Well, what an incredible journey that Pam (my wife) and I have been on.
To be told only 3 months ago that I should basically prepare for my own funeral as I was given a 9-month shortened life expectancy was a shock. With the diagnosis of oesophageal cancer, the best I could hope for was rounds of chemotherapy in order that I would have a better quality of life.
I decided to contact all my friends (Christian and non-Christian) and asked them to pray for my healing. I was determined not to give up or throw in the towel.
The consultant’s secretary gave me a letter with the date of my operation enclosed and during a conversation I was having with her I said, “I am a Christian and I know that I am in the safest hands that I could possibly ask for….God’s hands!”
She then said do you realize that this hospital is the no. 1 in the country for the type of cancer that you have. “Wow!” Then she said the consultant who is performing your operation is a Christian.
The realization that Gods hands were indeed in every single detail and all the bases were covered, for me, was a faith builder.
I then was asked to go for a C.T. and PET scan. The images that came back were inconclusive so I had an MRI. Yet again the images that came back were inconclusive, so the decision was taken to have a laparoscopy. This surgical procedure was to see if the cancer had moved to the liver. Lo and behold, the cancer had not moved to the liver. Yippee! fantastic news! This meant the outlook wasn’t necessarily terminal.
A decision was made to have major surgery in the hope that the cancer could be removed from the oesophagus. So, on June 14th I had an oesophagectomy. The operation took 5 and half hours and the surgeon informed Pam afterwards that they had removed all the cancer that was visible. Yippee!
After I had recovered sufficiently from the operation I was sent home. On the 3rd July, I returned to the hospital to have the last of the tubes removed from my body and later in the day I received a phone call from the hospital to inform me that I would not need to undergo chemotherapy and that an appointment for me to have a checkup in 3 months has been made.
We were ecstatic at this news and what a turnaround from no hope to a future and all within a space of 3 months.
We thank God for his goodness and abounding love and healing hands and we thank all of those who continue to hold us in your prayers.
Make no mistake there is power in prayer!!
Image Credit: Cam Adams
