After over a year of misdiagnosis, Alex was surprised to learn he has Stage 4 Sarcoma. Right now the consensus diagnosis from several institutions is Rhabdomyosarcoma acting like Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcoma. Both are rare, aggressive cancers of unknown cause, and are especially rare for someone at Alex’s age.
The Pancake family has been learning and adjusting to their new journey. Inpatient chemo, many blood draws, scans and appointments are the current path. But they have been working through it together, and with the support of their community through meals and childcare.
They’ve always been independent people who like and want to do everything on their own. But they’re slowly learning how to accept help too. Every bit of support, financial and otherwise, is wholeheartedly appreciated.
Another short post about trying to figure out some of the existential challenges of cancer. I think that if I ever had a friend going through this experience, they would ask this question at least once, if they were close to me, out loud. I’ve asked this question a lot. Often I use it to…
I always wonder what to title these posts and when I should write them. So I’ll start with the “obvious” bad things first. My foot is swollen and hurts to walk on. I’ve really reduced what I’ve been doing because of it. I skipped family walks the last two nights. It keeps me up for…
What do you do when you drive? A lot of the time I just sit in silence. Lately, I’ve been grappling with feeling angry and sad and grateful all at the same time. I’m angry about having cancer. I’m sad because I’m “done”, or that’s the closest word I can find, with having to deal…
I was listening to a podcast that spoke about marathons and other tough journeys. In those circumstances, if we’re lucky enough, we have supporters to cheer us on. But if you’ve ever been to a marathon, you know that the supporters are all gathered at the start or finish. That typically leaves the athlete out…
I know some people get their info regarding my situation only here. So I thought I’d post a short update: Overall good results. The short version is that the tumor on my ankle is more necrotic (dying) and the small nodules on my lungs are the same size or smaller. This generally indicates that the…
I’m sure that title rings familiar but slightly off to you. I like to put a spin on things, especially cheesy expressions, and I’ve heard a lot of those lately. Sitting in a cancer hospital, there is a lot of effort put into bringing hope and cheer this time of year. There is a rotation…
I’ve tried to write this post a few times, but Life seems to happen and upend my thoughts or point. So, I’m switching to a laptop this time. Hopefully the words will come easier, if not as concisely. Those of you editorially-minded be warned. Things previous versions of this post have focused on: All of…
What does it look like between the chemo rounds? Sometimes it’s really rough for me. I’m a fairly active guy and I like to be out doing things. So, being asked to lay around all day to recover is not my thing. Especially after being asked to lay around in the hospital 5 days for…
