My Cancer Adventures: Prologue

I had to sneak that dramatic cancer mention in my initial post, so I should give some details for family, friends, and (though I’m doubtful they exist) other readers of this blog that didn't know I had cancer. This could easily turn into a really long post, so here’s the quick and dirty details:

• Late September 2016
• Things all started with terrible neck/shoulder pain. One night when trying to massage out the pain, I found a lump on the left side of my neck . Visited my regular doctor, who thought I might have two issues – an inflamed lymph node (my body fighting an infection) and muscle pains. However, if it didn’t get better in a week they would give me a referral to an ear/nose/throat (ENT) specialist.
• October
• Things didn’t get better so I saw an ENT doctor. My lump was really hard at this point, so his initial physical inspection thought it might be an extra rib (Yes, this is a thing. A person can get an extra rib on their neck.) I was scheduled for a CT scan the next week.
• The CT scan clearly showed it was not an extra rib but some very inflamed neck lymph nodes. I was prescribed a strong regiment of an antibiotic and steroid in the hopes that it would clear things up.
• November
• As you can guess, the meds didn’t help. The next step was a needle biopsy of the lymph nodes and truly get a sense of what my lymph nodes were up to. That biopsy came back as “inconclusive but suspect.” Vague as hell (I know), but at least it pointed in some direction.
• The next step was a full surgical biopsy. This happened just before Thanksgiving. For this I was put completely under, which was really good since afterwards my ENT doctor (who did the surgery) mentioned that he had to move a major neck muscle and my jugular vein out of the way to get to the lymph node mass. I was horribly nauseous though the next day or two from the anesthesia. It’s also worth noting here that my neck/shoulder pain ceased after surgery. The cause was the mass pushing against my neck/shoulder muscles and nerves. With it somewhat cleared out from the biopsy, problem fixed.
• The pathology results were not what my wife and I wanted but were something we prepared ourselves for: cancer, specifically Hodgkin lymphoma.

I visited lls.org a lot for a week or two.

• December
• Started down the path with my oncology team and for a while was having lots of tests done. Many were safeguard tests to make sure that my body could withstand chemo, but I also had some extra important tests performed. First was blood work (to get a baseline of my counts) and then a full body PET scan. The PET scan revealed that I not only had lymphoma on my known neck area, but the lymph nodes in between the lobes of my lungs (the mediastinal nodes) were also affected. That put a stage label on my Hodgkin’s – stage II.
• My chemo plan was then revealed. I would get 12 treatments (or 6 cycles) of ABVD chemo, the traditional cocktail of choice for Hodgkin’s because it works. I would go in for treatment every other Monday. (This is all still the case, by the way.)
• I also had my second surgery - this time for my port. This surgery was sooo much better than the full biopsy as I was only under light anesthesia and not full - basically a very light nap. Also for those wondering, the port just simply looks like an extra bump under my skin, just 1-2 inches below my collarbone on the right side of my chest.
• I had chemo treatment #1 a few days before Christmas. (Happy Holidays to me!)

My gigantic folder of cancer and chemotherapy help guides.

• January
• Chemo treatment #2
• Chemo treatment #3
• Chemo treatment #4
• February
• Checkpoint PET Scan. I was feeling positive going into this (honestly I’ve stayed really positive through all of this) but realized the results could go either way. Luckily and thankfully, we got good news. All of my lymphoma tumors were responding and dying from the chemo. While there are still remnants to be sure, they were too small to be picked up by the PET scan. Basically - we’re winning! I just have to see this chemo through to the end to beat the cancer for good.
• Chemo treatment #5
• Chemo treatment #6 (Halfway done!)
• March
• Chemo treatment #7
• Chemo treatment #8 (scheduled)
• April
• Chemo treatment #9 (to be officially scheduled)
• Chemo treatment #10 (to be officially scheduled)
• May
• Chemo treatment #11 (to be officially scheduled)
• Chemo treatment #12 (to be officially scheduled)

Things to note:

• My form of Hodgkin Lymphoma is the nodular sclerosis type, which makes up most Hodgkin cases. Not that anyone wants cancer, but if you have it, this is the kind you want. Nodular Hodgkin’s has very high cure rates.
• I will not need radiation. There was a potential need for it if my tumors weren’t responding to chemotherapy, but with my recent good PET scan the need for radiation is gone.
• ABVD chemo gives all the normal stereotypical chemo side effects - tiredness/fatigue, weakened immune system, nausea, loss of appetite, hair loss, neuropathy of hands and feet.... I’ll probably talk about these fun side effects in another post, but I’ll go ahead and say now that for me they have been mostly manageable.
• Mostly, life is just adjusted normalcy. I’m still going to work (currently working two half-time jobs) but that’s about all I can do in a day. The week following a treatment is rough; the second week (what I call a recovery week) is better. In the evening after work, I’m basically just a couch potato. Even on recovery weeks, I really have to be careful to preserve my energy during the day if I have plans in the evening.
• I’m not running, biking, etc. like I was right up to my first biopsy, but I’m still finding ways to be outside or get in a “workout.” When the weather is nice and  I have the energy, I go for walks. I find this the best because it’s light exercise and I’m outside. When the weather isn’t so great, I’ll play some Wii or Wii Fit. Again, nothing that is normally a workout but it at least gets me moving. As the weather improves here in Minnesota, I might try some yoga or balance exercises out on our deck.
• Mostly, I’m doing just fine. Chemo sucks but so far it mostly just sucks for a few days. For the most part, I look the same and live the same. Most people that interact with me have no idea that I have cancer. Even those that do know, sometimes forget (Really, I’ve had multiple coworkers and friends remark on this.) I’m really just going along on my merry way. It is what it is. There is no use dwelling on it, so I just keep moving forward.

Ok, I think that about covers the basics. Please, if you have any questions, ask away in the comments, email me, or DM me on Twitter (once I get that linked up). I’m totally open about talking about any of this cancer stuff. I’m not one that’s shying away from it all. It is what it is and I just keep moving forward. Additionally, if any of this information can help someone in their own cancer battle or help people in general understand cancer better, I am all for it.