Update #2

Well I went to Dr. Borrowdale this morning for follow up number 2 and I checked out fine.  Dr. Borrowdale's voice was actually worse than mine  (he was sick) which was amusing. In another six weeks I go back for my next follow up.

I hope everyone has a great Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Update

So everything has shown up good on my follow ups so far, no cancer.

One thing that is interesting, I lost my job today because of "organizational changes" within FedEx Kinko's.  Just when I thought my life couldn't get any worst this year I'm unemployed at Christmas.  Life has to get better.

Recovery 11 - 11

Sorry for the time between post.  I went to the Doctor on 11-6 for my follow up and there wasn't any sign of the cancer on my vocal cords.   My next check up is in six weeks, then every six weeks for two years.  

As far as how I am feeling, I am still pretty fatigued, my throat is sore and I have a lingering cough.  On Monday the 17th I am finally going back to work, we will see how that works... lol

Thank you everyone for your support and following my path.  I will update after every check up.

Lots of Love,

Marc

Recovery 10 - 23

I am still trying to get back on my feet.  My throat is still sore, my voice is weak, I have a cough and I am pretty fatigued.  It is better than last week, but I am no where near being back to normal.  I really thought I would bounce right back after treatment, but I guess the hospital staff knew what they were talking about.

I'm really looking forward to this being all over and getting back to normal.  I went through my medical bills last night and sent out a few checks.  If you wanna see what healthcare cost let me know I will show you my file!  My lord at least I have Insurance, I can't imagine if I didn't.

I will post again next week.

Recovery 10 - 13

The staff was right, this really sucks!  My throat feels like it is on fire and is peeling which hurts.  I have to spit every few minutes because my body is producing too much fluid.  I am extremely tired, I take a nap every few hours.  Plus I have an annoying cough.  I am totally back on my pain medication. 

I just keep telling my self by the weekend it has to be better.

Treatment Day 28

I'M DONE!

I go back now on the 6th of November to find out if it's gone or not.  I will keep you updated on my recovery.

Treatment Day 27

Great news, I only have tomorrow left!  I thought I had to do 29 treatments and it's only 28.  So tomorrow is my last day.

I saw the doctor today and talked about what would happen next.  I was told my neck would start to heal in about two weeks, that's how long it take for the cells to start to re-grow.  The Doctor thought my voice should start getting back to normal in 3 to 4 weeks, I hope sooner.  For the next year I will have check ups every 4 to 6 weeks, then the next year 6 to 8 weeks, then every six months after.  I was told yet again that I have a 25% chance of getting cancer again in the throat area sometime in my life and the doctor said because of my age I could probably count on it.

So you can see a photo of my neck, as you can tell it really just looks like a really bad sunburn.  As with any sunburn it's gotten stiff and crackly so it hurts to turn my head.  

Just one day left then we will see!

Treatment Day 26

More sleep, only 3 treatments left.

Treatment Day 25

My last week of treatments!

The staff at the hospital have prepared for this and next week, I've been told they will be the hardest on me.  It's almost 8pm and all I have done all day is sleep, I have been up off and on but I am extremely tired.  I haven't taken any pain medicine all day, but haven't eaten either so I really haven't need to.  

My neck is now really red and sore, I'm lucky though I won't even have to shave it again.  

Four treatments left!

Treatment Day 22

It's been awhile since my last post and I apologize.   It seems this week all I have wanted to do is sleep.  I have developed a cough that can get pretty bad from time to time and my outside of my throat is bright red plus I now sound like Minnie Mouse when I do talk.... lol  I have actually put on weight, which is a good thing for now but I can't wait to take it back off when this is all over.

Some of my friends came over on Sunday and had dinner for me and enough leftovers to last me all week.  Thank you so much if you were here!

I do have one request if you are in the Indy area,  Lance Armstrong endorses an Energy Drink/program that I am starting.  It's called FRS Healthy Energy and yes I am running a scam.  They have a trial pack that cost $6.95 and it's about $50.00 worth of product.   If you are close to me and wouldn't mind ordering a package (you can only have one shipped per address) I will get you the $7 it cost.  Just go to www.frs.com and click on the trial package.  Just email me when you get it and we can take care of it.

