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After 9-10 months of treatments and now 5 months in remission i have joined the forum after relying on it during treatments, etc. I was diagnosed last summer about 6 weeks after graduating from law school. I was studying for the bar exam at the time. I had never experienced symptoms in my testical and but had began to have pain in the groin area months earlier. The thing is, I had torn my hip flexor muscles years prior in a snowboarding accident and had chronic aches and pain as a result. I saw an orthopaedic surgeon in Feb. '05 about that and he prescribed physical therapy which I didn't follow through with. It is likely that the tumor had already began to grow in my abdomen at that time. In june 05, the pain began to sharply escalate and I began to have drenching nightsweats; it was clear I was sick. I saw another orthopod who prescribed a shoe lift! (i have one leg slightly shorter than the other). Needless to say I was not "cured". I was studying one night when my wife was out of town and the fear began to set in: the writing was on the wall that something was wrong. I went to the ER and happened to get a doc whose wife is an oncologist. The bottom line was I needed help fast. I had a 10X20cm abdominal tumor and many lesions in my lungs. to think that the disease had been advancing to that stage with just minor symptoms. 4XBEP followed and my markers normalized. I had a pretty big residual mass in my abdomin so RPLND followed. Recovery from surgery was going well and...I had a post-operative bowel obstruction resulting in another 8 day hospitalization. No, that's not all. After a couple of good check-ups my markers went up a little my doc suspected testerone deficiency but no such luck. It turns out that my disease had "seeded" itself in my brain prior to chemo and remained untreated but in-check during treatment. I had four small lesions, the largest being about 1/2 inch but they were all in separate parts of the brain: the word "inoperable" was used and it terrified me. After consulting with Dr. Einhorn at IU my docs got me going on a course of radiation therapy in conjunction with 2XEP. I am likely at no greater risk of remission than other survivors. Fast foward: I am taking the bar July 25 and 26. I have had 5 months of clean check-ups and I fill great. I vascillate between disbelief that this happened to me and disbelief that it's probably (knocking on wood) over. A person off the streets wouldn't take my odds but I'm luvin' em! I used to pray that I'd see my little boy go to kindergarten; now its college, marriage, and grandkids. A big thanks to Drs. Kurt Oettell, Pat Conway and the nursing and support staff at Gunderson Lutheran Hospital, La Crosse, WI. What a solid group of professionals. Thanks for listening.
-Russ
-Russ
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