6 Years! Woohoo!

Crazy...it doesn't seem like 5 years was that long ago. Today marks 6 years since the cardiovascular thoracic surgeon cut through 3 major back muscles, stretched and cut ribs and moved other vital organs out of the way. All done to remove Spanky, the small Nerf football-sized tumor, that was nestled between my heart, lung, spine and pulmonary artery! And the biopsy days later showed the tumor had died miraculously with little treatment and my organs survived with manageable side effects.

Still hard to believe it all happened...but I am incredibly thankful to God and my medical team. They continue to get me through every day.

Rachel

The day every cancer survivor hopes to see...

From my journal one month before the surgery in 2004

Is TODAY for me. The day that is especially sacred to people who have had cancer more than once.

Hard to believe, I know, because I cannot believe it, but there has been no significant sign of cancer in my body for 5 YEARS as of today! In other words, I have been in remission for 5 years! It doesn't necessarily mean that the cancer won't come back or that I won't get other cancers, but the chances are less and 5 years is a very long time-way longer than any other period of reprieve that I've had in the past.

5 years ago today I had an extensive surgery that removed a small Nerf football sized Askins Tumor that had grown between my heart, lung, pulmonary artery and spine. The surgical team separated and removed small pieces of rib, sliced and put back together 3 major muscles in my back, moved organs out of the way and successfully took out the cancerous tumor...the tumor that had somehow died inside of me with very minimal treatment. Still crazy, still hard to believe to this day.

YAY FOR LIFE! I feel so blessed and thankful for so much :).

Lots of love,
Rachel

Awesome Askin's Tumor Survivor!

Inspirational...Lymphoma and Askin's Tumor survivor-Sean Swarner




Today, I am grateful for friends, family, God and hope!

Rachel

Neat Site for Rare Diseases

My husband's friend, David Isserman, co-founded a website called RareShare.org. Rareshare.org connects people with rare diseases from around the world. (There is now a community for Askin's Tumor survivors!)

I wanted let you guys know about the site and pass along a great article about RareShare that just came out in the Washington Post. Feel free to forward this to others who might find some interest in it.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/06/AR2009020603102.html

Thanks!

Today, I am grateful for: beautiful weather, things turning out fine when I forgot something for class, dinner with a friend, friends, family, God and a walk outside this morning :).

Rach

MRI day

I guess I should have mentioned it sooner (but I half forgot)-today I have scans to check on my back. Please keep me in your prayers and send good wishes! I'm also going to copy a post from the beginning of the blog about MRIs b/c a lot of you may have never seen it:



I thought that I would give you a run-down of tips for having an MRI, if you ever have one...


First of all, MRI stands for Magnetic Resonance Imaging and is a non-invasive method used to show images of the inside of an object. It is primarily used in medical testing to demonstrate alterations in living tissues.


Interesting fact: MRI also has uses outside of the medical field, such as detecting rock permeability to hydrocarbons and as a non-destructive testing method to characterize the quality of products such as produce and timber.



TOP 10 TIPS FOR HAVING AN MRI:

1. Bring a CD or prepare to pick a radio station
2. Wear comfy clothes with NO metal (like fleece pants) (otherwise, you end up with a hospital gown!)
3. If you are a female, wear a sports bra without metal
4. Bring something to read while you wait (or someone to talk to!)
5. You can bring someone in the MRI room to sit, if you both are comfortable with this
6. If you are someone with a port, PICC line, etc., get it accessed beforehand so you don't have to get an IV in your arm!
7. Sometimes I stay up "too late" the night before so I'll sleep through it...
8. Leave your jewelry at home
9. If you get pain from weird positions, staying still too long, or nauseous easily, etc. take some meds before!
10. Make sure to go to the restroom right before the test...




Today, I am grateful for: modern medicine that has helped keep me alive, prayers, family, friends and God.



Rach