That's it for now, only 7 treatments left!

Treatment Day 16

Best day yet!  My friend Annette and I went out to eat dinner at a Sushi place (which you know I love).  The ran a few errands and went back to my house.  I realized (since Annette is my Wine Drinking Friend) that I can actually drink Wine!  That's the only Alcohol that I have found my throat can tolerate.  So my last 2 1/2 weeks might not be that bad; if only I can just stay drunk for that long....

On another topic, my voice is really bad and almost gone.  Hopefully it will last through the weekend.

Treatment Day 15

I AM HALF WAY DONE!

Just wanted to give you all a quick update.  My treatments are half over and I am so excited about that.  I am still having trouble with solid food, but continue to eat. I actually was able to eat pizza last night, which I was really surprised I could.  My latest side effect is my voice is really hoarse so I am expecting to lose it before too long.  I really can't complain though, I think things could be much worst than they are at the moment.

Treatment Day 12

Well my post on Monday was pretty bleak and I wanted to give an update.  When I went in on Monday for my treatment I asked for some meds to deal with the pain in my throat.  The doctor on duty did write me a script for a liquid pain killer.  This has actually help, it does still hurt to swallow just not as bad.  Monday and Tuesday all I had was liquid to eat.  Today I stopped at McDonalds and got a Big Mac value meal.  Which did hurt to eat, but I was able to get it down.

My psoriasis has really acted up, I look like a leopard with all my spots.  It has even spread to my ears!  Luckily I have an appointment with my Dermatologist on Friday and hopefully he will be able to help.

Here is another shot of me in my mask, the center x is just so they can line me up correctly.

Treatment Day 10

It was a very long weekend for me, the treatments are starting to really catch up with me.  I have the worst sore throat that you could imagine.  Eating solid foods is impossible at this point.  On Friday morning I had some toast for breakfast and it was like eating razor blades.  It hurts to even swallow at this point, and I never realized how many times you swallow during the day.  I have a noticeable red mark on my neck.

My Mom and Grandmother were nice enough to go out and get me a "Magic Bullet" food processor so I can chop up everything I eat.

I'm grateful that I only have 19 treatments left and that my disability insurance was approved today.  That's it for now.

Treatment Day 8

Here is another photo of my treatment, the machine in the back is what radiates me.  It does the right side of my neck first then rotates over to my left side and repeats the process.  Each side takes about 30 seconds.  

What you can't see it that I am holding ropes attached to a board at my feet.  That helps me pull down my shoulders so that I fit in the mask properly.

Today, after the radiation, I met with the Nutritionist for the first time.  We went over the kind of foods I should be eating and what to do when my taste starts to change.  Which I am already experiencing.  The Nutritionist also told me what would taste bad, which was red meat, coffee and chocolate.   But, I was also told to marinate meat in Beer or Wine to pull out the taste.  That made me happy!

Treatment Day 6

Here is a look at my mask that is used for my treatment. The X on my neck is where the cancer is at and the area that gets the Radiation.

I saw the Doctor today and was weighted in.  I have lost two pounds, but they didn't let me hold on to my two phones today like I was the first time I was weighted so I don't think I really have lost any weight.

I was also given two medications, one for sleep and the other so I can swallow when I eat.  I didn't think I needed the second medication until I came home and had a bite to eat.  

I have more photos I will add to later post.

Treatment Day 5

It's been a few days since I posted and wanted to give you all an update.  It was actually nice to have two days off from the radiation for the weekend.  I was able to make it out to hang with friends and went to a wedding, then watched the Colts Game at a friends house yesterday.

As far a my side effects much hasn't changed, I'm still getting tired easily. I'm take at least two naps a day, the first one usually right after treatment.  My neck is starting to look like it's sunburned, they did give me a wound cream to start using on Friday.  My mouth is dry most of the day and my throat is starting to feel a little sore.  But honestly none of this is really that bad at the moment, just annoying.

