So far, I’ve been lucky - no Covid-19 in my family or in me. We’ve been careful, not psycho, although I fully understand psycho. I’ve had that luxury, because I live in a fantasy land, both literally and figuratively.
I live with a constant threat of my primary peritoneal cancer, otherwise known as ovarian cancer, starting another forest fire in my body. With all the strange things about our time - don’t even get me started on politics - my husband and I find ourselves living in a fortunate zone. I have never appreciated our lake home so much. Always a sanctuary of sorts, it has become sacred ground. It’s a place to feel quasi normal and away from the crowds, as I melt into the gorgeous scenery.
This year, in addition to escaping invisible bugs, my time has been spent finishing a historical novel about Mathilda, the person my fund was named after. I am deep in the purgatory of revision. Sitting on the deck with a postcard view, I can pretend I live in the late 1800’s when the view was the same from this point on the lakefront, and when my ancestors tried to survive tuberculosis, diphtheria, typhus and close to a 20% infant mortality rate. All of us, are the survivors of the fittest - of those who lived before us. The average lifespan of a New Yorker back then was 50. Cancer existed, but was rarer; people didn’t live that long.
Until now, the lake has been an escape from my cancer-related anxieties. My biggest worry up until now, was limited to keeping the grandkids safe from water accidents, and the few snakes that hide in rocks. Mostly, the non-venomous types, but who cares? They’re all creepy. I block out my cancer.
But this year, I hit another treatment turning point as my cancer found another vulnerable spot in my body where it can picnic without interference, and once again, I must rethink my treatment options. In the last decade of my illness, at least three new therapies have emerged (Avastin, PARP Inhibitors, Immunotherapy). All have worked for me, but only for a while. The cancer artillery retreats, then attacks again, challenging my extraordinary medical team to find new medications to get me over the next hill. Please help keep them coming through your support.
So far, together, we have raised over $53,000. 90% or so, goes directly to supporting actual research through the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA) - fruitful discoveries for thousands of women and other cancer survivors. Researchers have found that these treatments effectively work on many types of cancers.
Please continue to contribute this year, no matter how big or small. It keeps the engine of medical advancement alive. You are our heroes.
My heartfelt thanks. Please follow the link below.
Jane
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