Junot Diaz talks a lot about the enveloping nature of a cancer diagnosis on both the diagnosed and their loved ones. He describes this as Planet Cancer, drawing a parallel to Ego the Living Planet of Marvel Comics
Recently I learned my stepdad had been diagnosed with stage 4 non-hodgkins lymphoma. Technical descriptions of maladies are the lingua franca of Planet Cancer. Those who have been there in any part of the world can likely decipher more of the human anatomy than they ever could in health class. The prognosis for lymphoma is generally good, barring confounding health issues or being over 60. Unfortunately my stepdad fell into this latter catefory, but the prognosis was still optimistic.
Fast forward a few weeks ago and I made plans to go down to his home state of Tennessee to see him while he had a PET scan to determine the effectiveness of the chemo. While he was at home he passed out on the steps and had to be hospitalized. His fever was up and his white blood cell count had dropped to an astonishing 50.
More later. Tired and passing out.
Recently I learned my stepdad had been diagnosed with stage 4 non-hodgkins lymphoma. Technical descriptions of maladies are the lingua franca of Planet Cancer. Those who have been there in any part of the world can likely decipher more of the human anatomy than they ever could in health class. The prognosis for lymphoma is generally good, barring confounding health issues or being over 60. Unfortunately my stepdad fell into this latter catefory, but the prognosis was still optimistic.
Fast forward a few weeks ago and I made plans to go down to his home state of Tennessee to see him while he had a PET scan to determine the effectiveness of the chemo. While he was at home he passed out on the steps and had to be hospitalized. His fever was up and his white blood cell count had dropped to an astonishing 50.
More later. Tired and passing out.