Many of you know my battle with stage IV colon cancer. After 3 years, he finally got the upper hand. We’re out of chemo options to try at this point, and even if we had one, it’s best to use it since my liver is on the verge of failure and any kind of chemo can cause liver failure. So all treatment is over.
I was told by my oncology team during my Mayo visit last week that I have 2-3 months or maybe even six months left, as you ask.
I’m doing relatively well so far. I’m still pain-free (a constant source of puzzlement to my doctors), but I find myself getting tired easily and constantly.
The problem is that the tumors are pinching the small bile ducts in my liver, which means they can’t process waste and send zhelt to the larger ducts and eventually to the digestive tract.
Bilirubin is a compound that breaks down dead red blood cells and is filtered out of the blood by the liver. It’s building up in my blood because my bile ducts are blocked and my liver can’t process it. Eventually this leads to jaundice (I’m in the early stages, with the whites of my eyes slightly yellow. It’s only visible if I take my glasses off and you look in good light). And his weakness is a sign. Eventually, I may begin cognitive decline. Apparently, bilirubin has ammonia in it, and ammonia doesn’t play well with brain cells.
So how am I doing? cool. I resigned myself to the possibility of this happening upon investigation. This type of cancer has a 5-year survival rate of only 17%, so the chance was long from the beginning. After I was diagnosed, I quickly decided that I would not let this cancer rule my life and that despite the surgeries and chemo treatments, I would be able to live a normal, healthy life. I continued working for 2 ½ of those 3 years. I’d rather live past 53, but hey, 53 isn’t a bad run and I’m satisfied that I’ve done good in my time in the world.
Speaking of which, thanks to everyone who contributed to my GoFundMe effort – I ended up raising 3 times my original goal. Elementary books are ordered and should arrive in a week or so. The rest will be distributed among 3 underfunded school libraries, to give their students the opportunity to grow or update their collections.
Anyway, you’ll still see me on DKos for a while – I don’t know how long.
But that doesn’t mean I’m giving up. I mean, I’m in trouble, but hey, dogs surprise you sometimes. As for this cancer, now I have one thing to say – as football players say, “If you think you’re tough, go for it!”
Until next time, stay curious, folks.