I don't know...I just don't know.

I’m so angry about all this money being spent on cancer research, scientists getting rich off the funds they receive, and the drug industry just makes me sicker than I am.  When the hell are cures to cancer ever going to be found!?!

My golfing buddy Jimmy expressed this emotional plea while I was driving him to his 9^th of 14 radiation treatments at Alaska Regional Hospital.  This is Jimmy’s second battle with lung cancer, a battle much bigger this time around because it has spread from what remains of his right lung to a rib and lymph nodes.  This isn’t his first experience with cancer…he has successfully beat prostate cancer and he won his first lung cancer battle with a “simple” surgery to remove the upper lob of his right lung. His emotional outburst surprised me because he has always been upbeat since he first informed me about the cancer’s reemergence many weeks before while he and I and fellow golfing buddy Richard shared a brew at O’Brady’s.  However, the foreshadowing effects of his radiation and chemotherapy treatments began to surface while I watched the opening quarter of the Super Bowl with him and others at his home: Jimmy was low key and appeared uncomfortable.

Why would I want to make an entry of this type in my blog, which is suppose to be designed to be more upbeat?  First of all, the direction of my blog took a strange twist when I had to unexpectedly abandon planning my 2009 European marathon adventure to medically address pressing cardiac issues, and my wife faithfully used the blog to keep my friends and family updated about my surgery and recuperation.  She did a loving and wonderful job of doing so and I am forever grateful. Since then I’ve used my blog to cover lots of diverse topics, including what it was intend to do – document my planning and travels for the now successfully completed 2010 Trampathon Abroad with my running buddy Bob (The Silver Fox) Bowker. I still have lots to do (understatement) to complete documenting and illustrating my travel-adventures in my blog; however, periodically light bulbs go off in my brain to address more pressing issues on my mind…thus this entry on my thoughts about the effects of cancer on my friends and family.

Back in 2007, in conjunction with running that year’s Boston Marathon, I raised funds for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute ( http://www.dana-farber.org/ ) in Boston, MA.  I was moved to do this in honor of a dear family friend who was battling ovarian cancer at the time...she has since been cancer-free and lives a more energetic life than mine!  My simple intentions transformed into something bigger than I had imagined, as many friends, family members and strangers made contributions in memory of loved ones lost to cancer and in honor of those struggling through radiation and/or chemotherapy treatments.  I ran to honor all those and many more. The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute continues to send me reports about their research findings and I am continued to be amazed of what is actually being discovered. 

Since 2007, many individuals I ran in honor of never recovered from their battle with cancer.  Also since then, other friends from high school, college and here in Alaska have announced their “declaration of war” against their infliction…some have succeeded in their battle, some have not, and others continue to battle.  I am one of the lucky ones, as I have been cancer-free for almost 40 years now.   But then I, like Jimmy, have the same frustrations…when the hell are cures to cancer going to be found!?!  I learned that this statement hits those currently diagnosed with cancer the hardest. 

So what does modern medical science tell Jimmy and others who are frustrated with the lack of cures for cancer? Yes millions upon millions of dollars have been spent on cancer research and on developing cancer-curing drugs, and yes, folks have gotten rich doing so. However, cures have been found and other cures will also … over time.  But, no one with cancer wants to hear “over time” … time is something many don’t have – my buddy Jimmy doesn’t have that kind of time.  When I was 19 and was informed that I had cancer (Hodgkin’s disease), I didn’t thing about “time” because at that age, I thought I was going to live forever, even having been diagnosed with cancer.  Being young and dumb, I just knew the doctors were going to cure me.   Forty years later, I sure as heck don’t think that way anymore and many of my diagnosed friends don’t think that way either.

So what do I tell Jimmy when I see him tomorrow when I take him to his next radiation treatment?  I wish I can tell him that a cure will be found by the end of the week and all will be good in time to tee off at our local golf course come this May.  I do know that research is making progress, as referenced by the DFCI many accomplishments ( http://www.dana-farber.org/res/research/default.html ).  I don’t think he’ll care about that right now.  What will I tell him…what can I tell him other than he has the loving support of many buddies here in Anchorage and that he’s not alone with his battle.  Other than that, I still don’t know…I don’t know.