Over 35% of the way there!

Friends and family,

Last Sunday evening I read in my Facebook news feed a post from a friend and former colleague who has been battling cancer.  He indicated his leukemia had returned, the doctors had nothing else they could do, and he was going back home to enjoy the comforts of home in what time he had left.  Thursday night of this week I saw that he had passed away- four days after he had gone home to enjoy his remaining time.  I HATE THIS DISEASE!  Talion- may you rest in peace, and may you finally be able to rest from the effects of your cancer and your treatment.  My prayers are with your friends and family.

Anyway…I wanted to drop a quick e-mail to update you on the progress of my fundraising efforts for Huntsman Cancer Foundation.  As of this morning, thanks to your kindness and generosity, we’re up to a total of $3,550 in giving.  35% of the way to the $10K goal, with 4 weeks remaining.  THANK YOU SO MUCH!  If you’d like to donate, in any amount you think you’re able, or if you simply want to take a look at the progress, please click here: http://hcf.kintera.org/lotoja/toddhandy   And, don't forget- your company may have a donation matching program.  Check into it, because that will DOUBLE any donation you feel you can make, which greatly helps in reaching the $10K goal!

Four weeks from yesterday I’ll arise early in the morning, and spend the next 10-10.5 hours racing my bike from Logan, UT to Jackson Hole, WY.  Many are amazed when they hear what we do in that race, but I can tell you that what happens in that race is just a microcosm of what cancer patients and survivors go through- but theirs isn’t simply a bike race, in many cases it’s a race for life- a race against mutant cells, a race for a cure, a race of dignity.  Talion lost his race, and others will as well, but anything I can do to help others win their race is my goal and my passion.

Thank you for your friendship, your love, your generosity and your willingness to be a part of something that’s greater than all of us!  If you’re a Facebook user, please consider liking my fundraising page, “Kick Cancer To The Curb”. Click here to check it out…and please “Like” if you’re so inclined.  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kick-Cancer-To-The-Curb/139085902844170

Thank you all for what you mean to me.  I’ll continue to post updates of fundraising progress on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/toddjhandy), my blog, and via Twitter (http://twitter.com/toddhandy ).

Thank you for your relationship with me, and for your love and support!

With best regards,

Todd

PS- PLEASE feel free to forward the e-mail, share the link to the blog, retweet on Twitter and share on Facebook! The more people this can go to, the more potential to help raise funds!

New Facebook Page Created- PLEASE LIKE!

Today I created a new Facebook page to help get the word out about my Huntsman Cancer Foundation fundraising.  Click here to go to the Page, and then please feel free to LIKE and to SHARE.


Kick Cancer To The Curb


Thanks!


Oh, yeah- and current fundraising status:


$2,685 raised
$345 pending or offline
$3,030 total so far

Kick Cancer to the Curb!

Friends, family and colleagues,

Today I went to the Huntsman Cancer Hospital for my fourth scan since completing my radiation treatments in November of 2009.  As always, my family and I hoped and prayed that we'd be told I am still "cancer free", but regardless the outcome, we would take it as it comes and live by faith and not by fear.  Well, the results are in, and I’m STILL CANCER FREE!

Most of you know of my incredible journey, and how I came to be diagnosed with B cell follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  Those who don't, I'd be happy to share the story some time if you're interested.  The bottom line is that Lisa and I feel we've been blessed to receive the diagnosis as early as we did, and to be able to be treated by the wonderful staff at Huntsman Cancer Hospital in Salt Lake City.

All we've been through has been made easier by the incredible medical and research staff of the Huntsman Cancer Hospital, Huntsman Cancer Institute, and Huntsman Cancer Foundation. Which brings me to the purpose for my e-mail.  I am attempting to raise $10,000 in donations earmarked 100% for Huntsman Cancer Foundation. That in and of itself is difficult (that’s more than I’ve ever raised at one time for any charity for which I’ve fundraised). But, to make it even more difficult, I am looking to raise those funds by September 10- the day I race 206 miles in my seventh LOTOJA (http://www.lotojaclassic.com) race. 

So, here's where you fit into the equation, and why I'm sending this e-mail to you.  And, by the way, let me apologize- I fear some of you may receive duplicates of this e-mail- I’m sorry (between e-mail, Facebook, etc. you might see a second copy).

If you feel you could donate to help with cancer research, and help me reach my goal of $10,000, please click below:

http://hcf.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=467232&lis=1&kntae467232=FA54A245B2984A49A9B5D700C2C2D121&supId=306528814

And, don't forget- your company may have a donation matching program.  Check into it, because that will DOUBLE any donation you feel you can make, which greatly helps in reaching the $10K goal!

