No Radiation Therapy Today?!?

Daily Quote: "How did the disease change you (Lance Armstrong) and your body?"  Number one, the therapy is destructive to pre-existing muscle and conditioning.  and two, you're just not doing anything.  You're lying around.  I lay around.  I slept 20 hours a day.  So you're not going to maintain any of the muscle mass that you had.  I came down (in weight) significantly.  but also, when I came back, my view of the sport was very different.  All the things that I didn't do before when it came to training...I realized, like I said a minute ago, I'm coming back.  I've got my life back.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to be here next year, and I don't want to mess this up.  So I was just more focused than I had been before.  I was a total underachiever in the early '90s.  Although I did okay, I guess."  --Lance Armstong.  Interview by Bill Saporito, Runner's World Magazine, July 2011, article "Strong Man," pg 95.

The above quote was quite inspirational to me as I identified so closely to Armstrong's cancer experience.  Like Armstrong all I wanted to do is sleep, but I don't have the luxury of sleeping 20 hours a day as I have to work 12-hour days as a cab driver due to my financial responsibilities.  I also came down in weight significantly, my lowest weight during cancer treatment was 159 pounds, just before treatments I was 177 pounds.  I hope that when I return fully to running that I'll be more focused than I had been before too!

I only have nine radiation treatments left.  Today was like any other radiation day.  I entered the office, waited for my turn at the radiation machine, undressed and lay on the machine's platform, two technicians maneuvered my body into position for the radiation targets, they left the radiation room and shut the huge, thick, bomb-shelter-like doors as I waited for the radiation lasers to start blasting me...I waited, waited, and waited some more...then the nurse entered and stated that she couldn't see my tumor on the radiation machine's X-ray...thus she could not target the cancer mass on my upper chest.  I was then led to a Cat Scan machine as to find the cancer mass that has shrunken so small that it can't be seen by the naked eye.

The doctor will eventually exam the Cat Scan photos, target and mark where the cancer mass is, and should proceed later this week, maybe even tomorrow.

Called my wife at her work office and she was ecstatic about this morning's non-event as this shows how much progress I've been making.  I've been pretty depressed and defeated lately and my wife couldn't help herself as she repeated, "I told you so, I told you so," as she believes that I've already conquered cancer.  She has seen me achieve many things and has had no doubts that cancer is just another challenge for me to conquer.  I'm more cautious as I know how unjust and unfair cancer can be...you could be a great athlete, very religious, and still die of cancer.  I must admit, my wife's enthusiasm is contagious!  I'm so fortunate to have her in my corner!!

Today I drive my cab for twelve hours (12pm - 12am), which will be a very slow cab business day as we have no major conventions during the summer and not many tourists as it's just too hot.  Being a slow business day is a mixed blessing, we desperately need the money, but my body could use the rest too.  Today is my Friday and tomorrow I start my days off (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off)!!  I'm looking forward to catching up on my sleep tomorrow.