David,
I so totally agree with the statement that the mental game in cancer is a big factor; being prepared and knowledgeable and ready to fight, fight, fight at every level during all phases of diagnosing and treatment and recovery are all critical steps.

It REALLY irks me when ppl shrug off my rather good ride through treatment and recovery (just 4 weeks post but "fully" recovered by 3 weeks post) as just being LUCKY, bull!

It was a lot of hard work, literally, to constantly monitor the condition of the sores, ulcers, and patches, and the constant changing effect the various treatments and techniques I tried to battle each side effect. It was HARD work and time consuming. I know I spent far more actual time battling than 90% who either did not get sufficiently educated nor feel the need to get actively involved with their own well being.

You have a great attitude about this all and many should look at you as one of shining examples of how to fight the Beast!