checking in - Good news for a Tuesday afternoon!!!

Tuesday afternoon,
I'm just beginning to see, now I'm on my way
It doesn't matter to me, chasing the clouds away.
The Moody Blues

Hey, Hey...I just returned from my CT scan, and the results were good...no indication of cancer...the physical exam, which included putting a tube with a flashlight on the end down my nose to look at the tonsil, also did not show any signs of tumor...I am quite relieved, to say the least...and the lymph node appears to be cancer free as well. Happy day.

Of course, the ENT still wants to follow me closely, and a follow-up exam is scheduled in 2 months, and then every 3 months for a few years...but for now...the news is good, and it is quite possible that the abnormal PET scan a month ago was a false positive.
If I begin having symptoms...persistent sore throat, coughing up blood, etc. then it's right back for more exams and scans, but as long as i remain symptom free, and the clinical exams by the ENT remain good, there will not be a need for further scans.

On top of that, I had the feeding tube removed...I haven't used it in over a month, and now that it looks like there will not be any surgery, at least in the near future, if not forever, there was no need to leave it in. Let me give you an idea of how these doctors remove a surgically implanted feeding tube from one's stomach. First, the ENT leaves the room and sends in his resident to do the job. Then, the resident asked me to lift my shirt. I quickly noticed there was no anesthetic or mention of putting me out for the removal procedure. Instead, he asked me this question..."Are you ready?" I gave a weak "I guess" for an answer, and he proceeded to grab the tube, and with one mighty yank...

Yeeoooowwwwwwww! A piece of rubber about the size of a hockey puck passed through an opening a little smaller than the width of a pencil eraser. Then, while my stomach still felt like something from the movie "Alien" just happened, he asked me if I would like to keep the tube as a souvenir. I gave a similar response to him as I did to the tech who asked me if I would like to keep the molded mask made for my radiation treatment.

But...I am feeling very good about the results of the visit, and getting rid of that awful tube that I've been wearing around for the last 7 months.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND YOUR KIND THOUGHTS AND WELL WISHES...I CAN NEVER EXPRESS ENOUGH MY HEART FELT GRATITUDE FOR YOU MY FRIENDS. GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

AND PRAISE GOD , PRAISE GOD, PRAISE GOD...HEALER OF MY SOUL AS WELL AS BODY...I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN, LORD... IN YOU I TRUST...YOUR LOVE IS BETTER THAN LIFE...

I may be cured, I may yet relapse...but I am going to strive to receive each day as a gift and at least in my very small circle of influence, try to return the blessing each day somehow in some way.


Peace