I thank you all in advance for anything you feel you can do. I’ll continue to post updates of fundraising progress on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/toddjhandy), my blog (http://www.toddhandy.blogspot.com/), and via Twitter (http://twitter.com/toddhandy). 

Thank you for your relationship with me, and for your love and support!

With best regards,

Todd

PS- PLEASE feel free to forward the e-mail, share the link to the blog, retweet on Twitter and share on Facebook! The more people this can go to, the more potential to help raise funds!

Win This Bike Courtesy of Biker's Edge!!!

OK, time to get even more serious about cancer fundraising. Zach Chatelain, owner of Biker's Edge in Kaysville, donated this Felt Curbside bike for my Huntsman fundraising!

The bike is a single speed or fixed gear bike, you can adjust based on flipping the rear wheel around. It's a GREAT bike for around town, and has a retail price of $699!

My hope is that those who've not yet donated may consider doing so now with the chance to help out AND win this wonderful bike, and those who have donated also have a chance, and can donate more if they'd like.

Tickets are $20 each. Those who've donated, I'll provide one ticket per $20 donated (rounding down to the nearest whole ticket). I'll draw for the bike on September 3rd, so you have two weeks to donate.

Again, I'm trying to raise $20K for Huntsman Cancer Foundation. I'm just over $3K or 15% there, but I know many who are planning to donate but haven't. I hope this encourages more to do so with the potential of not only helping out cancer research, but also winning a SWEET bike! Check out more pics below.

Good luck!

Two Weeks In And Over $3K Raised

Just a quick update- two weeks ago I sent out emails, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter messages in an attempt to raise $20K for Huntsman Cancer Foundation. As of tonight the generous donations equal $3,130! 15% of the way there, so we'll need to step it up a bit if we want to hit the number by Sept. 11. Check out my next post to learn more about how you can donate AND WIN A BRAND NEW BIKE!

One of the most difficult things I've ever done...

Friends, family and colleagues,

“You have B cell follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma.” 

Last October those were the words I heard as I was diagnosed with cancer.  The circumstances under which I received the diagnosis were miraculous, and I'll be happy to share them with any of you who haven't heard the incredible story.  Still, at age 40 to receive a diagnosis of cancer was, to say the least, difficult!  I underwent 17 radiation treatments in the month of November (2009), which was probably one of the most difficult things I’ve done so far in my life.  In the end, I completed all 17 treatments, was pronounced “cancer free” in January of this year, and just this past July I had my first 6 month check-up, and received word that I’m still cancer free!

All of this would not have been possible had it not been for the incredible medical and research staff of the Huntsman Cancer Hospital, Huntsman Cancer Institute, and Huntsman Cancer Foundation.  Which brings me to the second most difficult thing I’ve done.  Because Huntsman literally saved my life, I am attempting to raise $20,000 in donations earmarked 100% for Huntsman Cancer Foundation.  That in and of itself is difficult (that’s more than I’ve ever raised at one time for any charity for which I’ve fundraised).  But, to make it even more difficult, I am looking to raise those funds by September 11- the day I race 206 miles in my sixth LOTOJA (http://www.lotojaclassic.com) race.

Here’s how I arrived at $20,000:

Between my e-mail address book, Facebook friends, LinkedIn contacts, etc., I think I can get to approximately 1,000 individuals.  If all 1,000 of them donate just $20, I’m there!

Now, not all 1,000 of those folks will donate for one reason or another, and that’s OK.  So, let’s say 500 of them donate just $40- I’m still there!

And, if all I raise is the fundraising minimum for Huntsman Hometown Heroes ($1,000), I’ve still helped out those who can benefit from cancer research, and I’m still there!

So, I’m sending this e-mail to each of you.  I apologize, but I fear a few may receive duplicates of this e-mail- I’m sorry.  Regardless, if you feel you could donate to help with cancer research, and help me reach my difficult goal of $20,000, please click here- http://www.huntsmancancerfoundation.org/toddhandy

I’ll thank you all in advance for anything you feel you can do.  I’ll continue to post updates of fundraising progress on my blog (www.toddhandy.blogspot.com), and also via Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/toddhandy).

Thank you for your relationship with me, and for your love and support!

With best regards,

Todd

PS- PLEASE feel free to forward the e-mail, share the link to the blog, retweet on Twitter and share on Facebook!  The more people this can go to, the more potential to help raise funds!

