Good Morning Leroy,

My you are an early bird. Blood tests, scans, and markers all indices on what is going on. You are right how do they figure out tests that can be as specific as they have become and let alone interpret them to make the right decision on what to treat.

"What a piece of work is man..." A true mystery. Keep healing, imagine your body fighting off the infection and of course the cancer. Imagery has been shown to be a powerful tool in medicine.

Sent by Susan Chap | 7:34 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, do you really want to know exactly what is going on inside yourself? What quality of life is it for you to have those demons constantly hanging around in your head? OR has this Cancer actually stolen all your optimism? Hope not 'cause in that case you can never be free of "IT" or regain your "old self". You have got to learn to look out and forward once again. You WILL and Must project your thoughts to happier paths. Have you noticed the trees lately? Must be looking like Winter with the leaves coming down. Ever see that lame Deer that used to come to your garden? I wonder about him especially when we see so many dead beside the road this time of year. How do they survive living being afraid to even nibble some green grass?
It's Thanksgiving once again and you have made it again. Have a HAPPY THANKSGIVING Leroy. We all have that "C" lurking around waiting to pounce, so let's be moving targets.

Sent by J C R | 8:06 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Wow ! Isn't that the truth ! And we wait we bated (sp??) breath for the results of these tests because at times they they are whipped out by the docs as if they matter a great deal. At other times we are told to ignore them completely , they are not as impotant as the results of the scans. Imagine a day when they actually know. Everything.

Oh well we can hope ! I hope everyone has a little break tomorrow ...and a chance to look at the sky, be outside for a bit, smell some good fresh air, and maybe be with friends too!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Nancy O

Sent by Nancy Oliveri | 8:28 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Dear Leroy, I just wanted to wish you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving. It's hard to be thankful when you are in pain. But in turn, we are all thankful for you. Enjoy the season.

Sent by Susan | 8:45 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family Leroy! Thank you for all the hope you have given us by sharing your experiences. You sound much more like yourself which I hope means you are feeling a little better. Enjoy the meal tomorrow as best you can and know that many people are keeping you in their prayers.

Sent by Merin | 9:21 AM ET | 11-21-2007

I can empathize with you. Before the "C" entered into my life, I had never really been a part of the medical community. Just my yearly check ups. Well, as all of us know so well, this changes upon diagnosis and so I entered into my first real soiree with medicine. Since then, I have told my family and friends, that while the doctors are brilliant, they, along with me, are playing the odds when it comes to treatment options or next steps. I believe that our fear resides in those odds. Are we making the winning decision? There isn't a person on the planet that can answer that question in black and white terms, thus our fear. The human body is a miraculous piece of work.

Try to lay aside all those thoughts for one day. A thankful heart is a happy heart. There is much to be thankful for.

You are in my prayers

Sent by Kathy B. | 9:24 AM ET | 11-21-2007

LeRoy,

Life is a mystery. Nature is a mystery. I plant three identical shrubs in my garden, and two of them thrive and one withers and dies. Why?

Medicine is an art, not necessarily a science. Every body is different. What works on one body does not work on another. A person who eats "right," exercises and meditates gets cancer at an early age. Another person who eats "wrong" and is a couch potato lives into her 90's. Why?

Life is a mystery. Our docs are only humans - gardeners, if you will - who try and tend the garden. Many things are beyond their control and understanding. They do their best, we are grateful, but life is still a mystery.

Please enjoy your triumphs, and have a good Thanksgiving! And be proud of what you have given to so many people: caring, hope and courage.

Sent by Wendy | 9:27 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, I so look forward to your inspiring words and understanding of my own thoughts. Thanks for being YOU!
Happy Thanksgiving in so many ways.

Sent by Carolyn | 9:28 AM ET | 11-21-2007

We had some light fluffy snow yesterday here in Massachusetts. There is still some snow lingering on the tree branches this morning. Some trees haven't lost their leaves yet, which is unusual. I guess nature is on a different time schedule this year, or at least the signs are.

I want to wish everyone, and our families and friends a peaceful Thanksgiving. I will be thinking of this community, along with my own family and friends when I offer thanks for the blessings of this past year.

