I'm a survivor of aggressive B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Seven cycles of R-CHOP reduced my tumor but did not kill it. I am fortunate to have been referred to the City of Hope for a stem cell transplant which took place a year ago April 8, which is also the day our first grandchild was born. So of the approximately 70,000 cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2013, I'm one of the roughly 50,000 to make it through treatment and into remission.
I'm not old by any means (at now almost 62) but I'm not young either. While not any more special than the thousands treated by the City of Hope doctors, to my family and friends, mine is a story of beating cancer and being able to share my experiences. I turned my CaringBridge.org blog into a book, "The Sun Is Up, I'm Vertical, It's A Good Day." The book is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Balboa Press and is a small way I am trying to give back to others facing their individual fight with cancer and hopefully make their days a little bit better.