All Gone

Leading up to my appointment today Sheela was predicting that the doctor would say "all gone," like how a three year old will point to their plate after finishing the peas. She was close. My oncologist's actual words today were "Your scans look great."

The big news today is that the cancer in my lymph node is gone, gone, gone. That means no RPLND surgery where I'd be cut open like a fish and in recovery for six weeks. This also means no fourth round of chemo. As for my lungs, the spots are the same as before the treatment so they might be tiny scars unrelated to the cancer. They are so small that there is no way to tell what they are so we may never know. The doctors will be keeping an eye on them and if they don't change at all then there is nothing to worry about. We're confident that I'm in good shape because of my AFP blood markers.

So what does the future hold? As followup I get another catscan in six weeks and then again every couple of months for the next five years. Today was a big milestone because I successfully beat the big node, but there are more milestones to look forward to. The one year mark is a big one because recurrence usually occurs in that window.

Now I get the luxury of worrying about things other than health. Apparently the adjustment from patient back to person can be a little complicated, but as my brother put it: "Jon, I have no doubt that you will exceed expectations and get wrapped up in the petty concerns of life in no time." Dana Farber is in the process of establishing a survivorship center tied to the Lance Armstrong foundation so there are resources available to help me figure out any mysteries. I also need to lose some weight; it was easy to justify an extra muffin when I was looking forward to intestinal surgery. Maybe I'll train for one of the Dana Farber fundraising road races, in which case I'll be hitting up all of you for pledges. Yes, the future is bright: a return to worrying about silly things and soliciting my friends for money. Truth is I couldn't be happier. I get to be a normal person again.

I have a couple more things to share with you, so please check in again before Christmas. Know however that the big hurdle has been crossed.