I Am Thankful! - by Ane

As soon as I woke up this morning and realized that it was Thanksgiving Day there was no hesitation in counting my blessings.  Mark was sleeping peacefully next to me.  Not only is he alive, but he is as healthy and vibrant as he has been in a couple of years.  The cancer was likely growing for quite some time before we knew it was there.  As we look back we recognize the signs that at the time we thought were just the normal challenges of aging.  Now Mark has increased energy and sometimes I have trouble keeping up with him!  This is more than the miracle of modern medicine.  Yes, I will acknowledge that the medicine was miraculous in shrinking the tumors so quickly. We knew that if it worked it would give us more time together, but even with the meds it wasn't likely that he would live much more than a year from the time he was diagnosed.  Dr. Urba told us much later that Mark’s condition was so severe that he didn't think he would live more than 3 months if he did not respond to the meds.  The 6-12 month time frame he initially gave us was more than optimistic, perhaps more the time frame if he responded positively to the Zelboraf.

Mark has been off all meds now since January and there is no indication of any tumor growth.  We meet with Dr. Urba again this coming January and will determine when to have the next scan.  Will the cancer return?  We don’t know.  What we do know it that we have been recipients of a miracle, and for that we are most grateful!  So today I am thankful – for Mark’s health, for more time together, for a loving supportive family, for the kindness of friends, and for the power of faith and prayer through which miracles are made possible.

3 Aug 2011

30 Jul 2013

10 Aug 2012