Vince's Journey

I've been somewhat lax in keeping everyone up to date on the ongoing saga that is...Vince vs Lymphoma. In August, after 6 rounds of treatments, I was informed that I was 'as close to being in remission as I could hope to be.' At that point the plan was to go 3 months, have scans repeated and then return to Dr. Leming's office to get the results and a maintenance blast of Rituxin. Last week I had the scans and yesterday I returned for the results. I'm happy to report that everything looks great and the lymph node that had caused the initial concern had actually gotten even smaller since August. While the CT scan report always uses the word 'unremarkable', Dr. Leming says the scans are boring...and that's obviously a good thing. I actually didn't get to see Dr. Leming yesterday but Nurse Laura greeted me with a smile and the words ' I've got great news!' so there was no opportunity for me to feel the 'scanxiety' of sitting in the exam room waiting for the doc to come in and tell me everything is fine. So I'm good for another 3 months, I'll get scanned again in February and have a second maintenance blast and hopefully things will remain in check. I would expect for this routine to last for a year and then we'll see how far I can go without any treatments. As always, thanks for all your thoughts, concerns and prayers. We're over 8 years into this fight and the score now stands at Vince 3, Lymphoma 0. Let's hope that should a 4th round occur, we'll have a new drug or treatment that can help knock this stuff out once and for all. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Today I attended a beautiful event sponsored by LifeCenter. LifeCenter is a local organization which supports organ and tissue donations. As many of you may recall, our niece Morgan passed away almost 2 years ago and she was registered as an organ and tissue donor. By simply saying, 'Yes' when she was asked if she wanted to be an organ and tissue donor when she received her first drivers license, Morgan helped save 7 lives. Obviously her loss was devastating to our family but her unselfish act provided 7 other families with the gift of life and hope. This morning, Morgan's father, Jerry, was one of the speakers at the event. Shortly after Morgan's passing, Jerry became a board member at LifeCenter and he has become quite an ambassador for the cause of organ and tissue donations. Jerry did a wonderful job of telling Morgan's story and he and his family is making a difference in the lives of many people who are desperately in need of an organ donation. This morning there was a 23 year old woman who has been awaiting a double lung transplant for the past two years. I was very surprised to learn that there are very few organ donors in the Cincinnati area. Jerry actually said there were none but perhaps I heard that incorrectly. At any event, it is such an easy thing to do - just say 'Yes'! Morgan did and there are 7 families who saw their loved ones receive a second life; what an amazing gift, what a wonderful cause. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Last week, Julie had an event to try and put together a committee for her upcoming campaign to be the 2014 Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Woman of the Year. This is an event I participated in over 10 years ago and it seems like every year since, we've been able to get a family member or friend to carry the torch for us. this year it's Julie's turn. This is somewhat out of her comfort zone - she's always ready to be a 'worker bee' but when i told her this was something she could do, she realized I was right and agreed to take on the challenge. I'm very proud of her for doing this and she has lofty goals which she'd love to reach. She really can't start collecting money until the campaign kicks off in March but she can line up committee members and potential sponsors so if you have any interest in helping Jules become the woman of the year, just let us know. I think we all know someone who has been effected by a blood cancer (after all, you all know me!) and we are close to so many breakthroughs with potential treatments and cures. Let's not wait around to cure blood cancers Someday, lets cure them Today. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Over the past couple weeks, I've attended numerous events for a variety of causes. They're all important and the events have been tremendously inspiring. At the heart of every event is a true sense of how a group of dedicated people can make a huge difference. I feel very fortunate to play a small role in helping the LLS achieve their mission and I know Jerry feels the same way about LifeCenter. It's a way to make a difference, to have an impact, to pay it forward to an organization that has done so much for me. We all should have a cause that moves us to action. Mine selected me - and while I certainly wish I didn't have to deal with everything that comes along with living with a blood cancer, it sure beats the alternative; I AM living. As I said to myself on October 4, 2005 - just minutes after being told I had lymphoma, I had to 'get busy living, or get busy dying.' Eight years later I'm tremendously busy living....Thanks for checking in....Enjoy Life!!!!