My Life's Journey with Melanoma

Since my last infusion, I have noticed changes a lot earlier in this round than normal.  I usually notice "issues" near the end of the treatment cycle.  I have noticed more and more that I am forgetful.  I have trouble remembering names and every once in a while I forget what I am talking about.  It could be just my age as well as the drug. I have been playing basketball twice a week to stay in shape and to stay active.  I have been doing this for over a year.  Just in about the last month, I noticed that I get very sore especially after sitting for more that about 30 minutes.  I wake up in the morning and my joints are very sore.  My back will be stiff, my shoulders will be sore, and by hips, knees, and ankles will be very sore.  It makes it difficult at times to simply walk.  Walking up and down the stairs is also very difficult.  I have noticed that places that I have previously injured are also more sore than usual.  I ha...

It's been about a week since I completed my latest round of treatment. Of course I went up on Thursday for blood draws and CT scans. About three weeks ago, I was at UVRMC getting an MRI of my back. During the last three months, I have experienced pain in my hip especially if I sit down for more than about a half hour. The pain will radiate down my right leg. Nicole spoke with Dr. Reichman about it and he wanted the MRI. So, I tell this because I was given contrast during that MRI and had to have an IV started. When I went to HCI on Thursday, I went to the lab to get my blood draw. Normally, to prevent getting "stuck" multiple times, the lab will leave the IV in until I come back on Friday and get the infusion. After leaving the lab, I went to CT. In CT, I was told the IV I had would not work because it was in my hand and the test that was ordered required a larger needle and the IV to be above my elbow. Unfortunately, the tech missed the first IV, in my left ...

I'm just getting ready for my next infusion.  The last three weeks have been quite eventful.  About three weeks ago, I began having pain in my back and stomach.  It would come and go.  I began thinking that if I could just get to my next treatment and scans, I could find out what was going on.  I had never been in that much sustained discomfort ever without knowing what was causing the problem or pain.  Last Thursday, I was at home and suddenly my tailbone felt like someone was attempting to pull it out of my back.  It hurt so bad I couldn't stand up. I sat down and the pain went away.  When I sat up to get into bed, my back began hurting.  I woke up on Friday and felt OK so I went to work.  I was OK sitting down but as soon as I stood up for any length of time, my back would hurt so bad I could not move!  My wife, Nicole, had already called Huntsman to ask Dr. Grossman what we should do.  About 3 pm, Nicole called me to tell...

We have been really busy since our Christmas present trip to Disneyland!   We had planned to remodel the kitchen prior to the trip but ut it off until after the trip. My brother, Justin and I took a week off work to get at much done as possible.   We got most of the demolition done and framing in that week.  We have been working the last two weeks after work to finish all the detail work. We are currently waiting for the cabinets to be installed so we can install appliances and use the kitchen once again! It's been a tough job but very fulfilling.   My brother Justin has been a great help!  Thanks Justin!

Well, I have been a slacker and have not updated the blog in a few months.  For that I apologize.  Thanks to all of you who care enough to follow my story as I fight this battle in my life! During the summer, I began to have trouble sleeping at night.  Nicole told me I was waking up all the time, similar to someone who has sleep apnia.  I was tired all the time and it was really starting to interfere with every day activities.  Also, during my initial scans for the new diagnosis of melanoma, we knew that I had a deviated septum.  We knew at some point I would need surgery to clear that up.  We spoke to the doctor about the issue he advised that we should have surgery between treatments.  After the last infusion, we went to see Dr. Seth Riddle and decided that most of my breathing problems could be solved with surgery to correct my deviated septum. The surgery was on October 19th.  I went into surgery and remember getting my favorite drug,...

I had a great opportunity to umpire the BYU Alumni baseball game Friday at BYU.  I have not worked a game in a while and have not used three man mechanics in a while either.  It was a very great night and the view is awesome!  They decided to play 14 innings straight so we used two crews.  The first crew worked the first 7 innings and my crew worked the second 7 innings.  I worked behind the plate which I find awesome to begin with and a lot of fun. I have worried, since my surgery, that umpiring behind the plate would be difficult.  My face is still numb on the right side and my right ear is really tender.  I worry that taking my mask on and off would irritate that side of my face.  I also worry that if I get hit with a ball on the mask that it would cause unbearable pain.  I learned that neither was true!  I am glad that I took the time to let my face heal as much as possible but I am also glad to get out and umpire and run around a ...

I received an interesting email from a friend this week.  It said he had heard I had relapsed and he wanted to get together and go to lunch.  I was really appreciative of the invitation but started to wonder why he thought I had relapsed.  I spoke with this friend who told me that he heard through someone else that I was "terminal" and that I only had a few months to live.  He also told me that this message had been received by many in an announcement made at a meeting.  I was a little shocked!  First that someone heard I was dying and second that I mattered enough to have it announced!  I assured my friend that I was doing just fine and that I was not "dying".  I told him that I had no new re-occurrence of melanoma and that my treatments were going just fine.  This made me start to think about life in general and how we communicate! In regards to communication, I learned how this information was obtained.  It was taken out of con...