No thought spared for cancer in weeks...

It has been dreamy! No doctor appointments, cancer treatments, CT scans, tests, blood draws, trips to the pharmacy OR hospital. Just smiles, laughter, complete joy & relief. I describe the atmosphere at our home as "light;" something we haven't experienced in months (and didn't realize how heavy it was until it felt light).

Bryan's strength is returning (& so is his hair as you can see from the pics). His personality is back for sure! He says he feels GREAT!

As you loyal readers know, Bryan's last scan revealed no sign of cancer (although there are remnants of the tumor, they are NOT cancerous). He returns to the hospital for a CT scan at the end of January. They will monitor (by CT scan) what is left of his tumor every 3 months for a few years. The doctors said the result of Bryan's October scan was GREAT news. At that point, Dr. Glenn gave Bryan a 75% chance of the cancer NOT returning. (I think that is high. Bryan was quick to point out the 25% chance it could return. He said "that's 1 in 4." I prefer to stick with the 75% or 3 out of 4 figures.) Anyway, we BOTH hope for continued good news.

Our life kicks back into high gear in a few days. Bryan returned to work a few weeks ago and will start traveling again soon. The kids will return to school, basketball, soccer and the usual craziness. While in our "cancer" world, we've been sheltered and protected from the "real" world--it will soon come crashing in! I dread and look forward to it at the same time.

As 2007 comes to a close, I want to thank you for your "readership!" I can't imagine what we would have done this year without family and friends. You have been a great support to us! I hope 2008 is fabulous and as a friend said "uneventful" for all of us!

Over!

THE GREAT NEWS! The last radiation treatment was completed on Tuesday. "It" is finally over! Hallelujah!

THE MEDICAL REPORT. Bryan is still uncomfortable because of the "burn" on his chest & back (where the radiation was targeted), but expects his skin to heal now that the radiation treatments are over. His skin is very red--he says it burns and itches at the same time (difficult symptoms to satisfy at the same time).

WEEK IN REVIEW. We just returned from a quick weekend trip to New York for Bryan's company Christmas party. We had so much fun! It was great for me to meet so many of the good people who have supported Bryan over the past 6 months. Bryan was very happy to be back "at work" although he was exhausted by the end of the trip. His body doesn't have the same endurance it used to & he now has a yucky cough (which I believe he picked up on the airplane). His doctors started him on a strong antibiotic yesterday and also ordered a chest x-ray--we were relieved to find out he doesn't have pneumonia! He worked all day today, even making sales calls in Park City with a local distributor, but he is completely exhausted tonight. Even with a cough, he is happy to be back and work and done with cancer treatments!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS! Thanks again to all of you who have helped us through this tough time. We are filled with hope and gratitude and we're enjoying this Christmas season a little more than usual--it is extra special!