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In contrast to all the fun everyone else was having this weekend, I had planned to go see my family in Ocean Pines.  I wanted to see how my grandfather was doing, and I also wanted to know what the latest was regarding his cancer.  I drove down early yesterday morning, staid overnight, and headed back this morning to get some stuff done and avoid the weather on my drive home.

I am happy to report that my grandfather is doing quite well.  He had an appointment with his doctor to get an update last Tuesday.  According to his doctor, everything looks good, and the growths in his lungs, liver, and chest have been reduced greatly.  He no longer needs chemotherapy, but he is going to have a final batch of radiation treatments as a preventive measure to ensure that what cancer is left in his body does not become brain cancer.

My grandfather even states that he is doing well, which is something of an achievement considering how hard it has been to get details out of him during his treatment.  He is no longer as short of breath as he was with the tumor that he had, and his voice has returned to normal.  Hell, in a completely unexpected turn of events, my grandfather–the same one who loathes going over to the beach–asked me if I wanted to take a trip over to Ocean City yesterday afternoon.  I obliged him, of course, after picking myself up from the floor after hearing the rarest of all suggestions from my grandfather.

We spent about an hour on the boardwalk, which was pretty crowded for late April.  We even ran into a quasi-relative of sorts while there, and we spent most of that hour talking and catching up.  After our boardwalk visit, we grabbed a late lunch and early dinner at Crab Alley.  I then spent the evening at my aunt and uncle’s, catching up on various things and playing my usual role of family help desk consultant.

This morning, I picked up my grandfather after he attended Sunday Mass, and we went to breakfast.  I treated for breakfast, but I saw yet another sign of my grandfather’s recovery: his appetite has returned.  After breakfast, I took him back to his house and packed up my car for the trip home.

I expect there to be a routine checkup for my grandfather from now on to make sure that he has no further recurrences.  It is good to see him getting around better, sounding better, and being more of his usual self.