My LMS adventure

The short version (the 5 key points) is: Patients who deal with a cancer diagnosis in a positive manner tend to do five things: 1. Find the right team and a champion for you, and trust their recommendation. 2. If needed, get a second opinion. 3. Surround yourself with the people you love. 4. Focus on your life rather than the cancer or cancer treatment. 5. Try not to compare your story with your neighbors; your treatment and prognosis is tailored for you. I agree with this completely. I've avoided some people who are naysayers or overly positive. "Gee, you'll beat this" is not very useful, as far as I'm concerned. I want to acknowledge this severity of the fight. My opponent (my own body?) is deadly. Also, I'm uncomfortable with the "you're a cancer superhero" variation. I'm doing what I have to do. Sure, there are options, mainly ignore the problem and hope it will go away (hint: it won't). That's not my st...

I remembered that recently as I was feeling my navel... The mass below it is palpable when I cough. And that little bit of scar tissue reminds me that I once failed to be the cool mom...

The last PET scan showed a mass behind my navel. That mass may (or may not) be attached to the abdominal wall, the intestines, or any other organ/ smooth muscle in that area. I'm definitely losing my navel. Now in Alcoholics Anonymous, people joked about "contemplating your navel." Generally that was spending too much time thinking about yourself..at a time when you needed to get out and get involved with others. I won't be able to literally "contemplate my navel." It's nice as a decoration on the abdomen. I guess I'll miss it. Meanwhile, I'm getting the house in order, preparing for a 4 to 6 week period when I can't lift more than five pounds. How much does my coffee cup weigh? I've bought several oversize t-shirts to wear (so I don't have to move to much to get into regular clothing. And I'm stacking clothing sets, everything I need to wear for a day in a convenient place so I don't have to make decisions, or d...

We're all dying. This cancer came back faster than I wanted it to. By the time I have surgery, it will be two months since I had the MRI, and two months from the end of chemo to the MRI. It's grown this big in four months. Damn, it is aggressive. We'll cut this out. Maybe beat on it with more chemo. Heck, haven't tried the hormone therapy, or radiation. There are more options. And when those don't work, we'll cut more out, and beat on it again. My goal is to stay alive and enjoy each and every day... even the bad ones. I've had four wonderful months. Got to see my friends at the convention, got to hang out at the pool, move into a new place. Heck, I bought my own home. Never would have considered that without this health crisis. Surgery, chemo, remission, recurrence, repeat. I just need to hang on until there's a new treatment that fixes it all. And if that's not what happens, my data- mixed with many other data points- w...

I'm on Facebook. Too many times I see people arguing facts, when they actually have opinions. Seems many people can't tell the difference between a fact and a closely held opinion. This is most obvious in the political discussions. Currently Americans are in an ugly presidential campaign. Too many people are insulting rather than discussing. Political news currently sounds like a third grade playground.... "You're stupid.".. "NO, Your stupid." It's hard to take you seriously when you don't use punctuation, and can't spell. Okay, maybe you just have horrible grammar. It's hard to tell without punctuation and accurate spelling. Sadly, most of the loud name callers are my age and older. Seriously, if you write a comment that sounds like a third grade recess insult.... don't hit send.