Two More Words!

Well, it's been 6 months and one day since I had my PET scan and Dr. Glenn pronounced the cancer "all gone".  At that time she put me on a 6 month schedule for follow-up scans, so today I went back for my first official scan since getting the good news on Jan. 19.


This time around I was booked for a plain old CT scan, not the full blown PET scan, for a variety of reasons.  Suffice to say that the CT is "good enough" ongoing, and uses much less radiation (a PET scan is more like the equivalent of 300 x-rays!).  So, at 11:30 AM I began drinking the first of two bottles of barium contrast dye that coats the stomach and the "innards" and allows the scan to be more effective. Mind you- this is a milky, gross tasting (yes, it's 'flavored', but Brussels sprouts are also 'flavored', and they're GROSS!), awful concoction.  But, it's necessary, so you just deal with it.  Next time I swear I'll refrigerate it- it can't make it any worse!  So, anyway, drank this nasty stuff from 11:30 to 1:00, at which point we did the scan.  Also had to do an IV of iodine contrast dye, which makes the body VERY warm VERY fast.  At least it doesn't last- so that's good.


From there I went down and had my blood draw for my labs.  Then, Lisa and Barry met me at Huntsman and we went to grab a bite to eat for lunch at TGI Friday's.


Came back, had the poking and prodding that goes along with the examination (including checking all areas where lymph nodes are present to see if any appear to be enlarged and can be felt externally).  All seemed well there.  My heart rate was 61, BP was 124/78, and O2 was 97.  The nurse pronounced me "healthy", and I realized again the benefits of all this cycling I do!  :-)


Dr. Glenn then came in, had a nice smile on her face, and told me that the chest, abdomen and pelvic CT scans had shown no cancer at all.  "All Clear"!  Those are the two more words!


Now, at the risk of sounding ungrateful, which I'm not- Lisa and I knew that would be the outcome.  We've been very calm, and have felt that the Spirit was comforting us and letting us know all would be OK, and it is!


So, that's the news for today.  Thanks to all who have reached out via e-mail, text and phone today!  I'm happy for the news, and even more happy for all my family and friends and their support.


***CHECK THIS OUT***


Also, I've been waiting for this day to come so I could get the word out. Each year I raise money for Huntsman Cancer Hospital via their Hometown Heroes program.  I'm doing so again in conjunction with LOTOJA this year, but this year it's personal (when I raised money last year I had not yet been diagnosed, so hadn't become a "cancer patient").  So, here's the deal- scoff if you'd like, and make fun, but I'm going on record saying I'd like to raise $20K for cancer research in the next two months.  Yep, you got that right- $20 THOUSAND DOLLARS!


Here's the math- between my address book, Facebook, Twitter, etc. I think I can get to darn near 1,000 people (not to mention if they repost, retweet, forward, etc., etc.).  If each of those folks would give $20 for cancer research, I'd have met my goal.  If only half give $40, I'm still there.  If all I raise is $2,000, I'm still happy as I've raised additional funds to research and fight this disease.


So, I'll be Tweeting and Facebooking about this, and sending e-mail out to all soon to get it going.  I'm also trying to line up some corporate sponsors for some dollars, if not at least some raffles of some decent products to help drive some participation.


Stay tuned, and let me know if you'd be willing to donate at least $20 to help in the fight against cancer (but know you're welcome to donate more if you can and would like!).


My Hometown Heroes page is here- click and check it out...


http://www.huntsmancancerfoundation.org/toddhandy

Much love!
Todd

Two Words.

Yes, but which ones? Try these on for size:

CANCER FREE.
ALL GONE.
HUNTSMAN ROCKS.
RADIATION WORKED.
MOVE ON.
BOO-YAH (I know, it's one word, but if I hyphenate it can it count as two?)
BUH BYE!

So, we'll get to those in a minute, but just to give you a quick blow-by-blow of the day...


6:00- 9:00 AM
Checked in to Huntsman at 6:00 AM. On the way in, about two blocks from HCH on the University of Utah perimeter road up from Greek Row I almost took out three deer who at the last minute decided to run across the road right in front of me. Locked up the brakes...deer went on their way. Good thing I didn't have to have my pulse and BP when I arrived! Woulda been a nice start to the day to take out some deer and mess up my car. Luckily for them and me we avoided the entire situation.


Did the whole radioactive-isotope-bonded-to-sugar in the form of an IV thing, then did the obligatory one hour rest while the body (and primarily the cancer) metabolized the sugar so it would show up in the PET scan. Quick refresher, it will show up in the heart, the kidneys, etc. where it SHOULD be, but will also show up in the lymph nodes and other areas where it SHOULDN'T be if there is any cancer.