I did make the mistake of watching the special "Stand Up to Cancer" on Friday night by myself at home.  That wasn't the most up lifting thing to watch by yourself when you are going thru treatment.  But it is a really good cause if you didn't see it.  I downloaded the single off itunes and most of the profits from that are going to research.

I'm going to take my camera in tomorrow and see if they will take a photo or two for me.

That's about it for now.

Treatment Day 2

So I am trying to find the humor in this situation and today while I was getting treatment it dawned on me what it reminded me of.  Some sort of Medieval Torture Device with the mask on, strapped to the table... lol  It was hard to stay still while the treatment was going on because I wanted to bust out laughing. 

I really wanted to send out a big thank you today to all of you who have reached out to me already!  Thank you so much, you really have no idea how much a simple call or email means to me at the moment.

No real change in my physical condition, I am tired again today but thats about it.

Treatment Day 1

So I had my first treatment today and I have to say it wasn't as bad as I had built it up to be in my mind.  I was there for over an hour, because they had to do all the setup today.  The Techs made sure that I was positioned correctly and they were radiating the area that needed it.  My Doctor came in briefly to give his approval, other than that I didn't see him today.

I have to say the worst part of the process was the waiting area.  When I went the first time I was in the main waiting room and didn't realize that there were two waiting rooms.  Needless to say I was put in the second waiting area today.  The thing that freaked me out about this was that this is where everyone who is going through treatment sits.  So I got to see people who are in the middle of the process and how their bodies were reacting.  I by the way was the youngest person in the waiting room.

As far as the treatment, I really didn't feel anything at all.  I am on a table in a big room by myself with my mask on.  I think I will take a camera one day and have them take a photo if they allow it so you can see what it looks like.  When the treatment starts there is a very loud buzz/hum and it only last about 30 seconds.  Then they reposition the machine and repeat the process on the other side.

I was tried today and ended up coming home an taking about a 3 hour nap.  Then I have had a splitting headache all day, but that started before I went in.  I think the headache is just from the stress of the situation.   My other lovely stress side effect is my psoriasis has come back on pretty strong and I really can't take my Humira shot while I am going through radiation.

I will post again later in the week...

Cancer Diagnoses

Hello Friends,

Well I finally have the diagnoses on what the hell is going on with my throat.  For those of you that haven't spoken to me in person over the last view months I have gradually went extremely hoarse.  The first diagnosis that I got was that it was Laryngeal Papillomatosis, which is basically a growth on the vocal cord.  I under went surgery on August 5^th to have it removed and biopsy.  Well the results can back and it was not what was first diagnosed.  I have Carcinoma Insitu of the Larynx, which is cancer of the vocal box.  The Insitu part means that it is very early, the Docs (yes I saw about six yesterday) said it is the earliest it can be detected.  This Cancer has a 95% cure rate and there is only a 1 to 2% chance that it spread to my limp nods.  I was told that it was extremely superficial at the moment.  Since my original Surgery wasn't for Cancer, the Doc didn't do a Cancer Surgery.  Thus I am going to need treatment to get read of any remaining cancer cells.  I have two options for treatment:

1)      I can have surgery again and they can remove more tissue from my vocal cords.  The problem with this is that I will be hoarse for the rest of my life since there isn't much tissue on the vocal cords to begin with.

2)      Radiation is the second option.  I would need to do Radiation once a day, every day for 5 ½ weeks.  The issues with this is that I will be fatigued, sick, have a red spot on my throat from the treatment that will fade after, my throat will swell and I will have trouble swallowing (insert jokes here) and I will become more hoarse.  This treatment will however preserve my voice and it should come back to normal after treatment.

I have chose option 2.  I start treatment the day after Labor Day.  On Wednesday August 20th I had a body suit made so that they only radiate the area that needs it.  If the cancer would show back up after the radiation I would then have to have the Surgery, which they assure me would take care of the cancer.

Please if you have any questions feel free to ask, if you hear others talking about this please direct them to my blog or tell them to ask me directly.  I really want everyone to know what is really going on and not have rumors floating around.

Keep me in your thoughts!  But know I will be fine!

Marc