This past summer, I had experienced a feeling of fullness in my chest while lying down on my side whenever I took a deep breath. I didn’t think too much of it, thinking it was something from working out or maybe an infection of some kind. After about a month, I got a call from my primary health provider’s office saying they had an opening for a physical that afternoon, about a month before my scheduled appointment. I decided I would go in that day and mention the fullness in my chest that wasn’t going away.
After my physical, my provider sent me for a chest X-ray as a precaution, which led to a CT scan a few days later, which then led to a core biopsy of my chest and a PET scan. This all confirmed my diagnosis of classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) on September 15, World Lymphoma Awareness Day.
Being a husband and a father of 5-year-old and 7-year-old boys, my thoughts turned to them first. How would this affect them? Am I going to die from this? Am I going to leave my family without a husband and father? Will my kids remember me if I don’t make it?
As I got more information along the way, the anxiety I had about my situation lessened over time. Part of me was relieved and thankful to some extent. I was thankful that it was me and not my wife and kids. I was thankful that the prognosis for HL is good compared to other cancers. I was thankful for my wife and medical knowledge, being a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, to decipher all the medical terms that I didn’t understand or comprehend, due to my lack of medical knowledge, and just being in a daze going through all the tests and appointments.
The outpouring of support from family and friends has been tremendous. From delivering meals, to watching our kids while we attend appointments and treatments, to donations made to our team for the Light The Night (LTN) event a few nights ago, I cannot thank everyone enough.
As I go for my second treatment tomorrow and have a long road ahead, I am thankful for all the support from my family and friends, as well as the Blood Cancer United community. Before this experience, I didn’t know much about blood cancer, but now I realize more and more about these diseases and the people affected by them. Hopefully, the money raised from the LTN events and others can help make strides toward a cure for blood cancers.
Bruce
Hodgkin lymphoma (HL)
