Morning Friends and Family,

Hoping that the weekend was fun and fulfilling yet restful and relaxing and that this the first week of Spring might begin a season of renewal and growth for each and all.

I have to start by apologizing to you all. It has been many months since I last posted here. I had intended to write a final post on the anniversary of my being cancer free and then to shut the site down. Unfortunately, my body has had other plans.

In late January I went in for a CT-Scan in preparation for my first annual meeting with Dr. Hanah Sanoff.  The CT Scan was generally good but there were a few images that concerned her. Since then I have had two PT-CT scans and a cystoscopy (bladder scoping).

The scans seem to confirm what Dr. Sanoff was concerned about. I have two small (2cm) areas in the back of my bladder that appear to be cancerous. This area was in contact with my previous colorectal tumor and was always an area of concern.

There were two other areas of concern these include the proximal ascending colon and mid transverse colon. The radiologists who prepared the report are recommending a colonoscopy to further investigate.

So far my CEA levels are well within the normal range. A carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) test measures a specific blood protein. But some types of cancer can increase this protein. Healthcare providers may use a CEA test for a variety of cancers including both colorectal and bladder cancer. It can also be used to guide cancer treatment and to see if treatment is working. If the levels were higher it would generally indicate a more rapid growth potential. So I am in a good range and have a good base line from which to track

Thankfully, my bones, my other organs and critically important my lymphatic system show no abnormalities at all which suggest this is a local contagion associated with my previous tumor rather than something that is more systemic and metastasis. Thus the Docs believe that this is adenocarcinoma rather than bladder cancer. This is very good news on multiple fronts including the fact that bladder cancer is a much harder fight than colorectal cancer.

My scans went before UNCH’s "Tumor Board" the past Monday the 11th. There was total agreement that the two growths are cancerous. They are currently recommending a surgical option but it could possibly be a very radical surgery. I’m looking forward to speaking Dr. Stitzenberg, who is the head of Surgical Oncology at UNCH and was the person who removed by tumor in February 2023.

Soooooo what’s next? Tomorrow, Tuesday, March 19th I will have a colonoscopy.  Hopefully With the PET-CT scan, the cystoscopy, and the colonoscopy hopefully they’ll have a good picture of what’s going on and we can come up with a course of treatment that is effective.

I am pissed and sad. But working on my attitude as I know that this is an important part of healing. Should this really be another round of cancer Megan Voorhees (one of my two Big Sis’) has encouraged me to think of this as remnants of the previous cancer and the work is a clean-up job. I like it and have adopted it.

In addition to setting my mind on health and healing I have begun a new round of research into adjuvant (supportive) and alternative treatments as I did before.

In addition to pomegranate, apples, and THC, there is some great research on Frankincense and how it both arrests growth processes and deter reoccurrence. There is also solid research on Cucurmin (turmeric), astragalus, burdock and Dandelion as well as number of other herbal combinations. I've reached back out to Nat Blatter a friend of Megan, and mine who is a ethnopharmacologist who helped me decipher the hard science of these documents and made some recommendations to me last round. We’ll be connecting in the coming days.

I’ll also be reaching out to both an indigenous healer and a herbalist who I love and respect and who were also both involved in my care last round.

Appreciating each and every one of you for your care and concern, for the light and love you share and for the work you do on behalf of people and planet. I am confident that you played a role in my stabilizing me and bringing me to a new state of health and I know that will be true in the days, weeks and months to come.

With your support of you, my friends and family, my broader community of care and concern, the power of natural medicines and the involvement of the great doctors at UNCH this might go as smoothly or even better than my last dance. Let's hope.

Lots of love

Your friend, brother, cousin and nephew and son

i.a.m.

p.s. this beautiful image was gifted to me by my life long friend, Aileen Erler. Back home on the south side we would have called this powerful music. I see people dancing, singing, praying and praising. The energy reverberates, it is being drawn in, circling around and pulsing outward. It is an ecstatic concentration of healing energy through and with community and all of creation.

let's do this......