This is WAY overdue. Sorry for the delay. There’s been a lot going on-not health related luckily.

I had scans at the end of February. Everything looked good. Nothing new to report. They are still watching a lymph node in the lower abdomen and a bit of inflammation they saw in the lungs i the fall has disappeared (likely just a minor asymptomatic infection).  I’ll be scanned again at the end of May. I will remain on my maintenance chemo regimen. Still getting a short infusion (Avastin) every other Tuesday and taking my pills (Xeloda) 7 days on, 7 off, twice a day. I also had a colonoscopy, which was very “cleansing” and yielded a positive result as well. Everything looked good in there too.

In summary, I’m pretty healthy right now. I’ve been extremely fortunate with how well I’ve been doing. I have met a lot of people, over the last three years, that have not been as lucky as I have been. I witness peoples constant setbacks and others progressions. There are friends that have improved too and remain healthy, and sadly I have had a few friends that have passed away. Through all of this, I have learned that advocating for yourself translates into some success in survival, but there are no “guarantees” in any of this. We can’t control everything or change anything ultimately, but knowledge truly is power in this world. January 28th marked my three year anniversary, since diagnosis. Surviving over 2 years seemed very unlikely given my condition in early 2015. Now I’m three years out, trying to make it to five and then hopefully ten. There’s always something to strive for.

I’ve decided recently to “take advantage” of my good health at this time. It seems silly to wait until your sick to seek out other options or take time off work to wait for improvement. I am currently seeking third opinions at a couple of other institutions (out of state). Those appointments should hopefully establish another line of treatment if needed in future. There are clinical trials offered in St. Louis and at MDAnderson (my 2nd opinion), but it can’t hurt to have a couple of other possible options if my condition ever changes or worsens in future. Since there are no guarantees my health will maintain this course, so it’s best to be prepared for the worst or pretty much anything in between. There are so many ways this could go; I’m trying to prepare myself for any direction necessary.

With all of that being said, I’ve decided to take some time off of work. I’m going to line up these other appointments and spend some much needed time with Kim and my family. It will be nice to hang out at the lake and of course do some other travel in between treatments.

The break should be nice. I’ll hopefully be able to focus a little on getting back into shape too, fingers crossed.

Thank you for your ongoing support and well wishes. It always helps to have that under my belt too. 😉

Cheers!