December 16, 2012

Hello friends and family,

This is a tough email to write. I’m writing it on the weekend in the hopes that you are at home when you receive it, or at the very least not at work. I would have preferred to share the news in person or on the phone, but time seems to be moving very fast these days.

A little while ago, I found a lump in my breast. After several tests (mammogram, MRI, biopsy), I have been told that I have breast cancer. Unfortunately, it has spread to my lymph nodes so the doctors think I am in stage 2 or 3. Everything is happening very quickly and they want to be aggressive in treating the cancer, so I will be starting chemotherapy this week (probably Wednesday the 19th). The treatments will last for 18 weeks, at which point they will perform a (single or double) mastectomy. They are also recommending radiation treatment after the surgery. So the next many months are going to be very hard.

My mother has just arrived from Vancouver so she will be here when I start the treatment and to help out with Nate. Thankfully, Nate is blissfully unaware of what’s going on. He is all smiles and laughter which gives me great comfort.

There have been some very scary and sad moments in the past little while, but, and I know this sounds cheesy, there have also been some pretty powerful moments of unexpected laughter and expressions of love. I feel well-supported and, at the moment, strong and as ready as I’ll ever be to fight this thing.

Please feel free to be in touch or ask for updates. If I don’t respond right away, don’t worry but know that any words of encouragement/support are welcome and will have brightened my day.

Love you.