Finding the Cheat.--Her story

Being the parent of millennials I watched my kids grow up "gaming". We didn't have the full assortment of game systems due to the fact that I wasn't convinced that such past times were conducive to higher thinking but my son did own a game system. So as a parent I picked up some of the "lingo" of how these games worked. One of the things about these games that I learned was the idea of finding "cheats" to help you win the game. It wasn't viewed as a bad thing at all to find a "cheat". It wasn't cheating as much as it was finding a better and quicker way to win. The other thing I learned about these games from watching my son is that one had to know the identity and weakness of the opponent or "monster" that was being fought. The "cheat" helped with that. Cecil and I just got back from the oncological surgeons. We were expecting to be told that it was time to have surgery. In most cases, for standard cancer treatment it would be. But, my surgeon explained to us why she believes it is not. You see we do not know who the monster is. I had a couple of biopsies in the beginning but they were not done well and they were inconclusive. We have been taking the chemo and it has been effective but we are at a point that the Drs. believe that this particular brand of chemo has run it's course of effectiveness. Without the knowledge of the exact genetic make-up of this cancer any follow-up treatment once surgery is performed would still be a shot in the dark. So what are my options? I need a cheat. Fortunately, I am going to get one. Next Wednesday I go back to the clinic to have an outpatient procedure done which will gather tissue to be tested with Genome Testing i.e. Genetic testing.Genetic testing uses laboratory methods to look at your genes, which are the DNA instructions you inherit from your mother and your father. Genetic tests may be used to identify increased risks of health problems, to choose treatments, or to assess responses to treatments. With a look into the genetic mutations of the cancer, my doctors will have a better understanding of the monster as well as a more informed approach to the weapons available to kill this monster. Cecil told me that we needed a closer. In baseball, a pitcher may be pulled from the game around the 8th inning when the team is winning and a new pitcher put in. The new guy is a “closer”. He specializes in a really tricky or very fast pitch that will get the team “3 up and 3 down” and bring the game to a close in the favor of the team. I need a closer. By submitting to the genome testing I am looking to identify the monster and then find just the right closer (treatment) for the job. So another paradigm shift but I am so glad for a medical team that believes in looking for cheats. Yay Team….let’s cheat death!!! This is a journey. As long as I am in this journey I am winning the battle. God won the war.