In the fall of 2008, I began my ignominious relationship with the “Big C,” cancer. You haven’t really lived until you have a doctor look you in the eye and say, “You have cancer.” It definitely changes your perspective and priorities. The diagnosis was hairy cell leukemia…oddly named due to the leukemia cells appearing under a microscope to have a light, hairy surface. It is a disease where the white blood cells drop to near zero. White blood cells are those which offer resistance to outside diseases and germs. But with God’s help and the skilled crew at MD Anderson Cancer Clinic, I was able to beat the disease and look forward to a remaining life of health and happiness.
Until 2010 that is, when I
noticed this irritating spot on my arm that would not heal. I decided to visit my friendly doctor who
suggested a biopsy which returned with the C-word again…a melanoma. A little surgery, from which I still bear the
scar, took care of the problem, and I was on my way again.
The next four years saw a smooth health
cycle, but by mid-2014, my white blood count was going through the roof. Sure enough, further testing determined I had
contracted Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia.
With CLL, the white blood cells do the opposite of what happens with
hairy cell leukemia…the count goes through the roof. This time, the doctor said, I would not have
to come in for infusions but rather take a pill a day. I decided that was great, until I went to the
MD Anderson pharmacy. As the pharmacist
was preparing my ticket, I noticed the price…$11,100.00 for 28 pills! I nearly bolted out of the pharmacy, but she
said, “Your co-pay is $50.00!” Thank God
for good insurance!
Within a few months, the CLL came under control, the expensive pills were cancelled, and life went on, but in the summer of 2015, I noticed an irritating spot above my right eye. By this time, with my history of cancer, any blemish was biopsied, and, sure enough, I needed to have surgery for basil cell carcinoma.
Fast forward to 2020, and a new challenge
popped up. In my routine annual exam, my
PSA count was discovered to be high.
With examination and biopsies, it was determined I had prostate cancer. By now I was using Willowbrook Methodist as
my primary medical resource because of our move from Baytown to Spring. The prostate treatment consisted primarily of
radiation, which was successful after about six months.
In the fall of 2024, I had been experiencing an irritation on my left temple...a sensitive spot that would just not go away. My friendly dermatologist diagnosed it as a squamous cell carcinoma which was biopsied and determined to be cancerous. So within a couple weeks of diagnosis, I received fourteen tiny stitches on the spot where the carcinoma had been removed. The stitches were so small the incision couldn't be seen a year later.
Now we come to the fall of 2025.
In my annual physical, it was discovered my white count was indeed going
south again (hairy cell leukemia.) At
first, my blood count was just slightly receding, so with blood tests monthly, the
direction of the count was monitored. However, by January 2026, the danger point had been reached, and the result was I began chemotherapy treatments for hairy cell leukemia on
Monday, February 10, 2026.
Interestingly, I was taking the same type of chemo…Cladribine and
Retuximab, as I took in 2008. I had been down this road before, so I expected a good outcome. After weeks of infusions and constant blood monitoring, on August 22, 2026, I received the medical report I was praying for: "No trace of leukemia noted."
To get back to the original analogy at the beginning of this essay, Old Man
Cancer has pitched six pitches toward me. I have now been successful with all six challenges, thanks I believe in a great part to the prayers and support of family, many wonderful friends, and the blessings of a merciful God. The facts are…at the age of 83, I am still mobile, fairly alert (depends on who you ask,) and of
reasonably right mind. In spite of all
the “bumps in the road of life,” with the help of God, His people, an
incredible wife, a loving family, and supportive friends, I can truly say that
I am a highly blessed man.
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