The recent thread that was started with the “Stand by Me” covers brought tears to my eyes and inspired me to post an update. I can’t believe the love I feel from this group!
Last Thursday I had an MRI and CT scan to see how this latest cancer (number 3), has responded to the chemotherapy. The following day I met with the surgeon who had removed my tongue and larynx in November 2022, and he stated that the report shows part of the tumor (the part that was creeping into my right lung) had shrunk considerably, while the portion on the floor of my mouth had grown. However, the MRI showed that the center of the tumor had died, despite the fact that the entire mass had grown. Being that he is not trained specifically in oncology, he didn’t know what to make of it, and set me up to meet with my oncologist next Thursday at which time I will get a better idea of what is going on.
Sara asked how long he thinks I have, and he replied “about a year’, which I take with a grain of salt. It could be a couple months, a year, or ten years. Meanwhile I will keep fighting with chemo and possibly even radiation.
On another note….
Since I was diagnosed with cancer for the 3rd time last December I have been moping around not doing much of anything. I sold my Yammie BB735 and all my amps and recording gear, along with my electric upright bass, acoustic upright bass, and keyboard. I had basically dropped out of music and out of life in general.
Then I happened to watch the movie “Shawshank Redemption” (for the umpteenth time) and suddenly those words in the movie hit me like a ton of bricks.
Get busy living, or get busy dying
I’ve lost a lot of body strength in the past year, so its hard for me to handle a heavy bass slung over my shoulder or a huge heavy double bass, so I went a different route. I am now playing cello, an instrument that I love dearly. It’s tuned in 5ths instead of 4ths like the bass, but it’s not difficult to adapt. And I can play from the same bass clef, so reading music will not be a problem. I found a very capable online instructor (nothing like Josh) and have signed up for that course. So far, it’s going well. I expect in about a month I should be able to churn out some songs. Since I can no longer speak, the cello will be my voice.
