I told myself I wasn’t going to start walking in the first mile of the Saint George Half Ironman. I lied.
Chapter II
In September of 2013, doctors diagnosed me with a malignant 5cm mass, discovered during a regularly-scheduled MRI (which I have as part of my follow-up from a 2001-2002 breast cancer battle). After surgery and tests, I learned that I had thymic carcinoma -- a rare and fast-growing cancer of the Thymus gland. Usually, it’s not diagnosed until it’s already spread to the lungs, heart, or other places, because it can be fairly symptomless. I was blessed, as my oncologist said, that my regular MRIs helped catch it early. My outlook would have been much worse if this had been discovered months later.
I am documenting my journey through Cancer Part II in the hopes that it will educate and inspire others who are facing a difficult diagnosis. In the days after I left the hospital, I sat down with my colleagues at Growing Bolder to share my thoughts on this new challenge. As we say -- I am Surviving & Thriving.
What was I Thinking?
I am just in from a 5 1/2 hour bike ride that included 4100 feet of climbing and what felt like a 30 mph headwind on the last hour home. I have a 20 minute run also on my day’s training schedule, but I’ve lost the will to do that, along with my will to live.
I am Fine Now Until August 19 (at the VERY Least)
I have every kind of specialist that exists… but when I need a Z-pack, I have no one to call.
Wellness in 3-Month Installments
Am I fine? Am I sick and don’t know it yet? Will Wednesday morning bring my long run or will it bring phone calls to schedule more surgeries, chemotherapy, or radiation?
Oh Yeah, We Came Back Down the Mountain, Too
When people ask how the climb was, many times all we can muster is, “It was awesome.” “Book of Mormon” was awesome; Survivor Summit should be described as much, much more than that.
Rise Up
You don’t get much sleep when you know your wake-up call is coming at 10:30 pm…. even if what awaits you is a daunting 8-hour hike to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro and another 5 hours down to our next camp