Went to St Louis on Tuesday. Got Mugged.

[rps]

We are all happy you no longer have a pain in the neck around.

 

[jdmidwest]

I was eating a buffet today and the sound system played Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire".

My first dose of Chernobyl was 5 years ago yesterday.  The song playing in the background was the same song as I lay there strapped in and the machine started churning.  I was starting a new level of misery that I had never tried to imagine.  I walked out and told TJ my radiation treatment guy that we were going to have to do something about the music in that room.  He realized my distress at the random choice of song he had played.

After that, every day was a continuance of the person on KSHE that morning on the ride to the treatment.  I topped it off with Buck Cherry "Crazy Bit ch" on last day of treatment.  Little female nurse said all they had was the uncut track, I said "Don't worry, I'm not shy".

What a wild ride that was.  Blisters and sores in throat and mouth, thrush, swelling, lose of voice at times.  Eating was more of a chore than when they replaced a third of my tongue with my arm.  Choking, aspirating, risk of pneumonia.  Loss of 15% of body weight, my body burned off all fat and started on muscle mass.

Today, I am gaining weight back to my old fighting weight finally.  The loss of fat cells under the skin on my arms and hands leave me prone to tears in the skin and bruising like my 85 year old Dad.  The right arm is still weak and gives me issues from the surgery on it.  My neck and jaw has the numbness from nerve damage and feels like someone has a grab hold on it from tightness of scar tissue.  Swallowing and eating is still a mental process, have to concentrate.  Ears ring and some hearing loss from radiation.  A few bald patches on back of neck and under the chin where the hair never grew back.

But, I have survived to see 3 new grandbabies and done many things I am blessed for in the past 5 years.  I have seen many pass from the nasty things that cancer does.  I know of 2 now that only have a few weeks to live.  A weird brain tumor has one in Hospice and another only has a few months with newly diagnosed stage 4 colin cancer that has involved here stomach.  NormM is gone, Laker 67 too.

Both myself and my cousin are past the 5 year mark now and clean.  My buddy found a melanoma early and had it removed, his wife beat breast cancer.  One of my co workers has beat breast cancer 2 times.  Another friend made it thru a risky prostate cancer surgery that worked well.  I have met many on my job at work that have been thru different oral cancers and survived.  Others on here are winning the fight.  Every day is a new adventure.

[oneshot]

Sounds like you have it far worse than me. I just had Radiation but got something New going on.

Been praying for you. 

oneshot 

[Terrierman]

We have friends with a 22 year old son who was headed to the NFL draft this year.  Diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumor, had emergency surgery and is now at M D Anderson in Houston for proton therapy radiation and chemo.  Cancer is hell on the patient and their whole family.  If there's one even marginally good thing about it, it shows how family, friends and community can all come together to help out as much as they can.  Small solace though it may be.

Glad you made it through it, hope he does too.

[jdmidwest]

3 hours ago, oneshot said:

Sounds like you have it far worse than me. I just had Radiation but got something New going on.

Been praying for you. 

oneshot 

We have been praying for you too.  What is the new stuff that has popped up?

[jdmidwest]

2 hours ago, Terrierman said:

We have friends with a 22 year old son who was headed to the NFL draft this year.  Diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumor, had emergency surgery and is now at M D Anderson in Houston for proton therapy radiation and chemo.  Cancer is hell on the patient and their whole family.  If there's one even marginally good thing about it, it shows how family, friends and community can all come together to help out as much as they can.  Small solace though it may be.

Glad you made it through it, hope he does too.

Cancer will probably get me eventually, all of the treatments bring on other possibilities of different types.  I try to keep on top of things.  I have had a few scares in the past few years that has brought on closer looks at things that popped up.  The second cancer meant that it had travelled undetected  to another location in the 16 month period from original site to the second.  It went undetected until I felt a sore spot in a node.  I found it, not modern medicine and monitoring methods.  I was lucky..

[oneshot]

14 hours ago, jdmidwest said:

We have been praying for you too.  What is the new stuff that has popped up?

Ah just Blood in my Urine.  Their going to do some more looking.  Worst thing would be Bladder Cancer. 

oneshot 

[jdmidwest]

My second Grandson turns 7 tomorrow making it Year 7 since I found the last cancer.  Still kicking and celebrating his birthday.  Grandson 1 got his learners permit today, going to be driving me to the fishing holes soon. 

Life is still good.....

[laker67]

Just means the good Lord isn't through with you yet.  Prayers for continued strength and no more cancers!  Just realized this was an older post.

[Gavin]

Keep on rolling! You gotta die from something, but, go fishing on your way to or from. The power to make your very best day resides in you mostly. It could happen every day!