Sigma Nu published an article about me

When I was an undergrad at OU I was a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity. In fact I was the President of the Delta Epsilon Chapter. I had a lot of great memories from my time there and I wanted to share my story with the membership. All of the active members are in the high risk group for testicular cancer. I've always felt that there is not enough done to educate young men about TC and the need to perform a monthly TSE (Testicular Self Exam).

Here's the link to the article.

I think the writer did a great job.

Strongest person I know

Has to be my six year old, Liam. I am continually amazed at how strong he has been throughout my treatments. We are very honest with him about my illness. Amy has been working with him on a workbook for children coping with a serious illness in their family. It has been very helpful in getting him to talk to us about his feelings. His comments were right on, he said that "Daddy didn't get a long enough break between the last two tumors" and he wants to know "When Daddy will be done having tumors". I think we all feel the same way and have the same question.

My other two kids, Lanie and Evan, still young enough that they don't fully appreciate what I'm going through. Their innocence is refreshing and they can brighten my day with something as little as a smile.

I worry the most about my kids and Amy. I worry about how they handle all that life has handed us, and I worry about what would happen if this turned into a terminal case.

There is nothing in my life more important to me than my family.

LIVESTRONG - Andrew

FMLA is coming under fire

Looks like congress is attacking another law that protects employees during serious illnesses. This article from today's USA Today talks about the issue. All I know is that without FMLA protection many cancer survivors would lose their jobs during treatment. That would be a grave injustice.

Latest CT Scan

Well I was on my way to the hospital for a pre-op CT Scan. I already got the results from my doctor. The tumor is the same size (Good News!), but it is pushing on both my bladder and rectum (bad news). They also stated that one side of my bladder has thickened (this is why Dr. Foster wants to remove it entirely). This is also why I have been in so much pain recently. There are a lot of nerves in that area and this tumor is pushing on all of them. I'm just dealing with it as I wait for my surgery. Believe it or not I am actually looking forward to the surgery for some relief from the pain and just to know that the cancer is not in my body.

Now I get to deal with insurance agents....Again. Last month Amy's van got hit hard by a hail storm and the roof of our house was totaled. Today someone has to crush my car (which is my favorite possession)! Hopefully I can get it put back together before my surgery.

-Andrew

Guess what? I got sandwiched between a work truck and a SUV this morning. As you can see my poor little sedan didn't stand a chance.