Here it is November and it's about a year ago that I had the CT scan that showed my first visible tumor.
A lump had shown up on my neck that it turned out had nothing directly to do with the tumor that was at the back of my neck between the muscle wall and those great blood vessels that service the brain. The scan showed that my tumor was eating into one of my vertebra - the C2 vertebra.
This was on the right side of my neck and the ENT that looked at it could see the bulging out on the back and right side. She sent me to get the CT scan.
It took a week or two to get a CT scan and my ENT wanted me to get back to her the same day with the results. I think she had suspicions.
Once you know you have something it suddenly seems to take forever to get to the next test; and the next test for me was a biopsy.
Mary and I went to the outpatient clinic where the biopsy was going to be performed and they wanted me to bring my living will if I had one. That is a really weird request to get from someone. Think of the possibilities.
This is not a simple: here let me stick this needle into you. This was a throat operation. My ENT (who sidelines as a surgeon) excised my right tonsil to get to the mass. Good with a knife that one.
She told me afterward that she wanted to get enough out so that she wouldn't have to go back in to get more.
Soon I will be having another Thanksgiving dinner - I was on drugs for the last one; I stopped the muscle relaxants so I could have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner.
The biopsy was in early December and the diagnosis of lymphoma was in mid December. I saw my oncologist for the first time the Monday after Christmas and had a series of tests.
My first infusion was New Year's Ever 2009. What a way to celebrate.
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