Mark reads with eyes closed while getting chemo


A Difficult Time for Mark: a time of great uncertainty
For people with cancer, periods of increased uncertainty must be unsettling even when improvement in their condition has occured. This seems true for Mr. Mark.
Mark is so upbeat and positive most of the time and I try to print the good news as much as possible, but the reality is that right now, he is still dealing with liver cancer, chemotherapy, side effects of chemo, and life decisions such as where he will live in the future, which depends on whether he is going to get better and how much better and for how long, which affects whether he can work or not, what kind of work he can do, how close he has to live to medical care, where he can have good access to care, and how to continue to pay for needed care. This is one of the most uncertain periods for Mark. When death seemed a certain thing, what was there to do but accept it and die, leaving all problems to others? Now that progress has been made in the battle against cancer he begins to wonder if he can hope for a future, but in the back of his mind is still the picture of death...not so certain, but it is still lurking there. The condo he leases is up for sale and he will probably get to stay out his lease until January, if it sells. Where will he go in January? Yet another uncertainty. This week I pushed Mark a little too much to do some business tasks and to think about whether he wanted to stay in Thailand, go to Saipan where he was when he was diagnosed with cancer, or come to the states and if so, where. It was stressful for Mark and mom backed off. While decisions will have to be made, stress is counterproductive to Mark's getting better and must be avoided. Mark may need your support now more than earlier as this uncertainty attacks his peace of mind at a time when he has more energy to worry. He truly appreciates any and all support. He told me in an e-mail this morning that he thanks God each day that he has me for a mom and a friend and he thanks God each day for those of you, strangers and old friends and acquaintences who support him in many ways. What may seem like a small support thing to you is really big to Mark.