Two years and counting

Today makes two years that I have been off of chemotherapy. I was hoping for a break of at least 6 months, and am very glad it has lasted, and is lasting, this long.

Two Items of Good News

I got a couple of pieces of good news within the past week. Today, I went to see the cancer doc. Results from the blood sample taken last week showed a decrease in the amount of cancer - a slight decrease, but a decrease nonetheless. It is the first decrease since discontinuing chemotherapy almost two years ago, after a lot of slight increases or no increases. For now, we stay the course at just monitoring. I will get my blood sampled again in two months, but won't go back to see the cancer doc until 4 months from now.

The other piece of good news is that I had that horribly unmentionable and wonderfully life-saving procedure called a colonoscopy done last week. Several years ago, we stayed less than a half-step ahead of cancer on a big ugly tumor found on one of these routine procedures. Get it done if your doc says it's time. It could literally save your life, it did mine. Anyway, these results came back clear, and I was very glad. I did not want to have to fight cancer on two fronts (or would that be one front and one rear?) simultaneously.

Thanks for the friendship, love, prayers and concern.

Update, Feb. 2012

I got results back on the most recent blood sample, and there has been no increase (or decrease) in the cancer since the last sampling two months ago. The cancer doc was real chipper about it when I saw him today. For now, it is stay the course and continue to monitor. Thanks to all for prayers, love and support.

"I have been, and will always be, your friend."

This morning I got to have breakfast with my best pal from high school days, Guy Ray. He went to Messick High and I went to White Station, but we met and got to be pals at church. He reminded me of Spock's quote that is the title of this blog, and the same is said by both of us in regard to the other.


Here is a picture of us at church camp one summer sometime in the 1960's. Guy always was the cool one of this duo. I don't think we've changed that much, do you?

Cancer Update, Dec. 2011

I had my regular visit with the cancer doc this afternoon. The cancer is continuing to show the same rate of very slow, but consistent, growth that it has demonstrated since discontinuing chemotherapy 18 months ago. The doctor knows and concurs with my treatment goals - to stay on my feet and working for as long as possible - so the visit was fairly short and amicable.

This approach of treating, but not attempting to eradicate, the cancer and then allowing the body to recuperate before fighting the cancer again, runs counter to literature published by pharmaceutical companies, but is hailed by some doctors and by many patients with myeloma and other forms of incurable cancer. Attending the funeral last week of a friend who died from myeloma was a somber, but not daunting, reminder of the high stakes being played here.

At current rate of cancer increase, my assessment (not the doc's) is that I should be able to continue to stay off of chemotherapy throughout 2012, but may likely have to resume at the start of 2013.

Thanks for your friendship, caring, encouragement and prayers. To say they mean a lot is a tremendous understatement.

Labor Day 2011

Last Monday, we packed 4 grandkids into a rented mini-van and drove 545 miles from Peoria, IL, to Dutch Fred Lake, MI, on Michigan's upper penisula. Check it out on google earth. We left 100+ degree temps in Dallas on Friday, 9/2, and it was 32 degrees at the cabin on Monday evening, 9/5. Dispite the apparent outhouse in the photo, we did have indoor facilities.

The cabin was 6.5 miles off the paved road down a dirt "road." Though the lake and surrounding land were public, we saw no other people on the lake or the 6.5 miles of dirt road for the week we were there. No electricity, cell phone coverage, television, internet, etc. We ran a generator off and on for a few hours each day, as needed.

Rangers 11, Angels 7

Rangers 11, Angels 7, and Daryl was there, along with Carol and bunch of other friends and 38,000+ other Ranger fans.