Okay, things aren't quite as I described in my last post.  I did not have any surgery or cutting of any kind to get rid of the cancer.  The person I spoke with on Monday was not a doctor and apparently did not give me all the options.  When I went in and met with the doctor on Tuesday, I was told that there is a cream that can be used to treat the basal cell carcinoma, and the doc recommended this treatment because it wouldn't leave a scar, like surgery would.  So I was given a prescription for Aldara, and sent on my way.  I am to use this stuff for six weeks, at which time I have another appointment to see the doctor.  Hopefully the cancer will be taken care of by then.  And if it isn't, it's not a big deal because I can always have the surgery then.

 

Geez, "surgery" seems like such a scary word.  It would be a simple little cut to remove the affected skin.  No big deal.  Frankly, I'm not all that concerned with a little scar on my chest.  Nobody would ever see it, except at the beach.  And you can bet that after this scare, I won't be showing up at too many beaches in the future...

 

Of course, the best news with this is that without surgery, there will be no stitches.  And without stitches, there will be no restriction on my running.  So marathon training continues as planned. 

Wow, that was quick.  Vacations are always like that, huh?  Maggie and I spent 8 days to/from/in Italy.  It really was a terrific trip... while we were there.  The travelling each way was a nightmare, however.  Our flight from Newark to Amsterdam was a little late, but then our flight from Amsterdam to Rome was cancelled!  Luckily we got put on the next flight, but it did leave us in Amsterdam for about 9 hours.  Since Maggie's cousin Mark lives there, we were able to hang out with him and see a little of the town.  As nice as that was, it did mean we were exhausted by the time we actually reached Italy. 

 

And getting home was no picnic either.  First of all, our layover was in Toronto, which is not exactly on the way from Rome to Newark.  That was a terribly long flight as it was, but then the flight from Toronto to Newark was delayed because of weather, so we endud up being in Toronto for about 8 hours -- this time with no one to visit. 

 

But nonetheless, we made it there and back safely (eventually) and that's what counts.  Obviously, there is much to tell about the actual stay in Italy, and I will get to that soon, I promise.  I intend to post a bunch of pictures and write up a report of the trip very soon.  We took 400 pictures or so, and it takes a little while to sift thru them and find the good ones...

 

Changing the subject... as written in the subject line, I have recently gotten some bad news.  Not terrible, however, so don't anybody freak out upon reading this.  (If anyone actually does read this page).  A few weeks ago I noticed a little spot on my skin (my upper chest) that I hadn't noticed before.  So I went to see a dermatologist.  The doctor wasn't overly concerned about it, but removed it anyway and ran the necessary tests.  I spoke with the doctor today for the first time sicne then, and it turns out that the spot is indeed skin cancer.  But the good news is that it is basal cell carcinoma, which is the most common type of skin cancer, and is one that typically does not spread to other parts of the body.  In other words, it is not serious and is not a big deal.  In the doctor's words, "it's nothing to lose sleep over".

 

So basically I just have to go to the doctor tomorrow so that they can cut out a bit more of the area around the spot -- they've got to make sure it's all gone.  Once that is done, I will get stitched back and up and have the stitches in for a couple of weeks.  Then the stitches come out, and that's it.  So yeah, it doesn't seem like a big deal.  The only real problem with this is that I may not be able to continue marathon training for a while -- no strenuous activity while the stitches are in.  Hmm, consider I only ran once during the 8 days of the trip, the last thing I need is to take another week or two off from training.  Oh well.  The important thing is that I listen to the doctor and follow orders.  If I do that, everything should be fine in the long run, and I should still have plenty of time to get training underway again long before December. 

 

Life goes on...

Ah, Labor Day.  A much-needed long weekend.  Yes, Maggie and I have an 8-day trip to Italy coming up (in just three days!), but this long weekend was still much appreciated. 

 

It also happened to be the opening weekend of the college football season.  Yes, I love this time of year!  I got to watch the Gator game against Southern Mississippi at a bar in Connecticut with my friends Tony, Toly and Dan.  Meh, the Gators didn't look great, but they won easily.  I guess that's what's important.

 

Labor Day weekend is also the time for the New Haven 20k Road Race, which I ran for the third straight year.  I finished it this year in 1:46:22, which is about 4.5 minutes faster than last year.  I am quite pleased with that time.  More about this race, including some photos, can be seen on my Photo Albums link from the navagation bar, or at this link. 

 

As for the trip to Italy, Maggie and I are both quite excited.  I had hoped to learn a bit of the language; a few months ago I bought an Italian language program for the computer, but we barely used it.  Well, I've heard that most people in Italy speak English very well, so hopefully it won't be a problem.  Maybe I can learn a few more words in the next couple days before we leave.  Ah, who'm I kidding; I'll be too lazy to try and cram.  I guess we'll just have to wing it.  Nonetheless, I am really looking forwad to it...