Entry 69
Hello!
This will be the first entry in the Harry’s Prostate Blog in 5 years.
Part of the reason for my lax treatment of the blog was in effect a good news story. There was nothing newsworthy to report other than I was doing fine. A nice problem to have you may say and I would certainly agree. For those of us who live with the uncertainty of cancer the old adage ‘no news is good news’ has a ring of truth to it.
So the question becomes why start again now? Well, the answer to that is that on December 9, 2010 I underwent radical prostatectomy surgery at the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, Canada. This will be the 10 year anniversary of that life changing event!
As a result of the skillful work of my urologist Dr Jeff Saranchuk and the consistent, ongoing monitoring of my health at Cancer Care in the Health Sciences Centre, it has allowed me to live a very full and rewarding life.
That remarkable care enabled me to be around for the marriage of our son to a wonderful young woman and the birth of our 2 grandchildren who as you might guess we totally adore. It enabled me to pursue my passion for paddling my canoe(s) on trips both large and small, and finally it provided the opportunity for my wife and I to travel. And travel we did, sometimes on our own and sometimes with friends or family. Our travels were extensive and worldwide in their scope and we found ourselves in places I never in my wildest dreams expected to visit.
I was also exceedingly fortunate in having the understanding and unfailing support of family and friends. This was crucial and you only begin to truly understand it with the benefit of hindsight. My wife Margaret and son Tom played pivotal roles in getting me through the main event and recovery. Friends helped propel that recovery so that I was able to take part in a demanding 2 week canoe trip within 5 months of the surgery.
But there is another reason other than the 10 year anniversary of the surgery. That reason is hope. My experience, and I hasten to add, my experience only, is that there is potentially a substantial and rewarding life beyond a diagnosis of prostate cancer. I am living proof.
Thank you for your time and attention and may I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
(Photo below taken in October, 2019 in Shetland, Scotland. Here I'm being photobombed by Shetland ponies and my brother-in-law Scott McDonald)
