Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Dad's Cancer Surgery

Dad's (my step father) cancer surgery was a success - they cut out all of the skin cancer out of his chin. They closed the wound with stitches and now he will heal for the next several weeks. He said he didn't feel anything - no pain at all.

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Dad's Skin Cancer Appointment

My Dad (step father) has a growth on his chin. His primary doctor said it looked like cancer and sent him to a dermatologist. The dermatologist appointment was today. The doctor took one look at it and said "Yep, that is Squamous".

The dermatologist then removed the lump and cauterized the wound. He said he would send the lump to the lab and if the lab determined he didn't get all the cancer? My Dad would have to go to a surgeon for a deeper cut on his chin.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Catfish in the fish tank

Back in the old days they tried to ship codfish from the west coast to the east cost and it always arrived mushy. So, they tried sending live codfish and they arrived dead. So they sent the mortal enemy of codfish: catfish, in the same tank. The codfish arrived alive because they spent the entire trip trying to swim away from the catfish. So often we wonder why God put a catfish in our tank: someone we don't like at work, our neighborhood, our family, or our health. He does this to keep you on your toes. To keep you challenged. To keep you alert. So you don't become complacent in paradise and die of boredom.

Monday, March 31, 2014

Friend with Cancer

My wife arrived to work a few minutes late and met E in the parking lot. E is a 61 year old secretary at my wife's work and they have been friends for seven years. A few years ago, E learned that a lump in her side (that she had been ignoring) was cancer. In fact she had breast cancer and because she never went for check-ups, the cancer spread throughout her body. When she found it, she had Stage 4 cancer. Through all the years and all the tests, she would never let them scan her brain. For whatever reason, she never wanted to know if the cancer was in her brain.

For the last several months, E has been grumpy and no one knew why. She finally announced she would be retiring in December. It was around then my wife noticed some odd things about E - as if she had a stroke. She lost use of several fingers on one hand, and when she walked she kind of dragged one foot. But then she would have these muscle spasms where one arm would just curl up and be useless. These weren't muscle spasms, they were seizures. Last week she had a really bad episode, so, my wife drover her home.

Today, in the parking lot, E told my wife that she had brain cancer. E had come to work to tell HR she would not be coming back. And possible for the last time, Linda said good bye to her friend, and gave her a hug.

The rest of the day was a waste for my wife because she was in shock. So, I took her to lunch so she could talk about it. It is sad. But I was impressed that someone could live for so many years after getting Stage 4 cancer. It just seemed like she could go on forever - and she probably could have, or will - just keep going for various treatments to keep the cancer in check and prevent it from growing. But once it is in the brain, what can be done?

I talked to my mother about this and she said this is exactly what was wrong with her mother (my grandmother), who died in her 50's back in the 1960's. She had a brain tumor behind her ear. She got so bad she needed help to walk up the stairs. They tried to remove the cancer from behind her ear, but she had an aneurysm and died on the operating table.

Friday, March 28, 2014

First Goiter - Nuclear Test Results 2

I received a call on Tuesday from the doctor to tell me my thyroid was fine. Thank God! But my goal from the start was: if I get an OK, a week later to have completely forgotten about this nightmare and move on.

I am not sure I will completely forget about it - hopefully some positive things will carry forward with me.

Monday, March 24, 2014

First Goiter - Nuclear Test - Test Results 1

It is Monday. Either my nuclear test results are find and this will soon be a distant memory. Or, I suspect, I will be sent for a needle biopsy to confirm whether or not it is cancer. I think I am ready for either answer, although I would prefer to put this behind me.

I called the doctor and they don't have the test results yet. I need to call back on Wednesday.

Sunday, March 23, 2014

First Goiter - Nuclear Test Scan

On Friday I went into the lab. The technician aimed a white tube at my throat and took four pictures.

Then I laid on a bed and a device was lowered within inches of my face. Pictures were taken. Then something radioactive was pushed into my right warm. She moved my arm like a wing to get the radioactive item into my body and took more pictures. These pictures took 5 minutes each. After a while I got off the bed, she changed the lens (a large device the size of a suitcase). I laid back down and she took more pictures.

While the pictures were taken I laid very still. I found it easier to close my eyes and I probably could have fallen asleep. When done, I sat up on the bed. She called the doctor and I heard her say "Multi nodule goiter on the left side". I also noticed my pictures were on the computer screen. They were pixilated red and yellow pictures of my thyroid. I didn't notice anything particularly dark or bright, but I did notice on third of the left side was brighter than the opposite side. Not much brighter, but some.

I returned home and did internet searches attempting to find similar pictures but didn't really find anything similar.

I spent the weekend convincing myself there was nothing wrong. The odds were in my favor. I had read that over 95% of the time goiters are of no problem. And I know that if it is a problem, the survivability is over 98%. So the chance I need to be very concerned is less than 2% of less than 5% - a very small chance. That brought be comfort.

As always in these times we turn to God. On Saturday we took the family to see the movie God Is Not Dead, and on Sunday we spoke out parts of the service loudly to make sure God heard our voices.