2012-2018: Background

Nick's story so far...
  • Early December 2012: Nick had been complaining of a sore back since being roughed up in the mosh pit at a concert in July. His pain seems to be getting worse.
  • December 13, 2012: Back pain gets extreme. Nick is taken to emergency and immediate diagnosed with metastatic testicular cancer.
  • Surgery in January 2013 (orchiectomy). Tumour markers fail to normalize.
  • Outpatient chemotherapy (January-March 2013).
  • First relapse (May 2013)
  • June-August 2013: in-hospital chemotherapy.
  • November 2013: The cancer now under control, Nick has an autologous stem cell transplant (21 days in hospital)
  • January 2014: Nick undergoes major surgery to remove  the massive tumour near his kidneys (RPLND). This 10+ hour procedure involved the removal of the tumour and various lymph nodes, and also the transplantation of one kidney from one side of his body to the other - reminiscent of how the eye of a juvenile flounder migrates from one side of the fish's head to the other upon maturation.
  • September 2014: Second relapse revealed by routine surveillance. Cancer in superclavicular lymph nodes.
  • December 2014: Surgical removal of these lymph nodes. CT scan reveals minor cancerous spread to lungs.
  • February-April 2015: In hospital chemotherapy.
  • September 2015: Bloodwork reveals third relapse, but nothing shows up on imaging. We wait.
  • January 2016: CT and PET scans show on diseased lymph node in chest.
  • February 2016: Lymph node is removed. Tumour markers normalize. No chemotherapy is indicated.
  • October 2017: fourth relapse revealed by surveillance appoint in Kelowna, where Nick had been living with his girlfriend Alex. Tumour located near sternum.
  • December 2017: Surgical removal of tumour. A relatively innocuous procedure, performed laparoscopically.However, tumor margins test positive for disease.
  • January-February 2018: Radiation treatments (24 of them).
  • February 2018: Nick complains of increasingly bad cough. Imaging reveals heavy spread of disease into lungs. Nick has lost 25 pounds within 4 weeks.
  • February 26th, 2018: Nick is admitted to hospital, stabilized, started on chemotherapy. He reacts anaphylactically to first chemo drug. This drug is discontinued, but the other two drugs in the cocktail are given the green light.
  • February  27th, 2018: Chemotherapy begins.

Comments

  1. Chris Fure, VP Development28 February 2018 at 12:39

    Thanks for sharing this news. Few are as well equipped mentally and physically as Nick. Thankfully, we are living at a time when cancer is better understood and new therapies are now available when treatment response misses the mark. Finally, fortune favors the young for medical resources. I'm glad to hear Alex is in the picture as Good Vibes can never be too few.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

September 23rd, 2018 - End Game

I arrived at the cancer clinic at about 9:15 this morning, still wired after playing a great party in Bayfield, getting home at 2:00 am. Dr. Potvin had the results of the thoracic CT scan and the head MRI. The hope was that there might be on or two brain lesions responsible for Nick's dramatic neurological decline. No such luck. The cancer, grown chemo and radiation resistant, has proliferated in Nick's brain. There's no way to stop its growth, and it's ineroperable. Nick has days left. They're keeping Nick in hospital, as to send him home would result in horrific, traumatic consequences. The best they can do is try to make Nick's exit as peaceful as possible. Nick's six year battle is finally coming to an end. These six years have been trying, but we've not been without help, hope and support along the way. We love and deeply appreciate everyone who's had our backs during this time.
Read more

10th June 2019

Image
Last week we found out that the Nick Greeson Memorial scholarship had reached the $3000 mark.  On Friday, I spoke with two Humber representatives who told me that they were overwhelmed that we were able to raise that much money in such a short time.  "A remarkable achievement," Marlene announced. "We have enough money now to keep the scholarship going for another three years."  In November of this year, Matthew, myself and other family members will be attending the Humber Awards Ceremony where we will be honoured with the privilege of bestowing this award to another student who is/was struggling with medical issues while still demonstrating resilience and fortitude in the face of adversity -someone just like our Nick.  Thanks to all who contributed.  Please feel free to continue donating to this fund if you are so inclined.  We want to keep it going as long as possible. (LINK TO NICK'S MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP) I just received an email from a young man named Eri
Read more