Went on down to the PET scan area, the tech wrapped the thing around me that binds the arms to the sides to help them stay out of the way of the scan and also so one doesn't have to hold them to one's side for the entire 45 minutes. She started to slide me into the scanner and I had a small freak out (enclosed spaces are bad enough for me, but the binding of the arms to my side, while I understand it, makes it even worse!). She talked me down off the ledge, and we agreed I would place my hands under my rear end to hold them in place, but to enable me to not have them bound to my sides. Was able to get through the PET scan without too much anxiety, although I really hate these things. [Editor's note- Dan Kadrmas, one of the Bountiful Mazda Cycling Club I ride with, and one of the developers of the software/programming that runs the scanners at Huntsman told me in e-mail today that the next time I go for a scan it should be half the time. Half of a 45 minute claustrophobic encounter is better, but it's still 22.5 minutes of CLAUSTROPHOBIA. No dice on my request to open that bad boy up and not make it so close to my face. Not Dan's call, though, and he's doing his part cutting the 45 minutes in half. Thanks DK!]


9:00-11:30
Went back to work and did what I could in the short amount of time between visits to HCH today. Also tried to focus on my work and my sales team, and not on the results and what I would find out. Cyndi, our HR Manager and administrative assistance (who also happens to be a cancer survivor) stopped by and asked if I was nervous and wound up. I told her I would not allow cancer to do that to me- that I would take it as it came, and that I was focused on one day at a time. I firmly believe cancer needs no additional power and energy from me worrying and giving it a chance to take hold of me.


11:30-12:30
Lunch with Lisa and Barry (her Dad) at Lion House pantry in downtown SLC. LOVE THAT PLACE- great food, good portions, and fun to be downtown (although the construction is getting WAY old).

12:30-2:30
Lab work, blood tests, and follow-up with Dr. Glenn, my regular oncologist (I make it sound like it's cool to have one's own oncologist- take my advice, skip that part!).


Dr. Glenn came in and said something like "OK, your scan came back all clean." Me- "What exactly does that mean?" Her- "That the cancer is all gone." Me- "[chirp...chirp...chirp (those are crickets)]" I was speechless for just a minute. I have had faith, and have prayed and fasted for this very answer, but have also prepared myself for news that wouldn't be quite so good, just because the odds were that that would be what I would hear. Remember my post where I said "how would you feel if Santa brought you EVERYTHING you asked him for?" Well, that's how this went down. The Lord answered our prayers completely- 100%.


We talked a lot with Dr. Glenn, and the bottom line is I am considered cancer free. If there is any cancer in my body, it's small enough to not register on the CAT scan, nor the PET scan, so we'll simply not worry about it and move on. In Dr. Glenn's words, "You need to put this behind you now." DONE! That's one Dr.'s order I'll gladly follow 100%.


She also said that given my "complete response" to the radiation (meaning the body responded exactly as we wanted it to), we didn't need to come back in 3 months, but 6 would suffice. We'll do another CAT scan at that time, ascertain where we are, and make the call from there (most likely more 6 month intervals for a while). So, I'm already booked for July 20 for a CAT scan and follow-up/lab work.


6:00
I get home and see some yellow and black balloons tied to the railing (LiveStrong colors). I go into the house and the entire kitchen and dining room are done in black and yellow, and there are balloons spelling out "HandyBeStrong". Turns out Lisa invited a handful of folks to come celebrate with us. We didn't get a chance to reach out to everyone, and she only called the folks she thought she should, not knowing who I had told. So, for those who we didn't reach in time, please know we didn't mean to leave anyone out.


Bottom line, and then I'm calling it and going to bed. I sit here tonight and blog as we close this chapter of the cancer story. I hope we won't open another chapter any time soon, but I'm leaving that in the Lord's hands. He's guided us and assisted and blessed us all along the way, and I've learned to turn it over to him and let him lead me. But, I will say that there are others who are responsible for this cancer free diagnosis on Jan. 19, 2010, as follows:


1- The Lord, who let us know about this cancer early on, and then was with us and guided us as we navigated the turns, bumps and hills as we made the journey.


2- My family and friends. First and foremost my amazing, beautiful wife. Then my amazing beautiful daughters. Then mine and Lisa’s parents, our brothers and sisters, our incredible friends, the list goes on and on.


