Wednesday 5/16 - end of treatment!!!

On May 15th, 2017, I learned that my relatively-innocuous "hip flexor strain" was in fact a hip tumor-- and so began our harrowing journey. First came the 3 months of testing, pre-diagnosis: I was slow-tracked (owing to the low likelihood of cancer at my age), which made for a whole summer of anxious waiting periods, insurance complications, long drives, and uncertainty. Then, as you've borne witness, came the 9 months of treatment: sixteen rounds of chemo with complications occasionally escalating to ER visits and a major surgery with extensive rehab.

After all this, you can imagine my relief and thrill to share that my treatment is now O-V-E-R:
Yesterday afternoon, coincidentally another May 15th, I was released from my last 4-night stay at Johns Hopkins; last infusion of chemicals straight to my heart; last bout of lousy side-effects, hospital food, and constantly-interrupted sleep; and most importantly, last of all my planned cancer treatments! Exactly one year after it all began, my body finally gets a much-needed break!! Recurrence or not, it is now time to rejoice.

And it's not only me that needs a respite: what has amazed me in the past year is how much this is a shared journey and not just my own. You all - my family, friends, and neighbors - have carried my burden in so many ways. I'm left with such a powerful feeling of gratitude and indebtedness, I can't explain it; there is no parallel in my experience. I feel unworthy in a strangely good way, like I've been granted a miracle: the incredible amount of time and attention my parents and Francis have devoted to my care; the many uplifting visits from close friends (often even from far away!), my brothers, and dear in-laws; the thoughtful messages and gifts, tasty food, and other creative forms of support from all my communities-- the Grove, Cornell, Waterloo, OSU, even my 2010 study abroad group, and Fra's (very) extended family! It's amazing: for all the nights I stayed in the hospital, and there were close to a hundred, I was never once alone. So thank you from the bottom of my heart for enduring this cancer with me, whether it's just by reading this blog or much more, and for the team effort that got me to this milestone. We did it!!!

Here are a few pictures from the last couple days:

Some of the excellent nurses and techs who've helped me along the way -- Rhonda (right) also loves the gospel song, "the storm is passing over," which we sang together in celebration

 My dad, Fra, and the concierge, happily escorting me out

My greeting at home!

The wonderful cards you all sent me in the past year, strung around my room <3