The Prologue

Hey, I’m Adrian, and I’m 27. I love cars (#WheelsBeforeFeels) and am passionate about health, fitness, and helping others. If I'm not at the gym working out, you can find me volunteering with the Brampton Youth Soccer Club or with one of the Salvation Army's shelters for families fleeing abuse (women and children). This November, I was diagnosed with tongue cancer, but I'm not going to let that stop me.

Medical Mystery

       In a flurry of working, volunteering, and working out almost every day, a seemingly minor medical issue took a backseat to life. I finally found some time in early September to visit a doctor to get what I thought was an unusually painful and long-lasting canker assessed. 

        I went to a walk-in clinic in Brampton where I was diagnosed with a fungal infection after the doctor inquired about whether I had a girlfriend (not right now), or a boyfriend (not for me), insisting that this was sexually transmitted. I told her the diagnosis was not possible because I hadn’t been sexually active in more months than I’m willing to admit. She dismissively prescribed me a fungal cream and said if it didn’t heal in 2 weeks to come back. Against my better judgment, I agreed to try the treatment.

         After a few days, my tongue was getting worse, and I was getting more desperate. I went to my dentist for a second opinion, only to have him tell me he thought it was a stress induced canker. He prescribed a dental paste that drys out the area to allow the wound to close and told me that if it didn’t get better in 2 weeks, I should come back. 

Discovery

         Needless to say, my tongue did not heal as the doctor and dentist hoped it would. Over the next month, the pain became excruciating and a small mass the size of a pea had developed. I went back to the same walk-in clinic, but this time saw the owner, Dr. Langer. The instant he felt my tongue he made a face like a ghost had popped out from behind me. Without hesitation he told me he was referring me to an eyes-nose-throat specialist (ENT) and that he was going to get me jumped to the front of the line---skipping the normal 3-6 month wait. 

        At this point, I was really starting to worry, and I felt the blood draining out of my face, so I spent the next few minutes lying down as he explained why I was being sent to the specialist. In short, the likelihood of the painful mass being cancerous was high enough that it was worth sending me in for immediate assessment. 

Meeting the ENT Specialist

         Within a week, the ENT Surgeon, Dr. Belchetz’ office called, and had me come in on October 23rd, 2018. Dr. Belchetz was professional and direct in assessing me. He swiftly shooed me into a small operating room where they froze and cut out a portion of the mass to be analyzed. Results would be back in 2 weeks---the longest 2 weeks of my life up to that point. 

“When a man sits with a pretty girl for an hour, it feels like a minute. When a man sits on a hot stove for a minute, it feels longer than the longest hour.” --Einstein

Diagnosis

         On November 6th, 2018, I went into Dr. Belchetz' office again, hoping for good news. He sat me down and didn’t beat around the bush. He said three words you never want to hear in succession: “It is cancer.” He followed that with “you’re young," and “the odds are good for this type of surgery.” Not long after hearing the cancer confirmation, I could feel the blood moving away from my face again...

*Insert Charlie Brown Adult Speech sound effect here*

         Unfortunately, they don’t know why I have this cancer and why it's growing from the outside-in. Less than 5% of people with tongue cancer have it without a known cause. They said I would have needed to smoke for my whole life and be more than twice my age for this type of cancer to develop.

         

The Aftermath

         Dr. Belchetz was going to submit a referral for more testing and I was to wait another 2 weeks for the next steps. I drove to the gym to try and clear my head, but I just couldn’t process the thoughts I was having, and decided to go home.

         I wish the day had ended there, but just as I was turning onto my street, a car came out of nowhere, T-boned me, and totalled the car.

         I finally got home around 11pm after dealing with the police and insurance, and broke the news to my family. After a few tears were shed, we called it a night and closed the curtain on the worst day of my life.

If you want to help you can share my story and/or donate to my go fund me page.

Http://www.gofundme.com/help-adrian-fight-tongue-cancer