Tuesday, November 29 – evening

OUCH! Well, today we went and had the port removed from my chest. This was done in the doctor's office; not even day surgery. It went fairly quickly, but hurt more than I thought it would. The doc gave me local anesthesia, but those shots were somewhat painful, and there were a few times when he was trying to free the port that I felt sharp pain. The total time to take it out was about 20 minutes. Overall, it wasn't that bad, so I should not complain I suppose. Perhaps my tolerance to pain is a bit lower these days. ;-)

The GOOD NEWS is that the port is OUT and except for the recovery from those stiches, IT IS OVER!

I have some additional thoughts about what this journey meant to me, and, what I have learned. Check back, please, in the next week or two for that entry.

In the meantime, take care of yourself, and your loved ones. - John

Thankgiving 2005

We all have many things to be thankful for. This year, I had A LOT to be thankful for. Now THAT's an understatement! - John

Sunday, November 13 – evening

Quick Update: Friday we saw a lung specialist. He basically said that what I might have in my lungs - if anything - is insignificant. We'll do another test in a month to make sure, but it is probably something that is not worth worrying about. So, more good news!

I will be scheduling the minor surgery soon to have the port taken out of my chest. That, in my mind, will be the END of all the medical stuff related to this journey. I will definitely let you know when that happens. - John

The Best News! Yesterday Cindy and I went to see the doctor to get the official results from my CT scan last week. He told us the great news:

I am cancer-free!

I have believed all along this would be the case. But, it was good to get the official word.

There is one little thing remaining: they noticed that I may have some kind of lung infection or virus. It is uncertain, but there were some signs on the CT scan of some kind of virus in my lungs. And...I have had times when I am short of breath.

So, I am going to see a lung doctor and we'll hopefully treat it with some drugs and get past this one last hurdle. Please keep it in your prayers and thoughts, too, that this will be easy and quick to resolve.

Almost Over: When I get the lung stuff resolved, I will then get the port in my chest removed, and THEN I will consider this journey to be over. Or perhaps...beginning on a new journey!

I could not have done this without your help and support. Thank you again for keeping me in mind. - John