Beginning 2021 with Cancer

I found out last week that I still have cancer. Today, I went over treatment options with my doctor. I hope to have two surgeries done in the next six weeks. One will remove any germ cell tumors and residual masses in the back of my belly (retroperitoneal) on the left side. I meet with the surgeon next Friday to go over details. The second and much smaller area is in the lower part of my neck on the left side behind my collarbone. It is bright red spot in the PET scan on the right side:

The PET scan was done on 2020–12–24 and the CT scan on 2020–11–30. I completed chemotherapy on 2020–10–02. The chemotherapy really helped reduce the size of the tumors, some by about 80%. Unfortunately, the tumors did not show up as benign in the PET scan like we were really hoping.

Neither surgery is without risk. There are important blood vessels near both locations. In the center of this image, next to the mouse cursor is a bright red spot where the cancer is, right next to the aorta. The other two bright red spots are normal kidneys, not cancerous.

Chemotherapy

I am happy that my next treatment is surgery and not chemotherapy. A couple of days after each 5-day cycle of chemotherapy, I had extreme nausea and usually vomiting. My weight dropped to 74 kg (163 lbs). This picture from 2020–08–24 reflects well how I felt:

For reference, I’m now 10 kg heavier at a healthy 84 kg (185 lbs).

I have peripheral neuropathy, permanent nerve damage causing tingling in my fingers and feet, but primarily my feet. It is one of the many well-known side effects of Cisplatin. It is new and annoying for now, but I expect it to simply be my new normal after a few more months.

The fevers and pain I had prior to chemotherapy were much worse. Chemotherapy eliminated the pain and fevers, so it was worth it.

Hope in 2021

Just like we are imagining Volcán Arenal here as it would be on a sunny day, I can imagine a time in 2021 that I am cancer free, we are COVID-19 vaccinated and together again.