It has now been three years since some exceptionally skilled and caring heroes at Kaiser Permanente rid my tongue and neck of cancer. That is something huge to celebrate. I figure I should get a song out of going through that mess, here it is. I had often wondered what it feels like to have a doctor tell you, “You have cancer.” I wish I’d never found out. I hope you never do. (If you do, holler if I can help.) It has been a life-changing experience with a long list of positives, starting with having a life to change. Dr. Christopher Griffith, thank you for finding the telltale lump in the side of my neck. Dr Ryan Brown, thank you for cutting the Evil C off my tongue and out of my neck and mastering that DaVinci robot. I’m very happy to be proving that your “You will sing again” promise was true. Dr Marcia Eustaquio, thank you for keeping an eye on me in such great fashion and painlessly threading that camera up my nose every few months. To anyone reading this, please visit www.checkyourmouth.org to learn how you and your medical allies can spot the signs of oral cancer. Early detection is key for sticking around, and we all gotta stick around.
MJ