Six Months After

It is now about six months since I discovered my cancer. It appeared suddenly as a nodule in front of my left ear. After surgery and radiation, I am alive and feel well.
However there are residual symptoms. Taste is not completely restored. My mouth remains dry. My teeth have become sensitive. My left ear is numb. I have lost weight, about 15 pounds since May 2010. I was overweight so it is not all bad.
I have appointments for a follow-up PET/CT just before Thanksgiving and will visit Dr Nghiem in Seattle on November 30. Until then, without much to report, I will not be posting.
I have made some plans for the future. Assuming the best, that no new lesions show up, I will cut my work week to three afternoons per week and go to the gym for aerobic workouts 6 days per week. We will cruise to Hawaii for two weeks in December. We likely will cruise to Mexico in February and I will visit my mother early in March. We are trying to organize a family cruise in June, but I am not optimistic about that. The last time I tried that, I ended up paying for a cruise nobody took.
I thank the San Francisco Giants for distracting me during the worst times. I still can't believe they went all the way.

Here is another photo, taken today, showing no change.

I see today that there are three new victims of Merkel Cell Carcinoma added to the Google support group. I wish you all the best. My advise is to be a strong advocate for your own care. Find a physician who deals with this disease all the time. Learn all you can about the disease, and remember that the research and study is rapidly advancing and what may seem hopeless today, may be easily treated tomorrow.