Those of you who follow me on facebook know that a week ago, I received more news on my health. After my diagnosis with Type AL Amyloidosis, I underwent a battery of tests. The results were very positive. For someone with a terminal illness I am actually in great shape.
To start with, I do not have the disease that often accompanies amyloidosis–multiple myleoma. In addition, the amyloidosis has not spread to any other organs. In fact, even my kidneys, where the amyloidosis was discovered, are relatively well functioning. Finally, I am in the best health I have been in since my arthritis forced me to stop distance running. I worked so hard to recover from my accident last year, that I am in very good health overall.
The bottom line is that I still need treatment for the amyloidosis–stem cell transplant (SCT) following a massive dose of chemo designed to kill my bone marrow. Without it, my life expectancy is only a few years. With it, I have a good chance of going into remission–and possibly stalling the progress of the disease for any number of years. What I don’t have to do is undergo the preparatory chemo that is standard before the SCT. That means I can both delay the treatment until I have the chance to see the part of my family living in Texas, and that I will then enter the SCT process as strong as it is possible for me to be. One in five people with my disease do not survive SCT. Because of this news, my odds of mortality drop to appx. one in one hundred.
So, do I trust the good news? Of course not. For someone who has been diagnosed with a disease that only strikes (depending on the study you read) from 1 in 300,000 to 1 in 3,000,000, 1 in 100 odds don’t seem quite as comforting.
I will do the treatment, and I will feel better about it than I would have had I not received the good news. But I don’t trust it. I don’t rely on it. I don’t put my faith in it.
That is for my King.
As I enter this process, I know who has real power. I know who determines my eternity. I know how much he loves me–and all he has done for me (read the last post for a summary:-)). I want to enjoy the gift he has given me–life with my family and serving him. But if I don’t, I’m good with that too, because I belong to the King. He has given me life today. And I choose to live it faithfully!