3- The wonderful people at Huntsman, who have literally saved my life. I can’t say enough about the staff there, and their caring, knowledgeable, intelligent manner and their treatment of and for me. I’m indebted forever to all of you!

"Handy Be Strong" if you can't quite read the balloons.

Wonderful card and gift from the Bells...thanks Ben for the sweet gift!  I'll wear it next time you come to our home for FHE and I kick your butt in Guitar Hero!  :-)

The Magelbys know what makes Handy tick...movie night on Todd!

A Little Nervous

So, tomorrow is the next 'big day' in the ongoing cancer saga. I wrapped up radiation therapy on the day after Thanksgiving, and then got a reprieve until the follow up in January, which seemed so far away back then.

Well, far away is no more...my appointment is tomorrow. We'll start the day at 6:00 with a PET scan, and then I'll probably go to work from 9:00-11:30. Will go to lunch with Lisa and Barry and then back up to Huntsman for lab work at 12:50 and then my follow-up w/ Dr. Glenn at 1:20. We'll have the results of the PET scan, and we'll know if the radiation got all the cancer or not.

Strange thing is that I think whether or not the answer is that we got it all, I still anticipate they'll want me to come back in three months and we'll start a regular 3 month cycle from there. This is an incurable cancer, as those who've been following this and the blog know, so they may just start me on the 3 mo. cycle like they would have done had we not had the opportunity to try the radiation first. No chemotherapy, at least not until the symptoms of the cancer are worse than the side effects of chemo will be.

So, I have to fast from midnight on so the sugar/radioisotope IV they give me will be most effective and do its job.

Will blog the results later tomorrow night so everyone will get a status update and we'll go from there.

A BIG shout out to Andrea wo has wrapped up all her treatments- radiation AND chemo! Our prayers continue to be with you, Bob and the boys, and we send love from Layton. Oh, and just so everyone knows...cancer patients are tough! Andrea has done radiation and chemo and keeps on going. What an inspiration to me and my family. We love you guys!

Veni...vidi...vici! Bring it, cancer!

A Conundrum...

OK, so several friends and family have indicated they've been checking the blog and haven't seen anything lately.  Full disclosure- after radiation treatments ended, I was so wiped out and was starting a new job, and I just wanted a break.  Same holds true for my Twitter page...

So, now that a month has passed since I wrapped up radiation (a month!), I've been wanting to get back to regular updates, not to mention branching out a bit and not just talking about cancer.

So, I've started gearing back up for regular updates, and happened to take a look at my blog ranking in the pantheon of "webdom".  Not that I'm a famous blogger like Fat Cyclist or Twisted Spoke, two cycling blogs I enjoy reading (especially Fat Cyclist- you should take the time to read a half dozen posts- you'll be hooked!).  But, my blog does have enough traffic to be ranked, which many websites out there can't say.  What does this have to do with anything?  It started me thinking about how I could leverage this blog to do even more good- specifically, to raise money for cancer.  I've been doing that for the last several years on my own, but have decided to look into allowing advertising on my blog.  WHAT?  ARE YOU CRAZY HANDY?  Now, before anyone asks why I'm "selling out", or says "why should I pay to read your blog", we're talking about advertising being allowed on the site, 100% of the proceeds of which I would donate to Huntsman Cancer Institute.  So, I'm considering turning on Google AdSense.  What is AdSense?  Read on...

What is AdSense?


"AdSense enables you to earn money by placing targeted text and image ads
on your blog.

Google automatically chooses which ads to show based on your blog's content, and you earn money when visitors view or click on these ads."

So, note- the readers of the blog DO NOT PAY anything.  Advertisers pay when someone clicks on something to take a look at it.

Which brings me to today's post...what do you think about this?  I've created a survey at the top of the blog, and would ask that everyone who reads this post lets me know what you think of this possibility.  I'm 100% willing to listen to a majority who say "don't do it, it's tacky, shameless and commercial."  However, if the majority say "Yeah, do it, let's let those advertisers' money go to helping with cancer research", then I'll take a look at that, as well.

So...the decision is in your hands.  What do you think?  Please vote...but only once each.  The survey runs through 1/15, at which point I'll revisit this and make a decision.

Oh, and on the cancer front- had a follow-up with Dr. Million on Dec. 15 and she told me all looked good on my recovery from radiation and she was turning me back over to Dr. Glenn.  I go on Jan. 19 for my next PET scan and results with Dr. Glenn, at which point we should know if the cancer all got taken care of by the radiation.  So, prayers and positive thoughts between now and Jan. 19 are greatly appreciated!

Much love to all...