On Stage At Last!

I finally know what stage of cancer I have.  Thanks to my prayer warriors, prayer circles, and people sending good vibes and kind thoughts, it's only stage IIa!  High fives to everyone for all of your support!  Stage IIa is an incredibly early stage in which to discover an aggressive lymphoma, and as a result, has a higher cure rate. 

While my doctor's still waiting for one part of a test to come in, the PET scan showed no cancer anywhere below my neck.  The other tests show three well-developed masses in my neck and throat, and a number of other small instances in the area, but it is a huge, huge win that it hasn't travelled farther.  As Gary says, it's all in my head! 

Cancer cells, take note:  your party is over.  Next week I start appointments on Monday and by the end of the week, I will have a portacath in place and my first set of chemo should be complete.  While the strength level and composition of my chemo is still under discussion, it's going to be strong enough to shrink the masses to practically nothing within 10 days.   My doctor is talking about participation in a clinical trial, so we'll spend time on Monday discussing options, make a decision, and hit the start button.  A special shout-out to my team at work which said to take whatever time I need to beat this thing, which is enabling me to hit this harder and faster than most people could.

Tomorrow I'm attending a lymphoma conference at which two of my doctors are speaking, and will hear more about the new options still in clinical trial.  Tonight I'm celebrating two things:  getting a beatable diagnosis, and having the support of wonderful friends and family who give me the confidence to beat it.  So - glasses up to beating this hands down!

I'll catch up on posting pictures later but for now, here's the pic of the Chihuly sculpture that some of you were curious about - 20 feet of gorgeous glass: