Mo-vember

This morning as I was driving the kids to school they were talking about how November is Men's Health Awareness month, and people commemorate this idea by growing mustaches, which then makes this month Mo-vember.
We have had a fall of thinking about men's health issues here at the fifth lamp house.
My husband was taking his morning shower one day in August and felt a lump.
He went to the doctor right away and was diagnosed with testicular cancer.

I've been having difficulty finding words to talk about this experience, it all happened in kind of a whirlwind of activity, and doctor visits and surgery and chemo.
The best news about this situation is that testicular cancer is very treatable, with a 90% cure rate, and even higher if caught early before metastases.
Since early detection is the best way to treat this cancer, please do exams.
And if you find something out of the ordinary, please go in.
The doctors we saw told us that many of the people who come in have tumors that they've ignored for weeks or months and at that point the cancer has spread and it's more difficult to treat.
So the moral is - If You See Something, Say Something.

As for our family, we're out of the woods.
My brave, strong husband is cancer-free, and finished with chemo and we're back into our regular routine.
In a lot of ways we've been lucky - he caught the tumor really early, the doc was surprised he felt it at all, his surgery was without complications, the chemo was only one dose and my rock star of a hubby came through it like a champ.

Anyway, if you feel like growing a mustache to help raise awareness for men's heath issues, or would like to donate to the American Cancer Society or Livestrong, or the Prostate Cancer Foundation here are some links.

Hold close the ones you love, today and every day.