TBD

I have been working hard.
I have been working hard to Fuck Thyroid Cancer.
I have been working hard to work hard and work over this thing at the same time.
Hard work takes time; this time is no exception.

After undergoing iodine radiation therapy on 20-June, my full body scans the following week showed an anomoly in my left shoulder. My Endocronologist said it was something he'd never seen in his lifetime -- a metastasis with a pathology that read there was no way one could exist.

Well, as in all things with all of us, we are unique. In that way, I am no different. I am unique and rare. A metastasized nodule was confirmed in the humeral head of my left shoulder this past Wednesday.

At this point, the radiation may have been enough to take care of the thing. This remains unknown. And will remain so until my next scans in 6mos. "All things considered," he said, "we're in a good place. Just try not to worry until we run tests again in a few months."

So, that is my focus. That and figuring out what to do with my left shoulder now that they've also found two significant tears via the MRI! :)  A repaired right and now a torn & cancerous left. This must be the SuperPower I got from radiation! No pain! :)

The Crew

Oh Snap! I  love Big Al's!

This image makes me very happy.
Maybe I'm just seriously craving a cheesy goldfish.
Maybe I'm just missing the Paulsons -- Jesse's blue fish, Jace & Trey's sheet set.
Maybe I'm just wishing for times to be simple again.
Maybe, just maybe.

Some Lessons

I've gone through a host of motions & emotions these past few weeks: Ups, downs. Feel goods, feel don'ts. Some things are constant however: Copper's hip shake when I get home from work, the sun still rising, the feeling that the world doesn't know this rollercoaster, but I'm unfamiliar with other rides as well. As I've highlighted in any number of posts to Avid Reader in the past, it's this Space Between that is always familiar yet also so foreign at the same time. And that, I suppose, *is* the Space Between.

Here's what I've learned in the past few weeks:

• Save my hairline, I don't look or feel 39 years old.
• One should not schedule Dr. appts. during one's birthday week.
• I'm thankful to be an educated man going through what I am; and layman's terms in a Dr.'s office should be a must-have, not a nice-to-have.
• Kicking an iced vanilla latte every morning habit is easier done than said.
• I always knew my brother to be more emotional than he lets on; I was reminded.
• I desire time in NYC to reconnect with old friends and to have a place to go out to every night seemingly without a care in the world, though knowing we all had & still have them.
• Getting a good night's sleep is the key to this whole thing; my day is done by 4PM if I don't get 8+ hours/night
• I'm probably not as stressed about things as I should be, but I get out-of-the-blue saddened by them.
• And Copper's hips still shake when I get home from work regardless of how full or empty our respective days have been.

Prose to Poetry

Original DK Text:
Come on up to the office...
One beer and a little company won't kill you,
Though iodine might... Too soon?

In TM haiku:
One drink won't kill you,
But radiation sure can!
Um... is that too soon?

In Progress

Not going to lie, this just feels like it's not happening. I feel like I am going through a host of motions -- surgery here, follow-up there. But CANCER? In ME? This just can't be. It's such an invisible demon.
Or is it? I had my follow-up appointment on the 17th and took my first post-surgery ultrasound. Dr.Gross called me with results on Friday, saying that the Radiologist spotted a 6mm "indiscriminate" node on the left side of my neck where the original mass was (removed 1-Feb). Specifically, he told me not to worry about it, that'd we'd use that measurement for benchmarking purposes, but nothing seemed off to him. I judiciously wrote down what he was telling me and was 'fine' with it. Until I hung up the phone. From the moment it said 'disconnected' so too was my head from my heart and the latter simply sunk. I don't want to ride this roller-coaster. I just want to get off.
I was able to book my next appt. for 24-May and will be looking at Iodine Radiation Therapy, likely in mid-June.

• T-minus 2 weeks: iodine-free diet
• T-minus 2 days: Thyroglobulin shot to the butt
• T-minus 1 day: Thyroglobulin shot to the butt
• Day 0: Hospital admit, pill swallow; isolation & overnight
• Day 1: Geiger counter scan & hospital discharge
• Days 2-3: Modified isolation (adults 10mins 2-3x/day; no pets or small children)
• Day 4+: Like nothing ever happened

I suppose the whole thing could be worse, but I'm writing with my head attached to my heart. For now.

Thanks to my dear friends, Operation FTC is anchored by this ringer t-shirt with proceeds going to a charity of my choosing (still TBD, FYI! I'm researching pediatric thyroid cancer organizations, but TC is rare in kiddos, so the local option is a challenge to find!). $20 gets you spring's hottest tee. And the warm fuzzy feeling of putting an end to this nightmare called cancer, especially for those with long lives ahead of them!