The Pathology results

ANDREW WRITES:
Dr. Futran called last night and confirmed what we were all expecting. Thankfully they were able to get the whole tumor out with clear margins. There was no cancer in the lymph nodes on the left side, but there was cancer on the right side. That means I will need to have radiation treatment to the right side of my face and neck area.

Grace and I were pretty much prepared for the news, so it didn't sadden us too much. We've spent the past week thinking about radiation and mentally preparing for it. Praise the Lord for providing Dr. Futran and his team who were able to get the entire tumor out through the mouth, even though Dr. Moore (the doctor from Swedish) didn't think it could be done without cutting the jaw. We really like Dr. Futran because he's not only a skilled doctor, but he's a really nice guy. His confident, yet kind, personality takes the edge off the pain and fear that comes with cancer treatment.

Anyhow, today was a pretty good day. It snowed about 6-8 inches yesterday and so I got to wake up to the sun glistening over the snow-covered ground. That was a real treat considering the typical rainy cloudy weather we've been getting for the last month. I also got to take a nice long walk with Grace through a trail in our development. One of the cool things about being home these past couple weeks is being able to spend lots of time with my wife.

This may sound funny, but the best part of the day was actually eating a pork chop. I've been starving for real food for 2 weeks now. When we sat down at dinner I initially wasn't planning on even trying to eat it. But then after everybody started digging in, my famished stomach took control of me and cut a piece off the pork chop. I carefully chewed it and savored the flavor and quickly took another bite, and another. It hurt to eat it, in fact I even bit myself trying to eat it. But it tasted so good that I was willing to endure the pain. I'll probably do it again too.