As planned, I was moved yesterday from OHSU to a rehabilitation facility at Legacy’s Good Sam hospital in NW Portland. It’s called RIO (the rehabilitation institute of Oregon). This is so that I can get myself strong very fast in order to start cancer treatments as soon as possible. When I have built up my strength and can navigate life with my new nerve damage left from the tumor removal surgery, they will let me go home to finish my recovery. Chemo for the cancer starts in about 2 weeks when my body should be strong enough to take it.
Yesterday we got more oncology results from a PET scan of my body. Unfortunately, the cancer was not only in my back but also in my lymph nodes, spleen, and small intestine. We’ll need more invasive tests before treatment to check my brain and bone marrow but it doesn’t change the story much. Again, this isn’t the news we wanted to hear but this cancer is still curable nonetheless. It will just take more treatment (probably double, or 8 chemo cycles) to destroy it. We won’t know more about the cancer treatment until I get strong enough to be out of the rehab facility and into the care of the lymphoma experts.
Captain Seth
Also from Romans (5:1-5):
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
Wow, that’s powerful for me:
“glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” I’m glad I have that hope from the Holy Spirit with me today.