A precious few times in everyone's life, there's a day that stands out above all others.  For my neighbor in grad school, it was discovering an esoteric piece of information that advanced the treatment of whooping cough.  For the spouse of a friend, it was selling that long-shot screenplay.  For some, the birth of a child after years of trying.  For others, the joyous trepidation of hanging their shingle as business owner. 

For me, one of those shining jewels was today, the day my mother achieved remission from small cell lung cancer (SCLC)!  Do you know the odds? 

According to the National Cancer Institute, for most patients with SCLC the current treatments do not cure the cancer.  E-Medicine reports that lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths both in males and females in the United States. For SCLC the 5-year survival rate is 1-5%, and the overall median survival is about 6-10 months.

Did you read that?  Go back and have another look.  Hey, don't skip ahead - go read it again!  My mom has always been pretty tough for a wee little bird. 

The war isn't over but we're celebrating mightily the monumental battle won today.  She went dancing tonight to celebrate, wearing a saucy outfit, a little mascara on her wild new-growth eyelashes, a portable oxygen tank and some crazy hat.  Wigs are too hot and uncomfortable for dancing, of course.  She'll enjoy a month with her mother in Florida, then it's back to treatment...this time, prophylactic radiation to the brain.

Thank you all for your positive thoughts, prayers, words of encouragement, and support in ways big and small.  I'll be forever grateful.