...

I noticed that I posted this on 1 June:

"If everything goes perfectly, I could be cancer free by December. I'm not celebrating yet, but there is hope..."

Well, I do like perfection! :-)

Sleeping and napping...

My first cycle of the last six chemo treatments is behind me. As I sit around here feeling rundown, I'm thinking about all the texts and emails I got last week when I said there were no signs of cancer anymore.

A lot of you said "you did it" or something to that effect. I'm not really sure I did much of anything except take what was dished out to me. I mean, the surgeons and oncologists did their work and I just recovered from any and all effects from it.

About the only thing I did was say yes to surgery and yes to chemotherapy. But, given the choice I had, any of you would have done exactly the same thing. There wasn't a choice.

It's like being in a bar fight. Some guy punches me in the face and I fall down. Later, I go home and recooperate. Did I really do anything besides heal?

Don't get me wrong... I'm super happy to be getting better, but I'm not sure how much of a role I played. The researchers for drugs and procedures are the ones who did it.

I was in the shower today...

And I was looking at my stomach thinking about how there is nothing in there (besides the sandwich I just ate.) This was the first time in my life I was thinking about that. All year, I would look at it and think about the crap that's in there. Prior to be diagnosed, I would never even think about anything.

I wonder how long (if ever) it will be before I can look at my abdomen and not think about anything...

NO SIGNS OF CANCER!

The CT scan results came back and part of it read, "new pulmonary nodules." That actually means "new cancer tumors." When my oncologist read that, he immediately called the radiologist who wrote the report. "Oh, that should read, NO new pulmonary nodules," he said. It's just a tiny, little, two-letter word, but that NO is very important! :-)

It reminded me of Seinfeld: "This is George Costanza, I'm calling for my test results. Negative? Oh, my God. WHY! WHY! WHY? What? What? Negative is good? Oh, yes of course! How stupid of me. Thank you. Thank you very much."

So, what now?

Well, the scan showed inflamation in the one side my colon. It's most likely my Crohn's disease acting up. I've dealt with that for 20 years, so no biggie. I have to schedule a colonoscopy within the next month to see what's going there. I haven't taken any meds for Crohns in a year, so I might have to start again. Also, any polyps that may be in there can be removed before they have a chance to turn cancerous.

My spleen is also slightly enlarged. That could be a side-effect of the liver resection. My oncologist has to check with other specialists to see if that's normal. Btw, the doc showed me the CT scan of my liver. He said if he didn't know I had half of it cut out, he wouldn't know from the scan. It's back to normal! Where's the nearest bar???

I will continue on with my next six cycles of chemo as normal. After that, I will switch to a pill form of chemo for the next two years. This involves taking pills twice a day for 7 days on and 7 days off. There should not be any side-effects with the pills and if there are side-effects, he'll reduce the dosage.

I texted a bunch of people today after I received the news. Here are some responses:

"Yeah!"
"Yay, where's the party?"
"Kick ass!"
"Yes!"
"Wow. Amazing news. Lets win a (softball) championship" (This is my personal favorite.)
"Awesome!!! I am so happy...Miracle"
"Awesome, such great news"
"YEAAA!!! Awesome."
"U R a walking miracle. Truely inspiring"
"Gik" (My uncle who is trying to learn to text message.)
"Yahoo!"
"Gittxuy up" (My uncle getting a little better.)
"That is GREAT!"
"Woo Hoo!"
"Yahoo! What about the baby?" (See two blog posts down)
"Wooow! Good news! Im happy 4u!"

Jimmy V. Week (3-9 Dec)

If you have never seen "the speech," you should:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePXlkqkFH6s

"Don't give up...don't ever give up..."

Scan completed...

The last time I was at Georgetown for a CAT scan, they had me use all three methods of administering contrast. This time I only had to do it orally and via I.V. They spared me the enema. Whew! But, the I.V. is the one that makes you feel warm in your groin area, so I wasn't sure if I pee'd myself or not until afterwards (I did not.)

Anywhoo...here is a photo a tech gave me from my scan. As you can see...the hands and feet are starting to develop. Wait a second...this can't be my photo. I'm not even dating anyone. There had to be a mix-up. I'll ask my doctor tomorrow when I have my appointment.

Scan me...

Tomorrow will most likely be my first CAT scan since my surgery. I say probably because it was supposed to be weeks ago, but there were mix-ups at Georgetown. We'll see.

I'm not too nervous right now, but after the scan I have to wait to see my doctor the next day. Tomorrow night could be a little tense for me.