I had the incredible opportunity to join a group of 12 other cancer survivors on an adventure in July. This program was through, First Descents, a non-profit aimed at giving young adults who experienced cancer opportunities to push themselves outside of their comfort zone. It was a 5 day trip that will never be forgotten. The adventure included learning how to kayak followed by class I, II, and II white water rapids on the Arkansas River in Colorado. The theme of the week was “challenge by choice”, you always had the option to partake in the adventure or find an alternative path. Although a bit out of my element I pushed myself each day and had an amazing time. What made this experience so incredible was that there was almost an instant bond between participants. We had all been through some form of cancer and treatment. We had all lived through hell and soon began sharing stories of our journey.
After the adventure, came August which meant back to school for the kids and I and scans at the end of the month. Scanxiety is a real and common thing in the cancer world. It’s the worry and anxiety that shows up before scans and appointments. People handle it in different ways. I always wanted to go in knowing my different options, paths, and plans of action. You will have an option A, option B, option C, etc. Knowing that if the best news is not presented you still have a plan. Maybe this is my attempt at control but it works for me. Usually scanxiety starts a few weeks before the actual appointment. But this time was different. Maybe it was the Colorado trip that boosted my confidence and reminded me that I’m not alone.
So what were the results, drumroll…continue to stay clear-no evidence of disease, no evidence of cancer from the neck down. All the lung tumors are gone and have stayed away since immunotherapy. Immunotherapy had also cleared 2 out of 3 brain tumors. The remaining brain tumor was monitored closely for a few years. In March 2021 it was starting to grow a little more and we decided to essentially zap it with Gamma Knife radiation. Gamma knife is very successful, but of course has risks and side effects. The past 18 months has been monitoring the delayed reaction of the tumor and surrounding tissue. After 18 months, the swelling has started decreasing in size along with the tumor itself. This is amazing news and I’m extremely grateful. If I continue to be stable, (some people may laugh there), it’ll mean going for scans every 4 months to 6 months to 1 year checkups. That is the path to survivorship. It means dealing with the side effects for maybe forever, but that’s a choice that I’d make a million times again. So what’s next? More adventures of course!
Courageous Perseverance 