First Appointment at the Huntsman Cancer Institute

Yesterday I had my first appointment at the Huntsman Cancer Institute. It's a very nice facility right at the base of the mountain near the U of U campus. It was stunning to see how many sick people were there, most of which were older. Ever since I've been diagnosed I am seeing how many people are effected by this sickness. After meeting the team that will be taking care of me throughout this ordeal, I feel like I am in very good hands. They drew my blood and the results were normal and healthy. No signs of tumor markers. It turns out I only have stage 1B cancer! The past few weeks we thought I was in the stage III zone because the pathology reports said "PT3" and we were told it was stage III...so that's fantastic news. Dr. Gupta (our Oncologist here in Utah) said I could either skip chemo and be monitored closely, or just do chemo and get rid of the cancer. She said there is a 50% chance the cancer would go away or spread more. We decided to go the safe route and go through chemo. The chemo plan I will be on is called BEP, and is very effective for testicular cancers. Two cycles of chemo should take care of it. Each cycle is composed of:
Week 1: Chemo for 7 hours/day Monday-Friday 
Week 2: Chemo for 2 hours on Tuesday only
Week 3: Chemo for 2 hours on Tuesday only
Chemo will be starting Monday 1/25/16. The only thing that made us a little nervous is when I told her I had a light headache (normal headache I always have) she wanted me to get an MRI on my brain. She's a cautious doctor that likes to cover all bases, so even though more than likely I am fine she wanted to make sure there is no cancer up there. I have an MRI appointment this week on 1/21/16. This week I also have an appointment for a "lung functionality test", which is required before beginning. The side effects of chemo definitely sound rough, like nausea and vomiting, potential hearing loss, hair loss, loss of appetite, reduced hormones, possibility of infertility (hence, we have an appointment with the sperm bank this week for backup), etc. The great news though is there is lots of medication to mitigate these side effects, and if one medication doesn't work there are others. Chels and I just need to communicate everything with my nurses so they can take care of me. It is going to be an intense 6 weeks but I am feeling blessed that it is so treatable. There are far worse cancers out there, and the nurse even said "if your going to get a cancer, this is the one you want to get". I will send an update after the appointments this week.

Prior to my appointment we stopped by Temple Square and the City Creek Mall. It was nice to be on the Temple grounds where Chels and I were married. Made us nostalgic and brought back that day 6 years ago. We also visited the Christus. The spirit is always felt there, and it causes you to think about the risen Savior and his love for us.

  Avi and Chloe playing on the Christus.