Tom Smith
©2006 Thomas G. Smith
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Blogs from previous
months here. December 2006 Cancer Blog Posted December 14, 2006 I’ve had a little something to
worry about, but it’s better now! About a month ago, the “twinges”
I had been experiencing in my upper right chest and shoulder area gradually
became pains. Now, let me tell you, I don’t mean to be paranoid, but if
you’re a cancer patient sometimes it really can’t be helped. As the pain
seemed to become worse bit by bit, it was impossible not to compare it to
what I felt back in March and April, when the cancer was having its way with
my upper ribcage. That was the beginning of this challenge, and I thought
maybe old Big C was on the move again. Over the counter painkillers have been
enough to keep the edge off; things have not been bad enough to return to the
prescription stuff, but the psychology is somewhat devastating. Dr. Goldberg had authorized CT
and bone scans for January. On my own, I went ahead and had them done a month
early, on Monday, Dec. 11. Dr. Goldberg sent me an email that night to let me
know he had seen the test results but was awaiting comparisons to my previous
scans. So, all day Tuesday I was wondering. No word. On Tuesday night, I
emailed Dr. Goldberg my cell phone number and told him I’d like to know
soonest. The phone rang Wednesday
morning. The news was good. The mass is not showing any signs of
renewed growth. If anything, it is a bit smaller than it was at the time of
my previous scan in October. I do believe the good doctor was bemused to hear
my obvious tone of joy at this news. Most cancer patients probably hope or
expect news that the tumor is gone or vastly reduced, but I’m beyond all
that. I am more than happy to have everything standing still. There is the
little matter of the pain, but it’s a lot easier to take now. Friends, family and I
speculate that the pain could be coming from the bone damage already done by
the cancer. Or it could be scar tissue stretching internally, scar tissue created
by the radiation treatments. No big deal. We’ll figure it out when we figure
it out. We’re carrying on. From our family to yours, we wish you a wonderful
Advent and a glorious Christmas season. It has been a year to remember. To be continued… (If you wish to correspond via email, please use this address: * Long as I can see the light… The words below come from “Long as
I can see the light,” written by John Fogerty and first appearing on the
Creedence Clearwater Revival album, “Cosmo’s Factory,” in 1970. If it is possible for anyone’s cover of this song to beat CCR, it
would be the version by the late Ted Hawkins, recorded on his 1994 album,
“The Next Hundred Years.” Put a candle in the window, 'cause I feel I've got to move. I'll be coming home soon, 'cause I'm bound to drift a while. 'cause this feelin' won't leave me alone. 'cause I feel I've got to move. I'll be coming home soon, John Fogerty |