I Have Cancer

Friends and readers: I have cancer.

The type of cancer is not yet fully confirmed, but all signs point toward kidney cancer that has spread to my hips, back, and pleura. On the bright side, all my blood tests so far are normal, suggesting that the cancer is moving slowly, which is typical of kidney cancers. There is no evidence yet that the cancer has spread to any vital organs, and I am not in imminent danger of death. With new treatments, I am hopeful that I have several good years, perhaps many good years, still in front of me.

I do not plan to crawl into a hole. I will continue to do what is important to me, and one of those important things is discussing philosophy through my blog and social media. I have been posting at least weekly on The Splintered Mind for more than twenty years, and I hope to continue to do so, though it is likely that I will start to miss some weeks.

I am inspired in part by the example of my dear departed friend, collaborator, and fellow blogger Helen De Cruz, who was so brave, open, and positive-spirited through her slow death by cancer -- at a younger age and with a worse prognosis than I.

In case any of you are worried in light of last week's post about self-sacrifice with terminal diagnoses, I assure you that although my reflections at the time were more immediately personally relevant than they might have seemed, while I was awaiting results, those thoughts remain entirely hypothetical. I remain hopeful and will fight this thing like a cornered cat.