Free At Last! My Final PET/CT Results Are In.

"No metabolic abnormality to suggest active lymphoma." 

No sweeter words exist right now. Translated...my final PET/CT scan was clear! Hodgkin's Lymphoma has left the building, hopefully never to return. 

Read it for yourself:

Just an Awesome Result!

While I was expecting nothing less, it was an incredible feeling to see that result in the final report and then hear it from Dr. Seifter.

As I've stated more than once in this blog, I am a fortunate and lucky man. Fortunate to be surrounded by so many loving and supportive family members and friends. Fortunate to have world class medical resources nearby. And lucky to be able to get over this "speed bump" in my life with nothing more than a few minor complications. While my chances of relapse are small and the chances of another cancer due to the chemo regimen are small as well (1-in-200), I am looking forward to being deemed as "cured" a few years from now.

Thank you all...and much love to each and every one of you. And thanks so much to everyone who has supported Alison's triathlon quest. She met her goal in less than 3 days - you all are awesome. 

PS...I'll continue to send out periodic updates on the blog. I will see Dr. Seifter on June 21 for my first 3-month check up.

It's A Small Hodgkin's World!

I was out tonight with my son David and got a hankering for a milk shake. Those who know me will not find this surprising at all. There are only so many places to go at 9pm on a Wednesday in Catonsville and I wasn't feeling like McDonalds or Burger King. We happened to pass Tastee Zone and saw it was still open. And luckily the young woman working the counter was able to get the window open...it was stuck. I ordered a large vanilla malt and then turned around to watch David run to 7-11 for a Slurpee. While standing and waiting on their deck for my nightcap I noticed that the other young woman who was working was wearing a unique, scarf-like, head wrap. My intuition was that this young woman might have cancer. As she was emptying the trash I asked why she was wearing the head wrap.

Very honestly and in a forthright  manner she replied to a complete stranger "I have cancer."

"What type?" I replied. 

As fate would have it "Hodgkin's Lymphoma" came the answer. 

"What stage?" I asked. 

"Stage 2B."

"Are you on ABVD?"

"Yes."

With a big smile I proceeded to tell her about my past 7 months and where I was in the process.  I then asked how her treatments were progressing. She's 20 and has had to take off a semester from Salisbury State to go through treatment. Unfortunately I would say she has not been as lucky as me. Her white cell counts have gotten too low and she was pulled off Bleomycin. She is also on neulasta - something Dr. Seifer is not a big fan of. She just finished chemo treatment #5 and has one to go. We talked about eyebrows (she has some left and does a great job job making them look better than they are) and peripheral neuropathy (she has avoided this thankfully). I also told her about Dr. Seifter because she's not a fan of her current team. As we talked I was struck by how confident and brave she was. I hope she is cancer free after her next treatment so she won't have to endure any more. Otherwise I told her to consider Dr. Seifter.

I left her with the address of this blog so that she could have some additional info. 

I wish her the very best.

Still Going Strong and Alison's Quest

I hope you all are doing well. I continue to improve every day. My taste buds are almost back to normal and I can feel my fingertips again. My toes are still a bit numb but getting better each week. The hair on top of my head is growing faster although I continue to shave it while I wait for my eyebrows to come back. There's some peach fuzz above each eye so hopefully they'll be back soon. My appetite is good although I am still retaining water more than normal. Once I get back on the elliptical that should clear up. My final (hopefully) PET/CT is this Friday so I'll send an update after I get those results early next week. I don't see Dr. Seifter until June unless the PET/CT is anything other than clear. All in all I feel great!

Now on to Alison's quest... Jen and our daughter Alison have competed in the Athleta Iron Girl Columbia Triathlon for several years now. Last year they finished 10th as a mother daughter team and Alison was 17th overall in the swim leg of the triathlon out of more than 1500 competitors. She's working on her cycling and running so they catch up to her swim prowess. For 2013 she got the idea to join Team in Training (TNT). TNT is a charitable organization formed 25 years ago to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) by participation in the world's major marathons, triathlons, hiking adventures and century rides. I am honored that our lovely daughter will compete in honor of me and my quest to be cancer free. If you would like to support her and the cancer research that is helping me get cured, the link to her training site is here:

Donate to Alison for her Team In Training competition.

I'm also happy to report that my brother's mother-in-law Janet has responded well to chemo and she is back on top of her fight with multiple myeloma. Keep up the good fight mom/Janet!

Much love to you all.