Well, I’ve completed 5 (five!) months of intense chemotherapy, underwent a total mastectomy, and 6 weeks of intense radiotherapy, all along receiving immunotherapy that will continue until the end of the year. It was a total cancer ass-kicking, but not without some collateral damage (me). I’m exhausted, run a low-grade fever every time I eat, have lost 18% of my body weight, hair just starting to grow back, and I’m all wrinkled (shriveled) up.
But hey, no one said beating cancer was easy. So I proudly rang the bell three times to signify my completion of those first 3 steps to fighting cancer, affectionately referred to as poison, slash, and burn. Now I just have to return every three weeks to continue with my immunotherapy, then every three months to check that it hasn’t come back anywhere.
Can I call this a win? Yeah. After all, I’m still here to ring the bell.