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Update 9
Next Halloween I’m going to be a mastectomy. For this year’s dress rehearsal, I’m hunched over a bandaged chest with drainage tubes coming out of each side. My left hand, arm, shoulder, and neck are swollen, and my jugular vein is bulging. I look like half an angry Popeye. But the port-a-bump is gone. My [...]
Update 8
Glossary of terms in this update: 1. chemo man — my medical oncologist 2. HER2 — a genetic protein that promotes growth. We should have 2 copies of the HER2 gene in every cell. My cancer cells have more than 2, which means they duplicate even faster than most other cancers. 3. port-a-catheter (port) — [...]
Update 7
Here’s a note from Tasha, one of my former college students. oh yeah, i wanted to tell you! i was in antioch’sprayer room. . . . i was praying for you & this lady came over to me & told me ‘i don’t know the situation of your friend, but God gave me a vision [...]
Update 6
I’m amazed at the friends God has given me near and far. Some I’ve known for years, some since I’ve come to Austin. Laura, a young lady I worked with for two days in September, came over to dust and vacuum for me. My neighbor Michelle has driven me around town and attended social events [...]
Update 5
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for waiting and praying with me this week. The left biopsy results were BENIGN. My surgery to clean out the residual cancer on the right and put in the chemo port (catheter) is rescheduled for Tuesday, October 17, at 3pm. “Because your love is better than life, my lips [...]
Update 4
It’s been a wild week. Monday was my birthday (thank you to those who celebrated with me). Tuesday I met my radiation and medical (chemo) oncologists. Wednesday I had my pre-op appointment. Thursday I had an MRI. And Friday I met with my surgeon. All the doctors agree that I need chemo followed by radiation [...]
Update 3
After I scheduled my first biopsy, I drove home, walked into my apartment, pulled my cheeks down to my chin and told God, “I wanna cuss.” But I couldn’t think of any cuss words (No, Uncle Tim, I do not want a list). “Well, poop!” is the best thing I can come up with today. [...]
Update 2
Alright, who’s praying? I’ve got joy all over me. I need to clarify some things from Update 1. I used a lot of medical jargon that I didn’t explain. Sorry. The lumpectomy was a surgical procedure to remove the lump and the surrounding tissue (“margins”). A lymph node biopsy involved surgically removing several lymph nodes [...]
Update 1
Dearest Friends–old and new, I just updated all my e-mail contacts and made this group list for personal updates. If you do not want to receive my updates or you want to receive them at another address, please let me know. You won’t hurt my feelings at all. And feel free to cancel your subscription [...]
Update 0
Well, friends, I moved to Austin two months ago, and life has been more adventurous than ever. Most of you know that my little sister died three weeks after I got here. Once again I have bad news. I found out today that I have breast cancer. I don’t really know any details at this [...]