August 17, 2013 - Team Luv, Part I

The day following infusion number three, I was up early and on my way to work. No wait - it's Saturday, you dope! Yeh, I know - but this was for FUN, not work.

The San Diego Team In Training Triathlon Team was doing a cycling training session that would turn around at my work, and I was asked by a tremendously wonderful friend if I would be there to greet the team.  I had met Melissa last year about this time when I did Team In Training for the Carlsbad Half Marathon.  She is a passionate athlete and fundraiser for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and has singlehandedly raised over $10,000 - that's HUGE.  How could I say no?

It was a work day for daughter Amanda, so she and I sat out at the entrance and waited for Team to arrive. 

How exciting to see all those purple jerseys wheel up, and how fabulous to cheer them on during their training and to personally be able to thank them for their hard work!

The athletes of Team In Training are all stellar heroes in my book.  I know how hard it is to train for something as initially intimidating as a half marathon, or a marathon, or a triathlon - but throw in all the hard work it takes to fundraise, plus any personal life you want to have, and you got yourself a real challenge.

But it's because of these dedicated athlete-fundraisers that I'm able to get up early in the morning following an infusion for Stage IV Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and be there to cheer them on:  Rituxan was made possible in part by research dollars from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, raised by Team In Training athletes. 

In the pre-Rituxan era, which wasn't too many years ago, I would have gone from watch-and-wait directly to chemo and all its toxic side effects.  Rituxan, working with the immune system, targets a specific protein on the cancer cells and programs them to die, leaving healthy cells alone.

So do I feel a personal debt of gratitude to Team In Training and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society?

HELL YEAH!

Melissa, Amanda, and I.
GO TEAM!