The Saddest Post I’ve Ever Done.


 
Rich Dahl

Rich Dahl

R.I.P. 7/21/2024
Barb, my wonderful wife and best friend for 35 years was diagnosed with breast cancer last week. So because she has always been there for me with my heart condition I will now do the same for her.
With that said we will be absent from the forum for a while. She has many test yet to be performed and of course she is scared and so am I.
I want to be 100% focused on getting her well.
The early prognoses is it’s a very small tumor and they believe it’s in the very early stages so that part is good and her lymph nodes are clear. Soon she will have a pet scan done to make sure the cancer hasn’t spread to any other part of her body.
If everything goes well she will be on the road to recovery. I will let you know what we find out

UPDATE:

I want to also say thank you to all who have responded to Barbs situation with kind words and prayers. It means a great deal to both of us.
One of our worries was that I have to have surgery on my right foot soon and won’t be able to drive for three weeks. Also that Barbs treatment might be down in Phoenix which is a 200 mile round trip. Well we lucked out the place that Barb will be treated is less than 15 minutes from our home. After the word got out we have lots of volunteers to take Barb to the Breast Care Center any time she needs to go.
She has a doctor assigned to her that everyone says he’s the best of the best. We also had an update from the Breast Care Center about her biopsy. It’s a type two cancer which isn’t a fast spreading cancer which is good news. There also is no sign of problems with the lymph node and that’s the only way the cancer can get to the rest of her body is by going through the lymph node.
So things are looking up.
Of course the fact that our furnace died hasn’t made it easy and won’t be fixed until Monday or Tuesday when the repair people get the new circuit board for it. Got the gas fireplace running 24/7 and a small space heater running at night. Oh well such is life.
 
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It's posts like this that put things in perspective. Please tell Barb that we're all pulling for her and hoping for a quick recovery and complete healing! You're lucky to have each other to take care of each other.

Best wishes,
Chris
 
Rich, sorry to hear about this. Be strong for Barb and let her know she is in our prayers. I know many survivors of breast cancer, including my mother. She has been cancer free for almost 30 years. Both of you hang in there and stay positive and win this battle.
 
Yes indeed, I agree with Chris, I will keep her in my prayers as well as you Rich, it’s hard on everyone in the family!
My mother survived it for twenty some years, it’s beatable! Be strong.
 
And this is the saddest thread I've ever read on this forum. My heart and prayers go out to you; your posts and the help you share have always been inspiring. My wife is an x-ray tech; specifically, she performs 20 Mammograms each day and has done so for nearly 30 years. One point that she always drives with a very firm conviction is that today's technological advances help ensure extremely high recovery and success rates. May you find God's strength, peace, and healing virtue during this time of your need.
 
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Thoughts are with you both .......... my Mother-in-Law had almost same diagnosis and she came out of it fine, that was over 10 years ago.
 
Man Rich, I'm so sorry to hear this news. I must say though when I read your post title and the first few words of your post, I was expecting much worse. I'm relieved that wasn't the case and am encouraged with the prognosis. Please give our best wishes to Barb and know that you both will be in our thoughts continually until this thing is whipped. I am confident that with the technological advanced in the medical field that this will be the case. Hang in there Rich.
 
My Wish For You: This Too Will Pass.

It's rampant around me...........my BIL died from Stage4 in 2012, last year one neighbor got bladder cancer (74 year old male), another last year had a mastectomy - she's older but doing well & going strong...........although she lost her hair for a while. Another neighbor had prostate C but seems fine (I don't like him much but we're still friendly). The guy I bought my house from just had his leg amputated so short that they were afraid he wouldn't be able to wear a prosthetic, he was dodgy (fell on his wound) but he's recovering nicely from what I hear - his was possibly caused from chemical exposure during the Vietnam war.

It's scary, I can't imagine how you guys feel but know you're not alone.

My grandma, she had some sort of blood cancer - she went into remission and was just beaming and had a great life for another ~15+ years.

There's a saying, and I hope it comes true for you: This Too Shall Pass.

Life's scary - my lil bro, he could go at any time (the stoics are/aren't helpful for me), and one of my best friends has a brain tumor :)

We are all wishing Barb & you the best.

Edit:>>>>>
when I was a kid my stepmom's dad went through chemo, I watched that for a couple of years. When my neighbor got bladder cancer he was a little torn up. We'd talk and for the first year or so nobody in the neighborhood knew but me. I asked if I could break the news when another was having trouble, others were talking, and he said OK which I liked because I felt he had more support. Anyway, I kind of relayed my experiences and what I've seen and read about. I told him "you've had a good life" couldn't ask for more etc. He did their treatments round 1, had the bladder (or ?, I've seen a bag but I don't pry) removed, went for round 2. He told me "if this doesn't work I'm going to just quit all the treatments and go through it all". Imagine my feeling with his dear wife in the same room :) It's hard giving frank advice, hard knowing what to say to a friend, and then his wife too. Not easy. But he quit the treatments and guess what - he went into remission. ....and then got the shingles :). Another saying: Life is suffering, or something like that. He's retired, and he's the guy who goes around the neighborhood & snowblows all the elderly & people with certain difficulties driveways. He's a pretty neat guy. And a BBQ aficionado - if I'm not invited to the BBQ (usually am), they'll send over a plate. They bring their steak fat & gristle over for the pup too.
 
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Will miss your and Barb's presence while you kick this, as I'm sure she will. In the meantime, you will both be in my prayers.
 
Will be keeping you both is prayers. I think it's encouraging that it's early. Hopefully it is a non aggressive variant. One of my oldest and best friends in the world too was just diagnosed with prostate cancer. Good thing for him docs say it's a slow type and at nearly 69 if he wants he could just "watch" it but he's not inclined to do that so he is looking at treatment variations from full surgery to some kind of highly directed proton beam therapy
 
Rich and Barb... Maryann and I send both of you our best wishes and prayers for your complete recovery, Barb.
 
"You are strong. You can do this Barb", We need you around here for many years to come, how the heck am I going to get my pizza dough recipe right without your help.
You and Rich are like family members to all of us on this forum. Your in my prayers.
 
Lots of love and prayers to the Dahl's out west!
I truly hate cancer. I know I'm not supposed to, but I really do hate cancer!
The best advice I'll give you is to smile and say "uh huh" to all the advice you'll get. There's gonna be some crazy stuff suggested!
Do what the doctor says. That'll give Barb the best shot of beating this heinous disease!
 
Prayers sent,sister is fighting lung cancer along with our aunt,it runs in our family something fierce ,Israel may have a cure I heard the other day,
 
Rich, help Barb. She'll need you.

My g/f (20+ years) has survived both colon as well as liver cancer. Cancer free now for almost 5 years, and pretty much completely off the charts for survivors. And my parents maid of honor from 60+ years ago beat pancreatic cancer for better than 5 years beyond the doc's prediction of less than a year. It *CAN* be done.
 
I pray for her speedy and complete recovery. May she show unbelievable strength you never knew she had. I hope to see you both on here as soon as you’re ready. Until then GOD Speed!
 
Prayers from western NC, for sure.

A friend is dealing with lymphoma, but they are doing better after treatment.
 
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