Hello all,
My name is Ed and I was dignosed with stage IV cancer in July of this year. I had a successful surgery to remove the tumor from my colon and found just afterward that it had spread to my liver. I will begin chemotherapy on September 26 and as long as it works, I will undergo a second surgery to remove the damaged portions of liver sometime after New Year's.
I was surprised to learn that the majority of diagnoses in this type of disease occur in people over the age of 50. I am 37 and was quite shocked after the colonoscopy revealed it.
Most of the time my oncologist has been very dire in terms of his description of my prognosis - and that, by far, has been the most difficult portion of this challenge to date. I would simply like to hear good news instead of "maybe" and "hopeful". I am, however, looking forward to working with him and his team. They are honest, thorough, and caring and that's all I can ask for.
I am married and have a 3-year-old daughter who have been extremely supportive. Fortunately my wife sees the positives in situations whereas I see negatives. Now that a plan is in place I am eager to begin treatment and fight back against this dreadful disease. I am fortunate that I have close family and my personal faith to support me.
My deepest regret at this time is that I have no advice to offer others posting here, no words of sage wisdom that comes only with time and experience. I really hope I can help someone else in their moving forward when that time arrives. Until a cure is found support networks like these are so critically important.
My prayers and best thoughts to all,
Ed