Welcome to the Inaugural Blog for CathyChemo.org!

I am starting this blog to make room for online information and stories that bring out the funny side of cancer. Yes, there is very much a funny side of cancer. I tend to find humor in everything in life. When you think of cancer, most people do not think of wit. The comicality of cancer usually lies deep down in the caverns of demented minds. However, honestly, if you cannot laugh at everything in your life, especially the toughest things that happen, how do you survive?

Before I continue, I must send a huge shoutout to my care team at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center. Thanks to Dr. Jing Z. Hou, my hematologist/oncologist, Shelley, my patient navigator, Molly my PA-C, and of course Angie and team that keep me sane with my appointments. You guys are keeping me alive. A big thanks to Dr. Ken Anderson at Dana Farber who was my second opinion. Other big thanks also go out to all of the nurses and support staff that take such good care of all of the patients at Hillman. They are the best that healthcare has to offer. Also thank you to the loveliest ladies at the check-in desk. Where would we all be without you!

I would like to thank my family, Peyton, Keegan, Maisie & Ellie for always being there for me. Your visits and calls keep me going each week. I wouldn’t be here without my loving husband, Mitch. He is my rock and knight in shining armor always. Shout out to my big brother Henry and my sister-in-law Pollie who are so supportive. Thank you Ellen, the best mother-in-law ever, and Stephanie my sister-in-law that has an even more irreverent style than me. I am truly blessed to have this team behind me. Shout out to my besties, Marc, Jen, Jill, Brad, Kim, Jill, Gary, Vicki, and Geno who are always here to make me laugh and know how to pour a double. Your generosity with not only food deliveries but just plain old listening to me can’t be topped. A round of applause to my friends who have served me great eats and sent prayers these past few months. I really appreciate everything you did for us.

Thank you to the best team a boss could ever have, the Northeast Region at Philips IGDT. Your continued support is much appreciated. Thanks to Philips, they really take care of their employees in sickness and health. Greatest company ever!

My story began on October 11, 2017, diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma Stage 1. The next day got on a plane to visit my son in Colorado, being numb to the news that I had the big C. Wrapping my mind around the diagnosis was difficult. It did not seem real. Thanks to the tremendous support of my family and friends, I muddled through. Started treatment at UPMC Hillman Cancer Center the following week. RVD for eight cycles. I had a second opinion at Dana Farber in Boston. Same conclusion. I went into complete remission after those treatments. Acquired terrible neuropathy in my feet. No maintenance so I could have a break. Fast forward to my birthday October 24, 2019. The oncologist gave me the news again. I had relapsed. Here we go again. Started a new regimen of Polamyst, Dex, and Darzalex on November 7, 2019. As of yesterday in remission again! Will do another four rounds of chemo, Dex, and immunotherapy. I am avoiding a stem cell transplant. I truly believe that the drugs currently being developed will hold a cure someday for this awful disease. I will continue to work fulltime and travel for a living. Took three months off to heal since I got the Flu type A. The best three months in years!

Back to humor. The history of comedies goes all the way back to 425 BCE with Aristophanes, a comic playwright and author of ancient Greek theatre. Why, you ask? Because they needed to laugh. Humor has always been a part of history. History has not always been easy or simple. Just like people now who have cancer, back then they had numerous wars, unstable regimens, and also diseases. Having parodies to make fun of life, as they knew it, helped them survive and take that precious time to relax and not think of everything so seriously for a bit of time.

This blog is not for the faint of heart or people looking for concrete medical information. This is strictly a give and take about laughing at ourselves, the medical institutions, processes, as well as the experiences of cancer patients and survivors put into irreverent words. It is strictly to amuse and entertain you at a time where your life has stopped, as you know it. Your new normal is here, but you certainly still can laugh!

There will be however, links for helpful information of research organizations and places to donate. Most importantly, this blog will contain product reviews and trending topics, by me as well as our co-bloggers. I am attempting to challenge manufacturers of products that cancer patients need, use or would like to have better made or at a discounted price. I am going to also encourage entertainment at a discount from Broadway to local theatre. Everyone deserves a night out!

I look forward to humorous exchanges and satirical comments. This is meant to give everyone a chance to laugh at our toughest issues and concerns while sharing intimate stories and ideas that can help others move forward in a positive, uplifting light.

So please look forward to dicey topics that may have hit all of you during your diagnosis, treatments, and recovery. The blog will start as out as weekly. Feel free to laugh, share, and most importantly contribute to making everyone take time away from the seriousness of our diseases. I look forward to hearing from you. Until then, find something funny to talk about and share. I will always end the blog with an appropriate quote.

Best,
Cathy