Sent by Sheara | 9:29 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Happy Thanksgiving Leroy,
Please try to look on the brighter side of things. Part of our survival is not being afraid to face another day and be optimistic. Our bodies are mysterious things and sometimes that is a good thing...after all....maybe it is better to let the body take care of its self and us to enjoy the beauty and peace of the day. God Bless you and your family Leroy and all of you that write on this blog...all of you are special people.

Sent by Teresa in WV | 9:30 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Just goes to show how intricate we humans are. Have a great Thanksgiving and eat pie. For medicinal purposes, eat it with whipped cream.

Sent by glenda | 9:46 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Dear Leroy, Laurie and blog community:
I want to send you all my deeply felt wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving.
We who have been touched by or live with cancer are so very aware of how much of a blessing it is to celebrate another holiday; to be surrounded by family and friends; to have become a part of "Leroy's Legion" of friends and contributors; to be able to be supported by and give support to one another here in this special place.
The very best we can do is live today, enjoy today, love today and try not to look beyond this day. "One day at a time" is the best advice and hardest advice to follow. Let us all keep trying.

Sent by Harriet | 9:47 AM ET | 11-21-2007

"Happy Thanksgiving" to you Leroy, Laurie and family. May all of you have a blessed day in every way.

Sent by Judy (Suwanee, GA) | 9:48 AM ET | 11-21-2007

I want my body to protect my secrets. I would hate for the world to know that I have webbed toes...
Ah crud...

Have a Happy Thanksgiving to Leroy and everyone else.

Sent by Brit | 9:50 AM ET | 11-21-2007

My husband and I were just having this same conversation yesterday. The tests are amazing, and yet. . . They can only reveal a picture, which still needs to be interpreted, much like going to the Art Museum. Happy Thanksgiving.

Sent by Stephanie Dornbrook | 9:58 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, Happy Thanksgiving to you and all you hold dear. Mystery is just another service nature provides. You are still here writing and I am thankful for you. And happy holidays to this blog family.

Sent by Pat Z | 10:03 AM ET | 11-21-2007

AHHH!!! Better living thru Science!
Gotta love it, and don't try to understand it. lol

Sent by liz zimmerman | 10:04 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Tomorrow, hopefully, most all of us in this "exclusive community" will be sitting down and sharing a feast with our loved ones. I will look around the table and give thanks for my family, friends, medical team, all of you, and everyone else who supports all of us and our loved ones. How very blessed we are.

I have never been more grateful than I am for the gift of this Thanksgiving.

Sent by Laurel M. Jones | 10:30 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Hi Leroy
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Enjoy the day and try not to think of the big "C". We cancer victims deserve a day off.
Have a Blessed Thanksgiving.
Mary Scruggs

Sent by Mary Scruggs | 10:59 AM ET | 11-21-2007

As Rilke suggested, try to love the questions themselves. Or maybe just dance with the mystery. Even if you knew every bodily function indicator's exact meaning, you still have the random asteroids, bullets, viruses and fly balls to contend with. We can still choose how to live without having all the facts, or even the odds or timelines. I suspect that is one of the major developmental tasks of the human incarnation! Love and encouragement to you and Laurie and all of this rich blog community -- today and into the future,

Sent by Sarah | 11:03 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Hope you and your family have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Sent by Jen | 11:13 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy,

I am so sympathetic to what you had to say today. I want answers, dammit! It isn't much fun to have a disease, but worse to have a disease and have it be "mysterious." I agree that most doctors are wonderful, but sometimes they just don't know. If they don't, we can't.

Have a good holiday.

Sent by Diana Kitch | 11:20 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Today I had my lung drained of fluid so hopefully I can breathe better and not cough so much. Monday Cat Scan and MRI and then Fri. (on my birthday) will get results and treatment plan. Hoping for good news for a change. Anyway now I can enjoy Thanksgiving and maybe feel a little better. WIshing the same for all of you. God Bless.

Sent by Vicki (FL) | 11:27 AM ET | 11-21-2007

You have also discovered a secret of the medical community, in that the body mechanisms aren't fully understood yet, patients assume that they are, and the legal ramifications of not running tests mean that more than a rationale amount often need to be run. Since not much can happen over the next few days of the holiday, enjoy the "gift" of Cancer, which in my experience was a total focus on today. Perhaps in that way only is cancer like a battle. In the heat of it, there is no tomorrow. Just now. Best to you Leroy.

