ROUNDUP
Whew! Its been a bit since I’ve last posted, but I promised myself I wouldn’t post if there’s not much to say. No news is goods news in the world of cancer remission. I don’t like to bask too much, because we haven’t accomplished so much yet. In my expert medical opinion, there hasn’t been enough time for cancer to come back and be detected. I hope that doesn’t sound pessimistic, I’m just settling in for the long fight. We have dominated the short fight, but now its time to campaign. So, while I am extremely happy to have 4 consecutive rounds of clear MRIs and CT scans, its too early to let our guard down. 2008 will be the critical year to see if our radically aggressive surgery was enough, meaning this year will be the most likely for something bad to happen, not last year. Stay focused: Relax, Sleep, Be Healthy, Relax, Sleep, Be Healthy.
Command support has been indefatigable (recruited that word from a CerCom). All progress in the Marine Corps situation has been preliminary on my end, but there should be developments to report in the coming months as far as that situation goes. We are still “cautiously optimistic” about the fate of my Marine Corps career. The information warfare initiative in full effect:
http://www.leatherneckmagazine-digital.com/leatherneckmagazine-share/200707/?pg=52&pm=2&u1=friend
and this one from Marine Corps Times:
this is another one from Trackdaymag.com (scan about two thirds of the way down):
http://www.trackdaymag.com/i?a=93
As an epilogue to the above article, I worked my way back to the intermediate group at the end of last summer, so try and keep the pity in check.
SURGERY
The final surgery (hopefully) in this journey will be on 5FEB. Dr. Galiano, an associate of Dr. Fine’s, will be replacing the section of my skull that was removed with an aritificial bone material called Porex. Porex is a relatively new material that has the previously unavailable characteristic of becoming semi-organic. Meaning, the tissue around the Porex will grow into it, effectively making the new bone material integrated with the rest of my head. Previously, an artificial bone implant (probably made from some sort of silicone) would stay in place as a foreign body only. A silicone implant is more of a cosmetic device, with very little added structural value, but the Porex will nearly replicate the strength of my skull prior to having portions removed. Outstanding.
The surgery should only be 4-5 hours, and I will be in the hospital for only one overnight. How jacked up was last year when that seems like a cakewalk? Having my face peeled back under general anesthesia and fake bones installed to replicate my skull has become a “minor surgery”. Walk in the park indeed.
