Here’s a video documenting the few weeks from the start of my first treatment.

Well, actually this began back on May 19. That was the first day of my chemotherapy. It only took me a little more than a month to work up the courage to finally start a blog about my experience.

Anyways, for those of you unaware, here’s a quick recap:

Back in February I noticed a lump on the right side of my neck. Several medical tests later and doctors determined I have Stage Two Hodgkins Lymphoma. Well, the technical term is actually Lymphocyte Predominant Hodgkins Lymphoma. Long story short, my right tonsil and all of the lymph nodes on the right side of my neck were cancerous (notice the past tense use of ‘were,’ more on that in a bit).

Before you worry, just know this is one of the most curable types of cancer and I’m able to live a relatively normal life throughout treatment. Oh, yeah. Treatment. I get chemotherapy once every three weeks. It basically consists of getting hooked up to an IV and pumped full of drugs for several hours.

Through only two rounds of treatment, the cancer is almost entirely gone. Only one small mass remains on the right side of my neck. My oncologist tells me this is really good news.

Round Three of treatment is July 1 (today for some of you reading this). If all goes according to plan, I’m supposed to go through six total rounds of treatment, which means we’re halfway there (cue Bon Jovi).

I haven’t had many side effects to this point. The hair on my head and the facial hair has fallen out (yes, the picture above is old one, from my second round of treatment). Fortunately my eyebrows and eyelashes are sticking around, so I’m not as scary looking. Plus, I’ll be more aerodynamic at the beach this summer. I had a couple cold sores in my mouth early on, but those dissipated. And I’ve found that on the night of treatment I’m a little nauseous and the 48 hours following I’m bloated, probably from all the liquid pumped into me during treatment. But I’ll take that compared to other potential side effects. Anyways, I’ve continued to exercise regularly, eat normally and maintain a regular work schedule.

I plan to post more on this blog in the near future, providing further insight and details as to what life has been like these last few months. Just know at this point I feel strong, I’m in good hands when at the treatment facility, and God has truly shown His love through the support and care provided by my family, church family, colleagues and friends. It’s no doubt Him answering many prayers to keep me in good health, and Sam and I in good spirits.

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” – James 1:2-3