Sent by 8string | 11:38 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Dear Leory,
I wish you and yours a Blessed Thanksgiving.
As for those secrets, I am not sure how much I want to know. I am still pondering the photos in my capsule endoscopy report that I received through email yesterday.
Charlotte in Temecula

Sent by Charlotte Kewish | 11:50 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, Why isn't there just a marker for the thing for which they are looking?? It seems so difficult sometimes, to get a simple answer from all the tests. You stay well, and enjoy your holiday!! Stan

Sent by Stan Wozniak | 11:57 AM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, I hope you and your family will have a very Happy and Special Thanksgiving. Even though we all have many trials to deal with we all have much to be thankful for.

Sent by dorothy in oregon | 12:08 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Good Luck Vickie(Fl), & Happy Birthday next week. May you get the best present of all - a Good Report!

Sent by J C R | 12:33 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Have a great Thanksgiving....Drink some good wine...eat some good food and don't ponder the mysteries of tests..Just take a deep breath and smile
my friend. Life is full of surprises.

Sent by Ruth | 1:29 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Hi all,

Tomorrow morning I will thank God for all of you - your wisdom, your courage, your friendship, and your humor.

God bless,

Sent by Amy | 2:07 PM ET | 11-21-2007

I find myself getting frustrated with the ups and downs of all the readings of the tests and counts. It is like watching a scoreboard only you don't know the rules of the game or when you are winning or losing. At best you get a "you are winning but...."

Being here to enjoy Thanksgiving.... that is winning on anybody's scorecard. I hope everyone in this community has a good one and enjoys sharing it with those close to them.

Sent by Steve | 2:47 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Time for a laugh Leroy! Maybe we should change this to a turkey in honor of the day that is coming:
The Dead Duck contributed by Dr. Omar of West Virginia A woman who was traveling across country with her pets brought a very limp duck into a veterinary surgeon. As she lay her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his stethoscope and listened to the bird's chest. After a moment or two, the vet shook his head sadly and said, "I'm so sorry, your pet has passed away."
The distressed owner wailed, "Are you sure?
"Yes, I'm sure. The duck is dead," he replied.
"How can you be so sure", she protested. "I mean, you haven't done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or something."
The vet rolled his eyes, turned around and left the room. He returned a few moments later with a black Labrador Retriever.
As the duck's owner looked on in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his front paws on the examination table and sniffed the duck from top to bottom. He then looked at the vet with sad eyes and shook his head.
The vet patted the dog and took it out and returned a few moments later with a beautiful cat. The cat jumped up on the table and also sniffed the bird from its beak to its tail and back again. The cat sat back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly, jumped down and strolled out of the room.
The vet looked at the woman and said, "I'm sorry, but as I said, this is most definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck."
Then the vet turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys, and produced a bill, which he handed to the woman.
The duck's owner, still in shock, took the bill. "$150!" she cried. "$150 just to tell me my duck is dead?!!"
The vet shrugged. "I'm sorry. If you'd taken my word for it, the bill would have been $20. But what with the Lab Report and the Cat Scan, it all adds up."
Have a great day tomorrow, do what you can, eat what you can and enjoy!

Sent by Jim Street | 2:55 PM ET | 11-21-2007

My family hopes you, Laurie, your family and friends have a wonderful Thanksgiving. For a few hours there is no cancer and no infection. The turkey is king and the pumpkin pie is the best. Have a wonderful day.

Sent by barbara | 3:08 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Thinking of you and wishing you and yours a Happy Thanksgiving. May you be able to sit through dinner...

Sent by Julie | 4:15 PM ET | 11-21-2007

Leroy, I can't really respond to the other stuff but I can to the comments about TV. I quit watching it. It is just too stupid for words. I listen to NPR and other public radio programs. Classical music and also rock music kills the pain when I am in pain -Dentist.I also just read- simple stuff, not the complicated stuff that takes concentration.Try Sesame street. It is more uplifting and you can learn some Japanese.Hope you are up and feeling better soon.

Sent by Jean Hughes | 9:56 AM ET | 12-05-2007