All hail the kale.

Home for two nights but heading back down to RI today. Katie and the nugget leave Monday and I need another squeeze of that kid's chubby thighs to tide me over 'til their next visit. Dan and I spent these last two nights binging on food (fajitas, Thai, Jerry and his friend Ben), American Idol (Dreads and Shera are my early picks) and our other TIVOed faves (Survivor All Stars? yes, please). Sometimes I need TV to swallow me and the last couple of nights I willingly hurled myself down the chute. Now I'm ready to get back in the car.

Last week (though, you should know it seems like eons ago; time is an abstract concept lately) we found out that my mom's cancer is non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This is good news. (I'll take it where I can get it). Non-small cell, as opposed to small cell (and, yes, this is the correct medical terminology, prompting my sister-in-law to joke that she has a "non-small butt") spreads more slowly and is the type in which surgery---a curative measure---is a feasible option. Score one, mom.

Our hope was to have the lung and the adrenal gland taken out at the same time. "One in the trunk, one in the hood," I joked regarding the fact that there would actually be two surgeons---the thoracic surgeon and the urologist---operating on her at the same time in this scenario. But Tuesday we learned that rather than operating right away, my mom will undergo a couple of rounds of chemotherapy first. I'll consider this a draw in the Gig (pronounced Jeege...short for Gigi) versus cancer Battle Royale because I'm not yet sure how this will pan out. (Duh.) The idea is that the chemo will shrink the tumors and though she will definitely lose the adrenal gland (which the urologist assured me will have no effect since we have two; God's a planner), it's possible that if the lung tumor shrinks enough, my mom could have just a lobe removed (lobectomy) versus losing the entire lung (pneumonectomy).

By the way, if you google pneumonectomy, the first video result that comes up features my mom's actual thoracic surgeon. That's the guy we've been seeing and with whom we were set up (as if we're dating now) by a friend of my mom's (god bless her) who works as a cancer nurse at Brigham and Women's Hospital. My dad since found an article about how he operated on Ted Kennedy's daughter, Kara. That felt good to learn.

So, the story is that my mom will do two to three chemo treatments and then we'll head back to Boston in a few months to discuss surgery. I'll be honest, this wasn't the news I wanted to hear. I want the cancer out and the traitorous lung to go with it. Also, we worry about the effects of the chemo on my mom's immune system and the possibility of it weakening her before surgery. But, doing preoperative chemo will potentially kill any free-floating cancer cells in her body thus preventing its spread and we also can't discount the possibility that this could mean losing only part of her lung versus the whole thing. Perks, I'd say.

So, the next chapter begins. Readying for chemo. My mom has contacted an oncologist and I'm sure, like everything else so far, things will start moving quickly. As is my custom during such times, I bought a book: The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen by Rebecca Katz with Mat Edelson. I spent some time in a Portsmouth book shop yesterday thumbing through it and it's a pretty amazing cookbook. Not only does it provide a bunch of recipes filled with all the foods and spices that fight inflammation and strengthen your immune system (my goals for my mom in these next few months) but it also explains when certain meals should be eaten. It gives suggestions for super immune boosting meals that are ideal for the week before chemo and then also provides food and herbal suggestions for staving off nausea, etc. I was thinking of sending out some of the recipes to friends and family so if anyone is looking to make her something to eat they'll have some good ideas. (This is an idea from the book. Sounds pushy, I know, but I'll be throwing out any refined sugars or white flour products---big causes of inflammation---that cross my path.)

According to everything I've read, healthy foods fight the inflammation that causes cancer (and most other western illnesses for that matter). I'm about 40 pages into David Servan-Schreiber's Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life. (Coping much?) The funny thing is that I read Servan-Schreiber's The Instinct to Heal: Curing Stress, Anxiety and Depression Without Drugs and Without Talk Therapy this past fall and raved about what an interesting book it was and its impact on me in terms of understanding the importance of physical health on mental health (or is it vice versa?). Turns out the guy has been beating brain cancer's ass for over 15 years through nutrition, excercise, mindset, etc. (This is what I've gathered in the first 40 pages, at least.) Katie (who I turned onto Instinct) bought Anti-Cancer (which I stole from her) before my mom was even diagnosed. Coincidence? Fuh real?

Hearing the news about the postponement of surgery was one of the lower moments we've endured so far (though, as I said, there are differing theories as to whether pre-operative or post-operative chemo serves a person best). My mom actually seemed frightened which was the hardest part to see. My dad, too. There are few things more disconcerting than fear in your parents' eyes (particularly when they have medical backgrounds).

But this was already days ago and with the intensity building as it is, days seem like years. We've all switched gears and are moving forward in faith and courage. My mom texted me last night about the Omega-3 fatty acids in the salmon she was having for dinner---now that's a tumor-busting attitude.

In regard to chemo's potential effect on cancer, the thoracic surgeon said, "Sometimes it shrinks like snow in the sun."

Sounds good to me. Spring is only 16 days away.