First Experiences With Cancer

So, for those that know me, one cannot dispute how close my father and I are and have always been. Where I am, he is, and vice versa. Since he retired, almost 10 years ago, he has struggled with one health issue to the next. From heart attacks, to stents, to bypass surgery, to damn near renal failure, to stroke.... I suppose it was just a matter of time before cancer hit. Like it was the next step.

Papa had been feeling even worse than he normally does daily. About a year ago, he had gone to his primary care doctor and complained about some things... nothing was done. Since we moved in the new house and things started to settle down, he felt it was time to see a primary care doc again, but one closer to the new place. After a routine urine test, blood was found, and he was sent to a urologist who then found a tumor in his bladder. He had it removed a couple of weeks ago in an outpaitient procedure. I called for the pathology report last week and it was confirmed that what they had removed, was in fact, bladder cancer .

The doctor told me not to worry ( uh yeah ok doc) and that he will be re-checked in 3 months. Strange as it is... both my dad and myself don't really know what to do, what to say, what to think, or how to react to it. He won't change anything he is doing now, namely stopping smoking, and just seems like he is fed up with the health problems and wants to literally give up. I swear if it wasn't for Blake, I think he would have already. I am 99% sure that he wouldn't even have gone to the doctor in the first place.