Learning how to live, while trying not to die

A story about my stage 4 colon cancer journey,

growing to trust my inner voice, and how cancer became the best worst thing that ever happened to me

Not the news we wanted

It wasn't the news we were hoping to get, and we're pretty sad tonight. We’re trying to remind ourselves that it could have been worse:...

Apr 22, 20211 min read

We are in New York, awaiting scans tomorrow morning. Just a few days ago, we were in Hawaii: eating poke, letting the waves crash over...

Apr 21, 20211 min read

I had some foreshadowing that my last scan at MSK might not be completely clean. Not so much that I was expecting bad news, but enough...

Apr 8, 20214 min read

It’s been a hard week, full of ups and downs. With no chemo since December, Gina’s been feeling really good. Her CEA stayed low in...

Mar 21, 20212 min read

I had an appointment at Northwestern yesterday—for a return check-up and a refill of my pump—and I walked in with a bounce in my step....

Feb 2, 20214 min read

Hair—or losing it—seems to be a quintessential part of the cancer journey. Mine thinned quite a bit, but for the most part I was able to...

Jan 30, 20212 min read

This is the face of a girl who just officially got a Chemo Break for Christmas!! We got back from New York late last night, after a...

Dec 18, 20201 min read

So far, so good. I beat the snow to MSK today, and found out that my CT scan was stable, the third good scan in a row. Dr Kemeny thought...

Dec 17, 20201 min read

After a couple days of testing and scanning—and eleven months without being able to see them in person—Gina and I are on our way over to...

Dec 16, 20201 min read

When people ask me how I’m doing these days, I don’t know quite what to tell them. The side effects are getting worse and worse. I...

Dec 11, 20203 min read

This week has been a little harried—I had to do a scan on Monday morning, then learned late Tuesday night that they hadn’t done it...

Oct 22, 20201 min read

Delaney asked me not to kiss her tonight. She explained that my face was too scratchy. Between the dryness and the Vectibix-driven facial...

Oct 12, 20203 min read