-- Arnold Schwarzenegger, in a 1982 interview with Marian Christy, "Winning according to Schwarzenegger", Boston Globe, Boston, MA, 9 May 1982, p 51
I'm happy to report that I have completed my 37 radiation treatments. All in all, it wasn't too bad. My first treatment was on Tuesday 19 April, and my final treatment on Thursday 9 June. The side effects were occasionally unpleasant, but were mild enough and infrequent enough that I mostly ignored them.
On the final day I wore my Relay for Life "Survivor" t-shirt. I got to ring the brass bell in the reception area to mark the end of treatment. The bell is mounted on a plaque that includes the above quotation. On the plaque, it's attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, but I'm a quote junkie, and a little research convinced me the citation I provided is accurate. But it's still a great sentiment in this context. They also gave me a nice Certificate of Completion, signed by all the staff members, including Steffany, Stefanie, and Stephani.
That final radiation treatment was at 9:00AM. I would have written earlier, but by 11:00AM that same day I was on a bus to Europe (well, a school bus to O'Hare) as I chaperoned my daughter's school class trip to Ireland, Wales, England, and France. I'm now back home with many memories and many photos from the trip.
I'm not done here yet. In late August I'll be at 90 days after my last visit to the oncologist, and due for another Lupron injection. That should be my next opportunity for a PSA test. And in mid September I'll be at 90 days after radiation. At that point I'll see my radiation oncologist and likely get another PSA test -- looking for "undetectable" levels, preferably <0.01.
