The next step
Pathology report came back with a 6 mm tumor in one of the lymph nodes. This puts me in a different world from where I was before.
I'm now in the world of chemotherapy. Next steps are a CT scan (tomorrow) to look for more tumors or seeds, and a cardio ultrasound to determine how much treatment I can take.
If I'm clear of other tumors or seeds, we'll move on to the more aggressive chemotherapy. If I'm not, there are apparently two possibilities: either there's a couple of operable tumors, or there's junk that can't be removed. If the former, more surgery, I think, followed by chemotherapy. If the latter, there's no point in aggressive therapy because it won't remove the cancer completely however aggressive it is. In that case, I get a more conservative chemotherapy focused on controlling the cancer instead. In that case, I will most certainly die of cancer, but it might be a longish time from now. In the former cases, I might die of cancer, but I might live long enough to die of something else first.
If you're having Jay Lake flashbacks, why yes, I am too. At least my kids are grown.
By the way, none of this is secret. If you run into someone who knows me, feel free to tell them. But don't feel obligated to either.
I'm now in the world of chemotherapy. Next steps are a CT scan (tomorrow) to look for more tumors or seeds, and a cardio ultrasound to determine how much treatment I can take.
If I'm clear of other tumors or seeds, we'll move on to the more aggressive chemotherapy. If I'm not, there are apparently two possibilities: either there's a couple of operable tumors, or there's junk that can't be removed. If the former, more surgery, I think, followed by chemotherapy. If the latter, there's no point in aggressive therapy because it won't remove the cancer completely however aggressive it is. In that case, I get a more conservative chemotherapy focused on controlling the cancer instead. In that case, I will most certainly die of cancer, but it might be a longish time from now. In the former cases, I might die of cancer, but I might live long enough to die of something else first.
If you're having Jay Lake flashbacks, why yes, I am too. At least my kids are grown.
By the way, none of this is secret. If you run into someone who knows me, feel free to tell them. But don't feel obligated to either.