Getting Cancer is Scary

When I was diagnosed with cancer, I was scared. My Dad died of cancer, and here I was experiencing the same thing, but at an age much younger than he was.

I went from diagnosis to surgery in two short days. Cancer is something you must rid yourself of, or it grows. Unfortunately in my case, the operation was less that successful. The cancer had spread to my lymph nodes, which meant only one thing: chemotherapy.

I had the same type of cancer as Lance Armstrong, so a complete extraction was anticipated. But the regime is one of the more difficult ones. Instead of a once a week or once a month therapy, this was three chemo drugs everyday, with another 3-5 drugs used to reduce the effects of the side effects. As is typical, I lost my hair, and was nauseated for nine weeks. My Oncologist said I was one of the lucky ones, I only needed to be hospitalized once.

After the chemotherapy was complete, the tumor markers were still elevated. This meant there was still cancer in my system. And of course, if doctors cannot prescribe, they cut to remove the cancer. I had one of the most serious operation known, which put me in the hospital for 8 days (5 more days than open heart surgery).

Am I cured? Nobody with cancer is ever “cured”. They are simply in remission. My tumor markers are in the expected range, and I have another CAT scan tomorrow. You can follow my story at Diseases Discussed.