No Cancer.....

I was informed by Dr Kamerer today that I do not have Lymphoma. The abnormal discolored cells in my neck are not sinister! YES! Cancer is now officially 0-2 with me. What do I have? That's the mystery. Castleman's disease was a suggested possibility but this is highly improbable according to my doctor. Is there an infection someone else in my body that is causing this significant swelling reaction in my neck and throat? Haven't been able to find it if it exists. So what's next? I will be going for further testing including a CT scan at the end of this month as well as a visit to a Cancer blood expert. We do not expect that anything cancerous will be discovered. Then a decision has to be made about pursuing an infectious disease diagnosis. Ugh! I will consult with my surgeon, primary doctor and a couple other experts to to determine if this is a road we will travel. Can I be in this exact same position next year with the need for another surgery? Unfortunately, the answer to that question is yes. It is actually more likely than not that this issue will one day become lymphoma if we do not discover any other reason for its cause. Weird right? That's what I say. Would be really nice to discover what is the root cause of the abnormal lymph nodes so we can deal with them and be done with this. This is our prayer. If no reason is discovered and we have to deal with this again in the next year then so be it. For the time being, I will choose to rejoice in the fact that I will not be going to chemo or radiation treatments next week. YES! And I will be traveling back to Ethiopia in mid May (I have a June trip planned as well but a decision on that is pending furthering doctors decisions) do lead our first 80 participant residential camping experience at Langano with 20 very excited Liberty University students. Can't wait! THANKS FOR PRAYING EVERYONE... it no doubt helped me stay peaceful throughout the process. bd ps my neck is continuing to heal well and I'm even hoping to be able to fish next week in Florida with my brothers!