Wow, only a day into my fundraising for the Light The Night Walk in Manhattan on September 25, I’ve hit 22% of my goal, and have a fellow team member! Thanks so much to everyone who has donated and signed up to walk with me. Your generosity will fund therapies and treatment advances for blood cancer patients, and will be helping to save lives. To give, visit my fundraising page, and to join us on the walk, visit the Team Joe C homepage. Be sure to check out the donors’ comments, which will be an inspiration to me every step of the way, and beyond.
Help Me Light the Night on September 25
My friend Sue told me about The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society‘s Light The Night Walk, which raises money for advancing blood cancer treatments and therapies. I’ve decided to participate on September 25, at Hudson River Park’s Pier 57 in New York, and would like to invite you to support me.
There are a few ways that you can help. Click to:
- Visit my personal fundraising page and make a donation.
- Join or Donate to Team Joe C, where you can sign up to walk with me and get a fundraising page of your own.
- View the Light The Night Walk Ways to Participate page, to register for a walk near you, and make a donation to a walker or team.
I’ve set a personal fund raising goal of $1000, and a team goal of $10,000. Every amount, no matter how small, will help us to meet these goals. If you can’t donate, you can help by sharing the link to the team page with anyone who might be interested, and of course, by continuing to keep me in your thoughts and prayers, as well as my team members.
Thanks in advance for your consideration and support, and I hope you can join me in NYC on September 25!
Click to watch Light The Night Walk 2013 Participant Video on YouTube.
Yes, Lymphoma Has a Ribbon
Pin on a lime green ribbon for Lymphoma awareness.
Just as a pink ribbon symbolizes breast cancer awareness, a lime green one is for lymphoma.
Hey, Hey, I Shaved My Head, Today
Bald is beautiful!
(Thanks to the Eurythmics, for the inspiration behind the headline for this post.) Yesterday, my hair started falling out in clumps. Today, I pulled a Britney Spears. So, without further ado, I’m debuting my new look. I like it!!! I was born with a full head of hair, so this is quite literally the first time my scalp has seen daylight. Speaking of which, I need to stock up on sunscreen—as well as lollipops so I can rock the Kojak look. Who loves ya, baby?!
Two Weeks After Starting Chemo
Buzz cut selfie
Still continuing to feel great! (Knocking wood, now.)
Had the first follow up with my Oncologist yesterday and all is fine. Since I did so well with the first round of chemo, they’ll up the dosage of the next one. Guessing I’ll be more fatigued afterwards, but otherwise don’t anticipate any side effects that I can’t tolerate, or don’t have a remedy for. Since I’ve been off the Prednisone for several days and the facial swelling hasn’t returned, the Dr. feels that the mass has obviously shrunk.
Hit my first hurdle on Sunday night when I had a lot of discomfort in my lower back and legs, due to a shot I get to boost white blood cell production. Tylenol and ice took care of it for the most part, so not the end of the world. They feel that I may not have the pain as severely next time, if I have any at all, and will give me a stronger pain reliever if I need it.
Hair started to fall out today, exactly 2 weeks after starting chemo. This is what I expected, and so had set up an appointment for a nice summer buzz cut, which is a look I actually like a lot! Not sure how much more will come out, but will go “Kojak” as my Grandma used to call it, and buzz it closer if it starts to get patchy.
A Nicely Knit Sentiment from a Friend
Love, hugs and warm fuzzy blankets to wrap up in – I know it’s summer, crank the A/C!
Where to Begin?
Received a lovely card, today.
Two-Ingredient Banana Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Made this for dessert last night and it’s amazing! Very easy, and a good way to get fruit and protein into my diet. Two-Ingredient Banana Peanut Butter Ice Cream Recipe | Two Peas & Their Pod.
Endless Possibilities
From the HOW Design Page on Facebook:
After Round One
This is the text of an e-mail, “Joseph Update: 8/4.”
Hello!
Firstly, thanks to everyone for the outpouring of support over the past weeks. Each email, text, call, thought, prayer, vibe, or whatever you’ve done, has helped more than you can know. I’ve done my best to reply to all of them, but apologies if I’ve missed anyone.
In brief: I feel great! Almost bizarrely so. I sailed through the first round of chemo with no real issues. A little achy today, but Tylenol took care of it.
I could not be more impressed with the level of care that I’m getting. All of the providers are friendly, compassionate, top-notch professionals, and not once have I felt like a specimen instead of a person.
Please don’t mistake my optimism for denial. I’m well aware that I may have some rough days. But, I’m not focusing on that. Instead, I’m set on getting through this journey and coming out of it stronger for the experience.
I’ll probably be sending out occasional messages like this one, but have started a blog, Joe’s Lymphoma Adventures (yes, I have a sense of humor about this) and will be posting to that more frequently than emailing. I invite you to follow along at:
www.josephcaserto.com/joeslymphoma
Thank you all, as always. You’re helping me more than you can ever imagine.
Lotsa Love,
Joseph/Joe