Cancer, No Fun at All

The exit for the cancerous kidney

Here is the cute picture. It was taken four days after the left kidney was removed. It had a tumor that was about half the size of the kidney itself. I was ten days past my 55th birthday when it came out. Some present!

But I am still here, going strong!

Comments

12 responses to “Cancer, No Fun at All”

  1. Glenn Mark Cassel Avatar

    Almost 6 months now and the scar is much smaller and the three little ones are almost gone!

    Like

  2. Glenn Mark Cassel Avatar

    Just passed the one year anniversary of the surgery.

    Like

  3. LLoyd Briggs Avatar
    LLoyd Briggs

    HI Glenn,
    Thank You for your service. My father was a Navy man in WWII. Was a torpedos mech 1st Class, loved on the atols in Hawaii fixing the duds.

    Glad to hear too that you’re healed of cancer. I’m 62 and my twin Linda has battled with it over the last 30 years and in each of the different areas she was a miracle, espcially on the 2nd state cervical. Over last 3 years she came through a double mastectomy and this February, most of what was left of her intestine. I’m disabled and been living with her during the last 8 years and its just been one heck of a haul.

    So I’m hanging tight with her every day. She’s tkaing it one day at a time and God only knows Glenn the days he has given her. I hope you have many with all your loved ones.
    LLoyd
    p.s. saw you comment over at Sondra’s. Hadn’t seen you before. I’m the crazy chicken.

    Like

    1. Glenn Mark Cassel Avatar

      Glad to meet you.
      I will pray for your sister.
      I was lucky. It was found as a result of digestive problems I was having. The diverticulosis was the easy part. It was almost like a high speed dream. Found on the 4th of September, consult with the urologist the 10th and surgery the 21st.
      I am having blood pressure issues now. I did quit smoking, and have gone to half caff from Folgers. My Doc thinks it may be due to the arteries at the remaining kidney not having sufficient diameter to handle the extra volume. Waiting on results from the scan I had done.

      Like

  4. kae Avatar

    Good luck with your health issues – I’m not old (none of us are!) but I’m finding that things which wouldn’t worry me 20 years ago are really slowing me down now.
    Scratches and dents take longer to heal.

    Like

    1. Glenn Mark Cassel Avatar

      I had a CT scan of the abdomen a couple of weeks ago. Things look good! It was also to check the arteries at the remaining kidney. I have having blood pressure issues since this past winter.
      Thanks for the note, Kae. Got you on my blog roll.

      Like

  5. bobbelvedere Avatar
    bobbelvedere

    Damn, that scar looks linke the one for mt cancer surgery for rectal cancer in 2006, only mine goes down to the start of the crotch area. I hope you avoid the incisional hernia I got out of it. I’ve had blood pressure problems too since it happened and I’m on four different BP pills. But, hey, we’re still on the right side of the grass.

    Like

  6. ORPO1 Avatar

    Two years gone by now. The scheduled CT is later this morning in Tehachapi. The scar is much smaller now.

    Like

  7. kae Avatar

    Happy New Year and many more to come!
    It’s new year here in about 3.33 hours – but by then I’ll probably be pumping out the zeds!

    Like

  8. ORPO1 Avatar

    And a most Happy New Year to you, Kae!

    Like

  9. Dan Sorenson Avatar
    Dan Sorenson

    My father was diagnosed with kidney cancer back in 1975. The incision for removal of the right kidney went from about 3″ right of the navel to about 3″ from his spine, a horizontal cut. It had metastasized, he was given the standard 6 month prognosis. Several rounds of experimental chemo and two rounds of cobalt radiation, he was patient number 12 in the US with this cancer. He made it another four years. The cancer had spread to the bones and liver mainly, also the mouth and lungs and skull, but it was the liver that finally caused his demise.

    I was 11 when he died, my sister only 7. We saw a lot of hope and grasping at straws and prayer as he slowly went from my 175lbs dad to my dad’s voice in a 70lbs sack of skin and tumors in a hospital bed hoping the cancer would kill his body before it killed his intellect. It was rougher for him than for us, I think.

    You cannot know how much it pleases me that his struggle and ultimate demise paved the way for a kidney cancer survivor. That it wasn’t in vain, that through the course of losing his life and leaving behind two young kids and a widow he lessened the pain for future victims of this disease and, perhaps, helped to make your success story possible.

    Would you do me a kindness? My mother just won a battle with uterine cancer, and this has her thinking of her husband lost those 35 years ago to the disease. Would you mind calling her and giving her the good news of your own prognosis? Let her know her suffering was not in vain?

    I’ll pass the number along personally. Call me @ South Dakota area code (which is six zero five), three one zero, five two seven two, or e-mail at viking at svtv.com. Time is short, the phone call is best.

    – MaxDamage

    Like

    1. ORPO1 Avatar

      I will try.

      Like

Leave a reply to ORPO1 Cancel reply