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Cancer . . . Again . . .

I read the story by SueB2703 about how her cancer has spread to a lymph gland. While her cancer history, treatment and therapy are a little different from mine, I have a very similar tale.

Choosing the holistic route

In late 2017, I started having blood in my urine and was diagnosed with "urothelial cancer" (bladder cancer, but in my kidney). In January 2018 my right kidney was removed, along with several lymph nodes. While chemo was recommended, I opted to go on an anti-cancer vegan diet instead. For two years there was no sign of cancer, confirmed by CT scans and cystoscopies.

Beginning treatments

In late 2019 a CT scan revealed a return of bladder cancer in a lymph node. By this time I had slipped off the vegan anti-cancer diet. In Jan. 2020 I began immunotherapy with Keytruda, with infusions every 3 weeks. I was lucky to have very few side effects from Keytruda and was living a fairly normal life (medically) since then. I was just diagnosed with a tumor in my bladder. I'll have a "Transurethral Resection of Bladder Tumor" ("Turbt") on 11/24 -- most likely it will be another recurrence of the bladder cancer.

Grateful for a way forward

Hopefully, it will have been caught early enough that it didn't penetrate the bladder wall. My oncologist says I will have to be on immunotherapy for "the rest of my life" and will never be cured of this cancer, but he predicted that I would have a prolonged life due to the treatment. I can live with that, and I'm grateful for the scientific advances that enabled me to be treated with Keytruda. I do have one question -- why did the original cancer, and both the subsequent ones have to happen right before the holidays?! Geez!!! Lol . . . Here's my story.

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