The call

The phone call from my nurse practitioner came the day before my third treatment. “We don’t see anything on the PET scan”, she said.

“Um, what does that mean?”, I asked, worried that the scan had failed in some way.

“It means we cannot see any lymphoma on the scan”, she replied. “There may be some microscopic cells that don’t show up on the scan. But it’s mostly gone.”

“You’re kidding. Are you sure?” At that, Roslyn looked at me nervously across the table. I gave her a thumbs-up. She mouthed “What are the results?” I held up my right hand in the shape of a zero. It took a moment to sink in and her bright smile appeared.

After I got of the phone, there was celebration! I must admit some hootin’, hollerin’ and dancing were involved.

Nevertheless, I wondered whether this might be a mistake. It’s a phobia of mine, that really good news should always be acted on with caution. The next day, I’d ask to see the scan myself. Unfortunately, the NP didn’t drop by the infusion room Thursday as she usually does. There was an appointment scheduled for Friday afternoon, so I decided I could wait until then.

Friday afternoon came and the nurse practitioner sat down with Roslyn and I as the second dose of chemo was dripping into my arm. We asked a lot of questions. Virtually all of the answers were positive. I asked to see my latest scan. We walked to a nearby computer where the NP displayed the before and after scans. We were able to see that none of the lymph nodes glowed yellow anymore. I checked the text and the dates of the scans. Finally, I was convinced.

Treatment will continue through November to push the lymphoma as far back as possible. Then will come regular checkups. If the lymphoma raises its ugly head again, I’ll have follow-on treatment. But for now, the battle has been as successful as it could be.

Thanks again to everyone for your love and support. And thank God for the gift of health. I wish the same for everyone.