Okay, so I said I would never do the PMC (again). Too long, too many riders, too much fundraising...I promised Wanda that I would only do it one year....

But then I was hooked. The sheer number of commited riders, the unbridled support from Team Perry, the $36.00 dollar check I can’t bring myself to cash, the Red Sox game for Living Proof...Now I am going to do two days. And I will probably say “never again” to Wanda. But I will probably be lying...

In 2011, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. My father had prostate cancer. He died from prostate cancer. Panic began to set in. But I had been diagnosed early, I was followed extensively (with multiple biopsies, blood tests and other diagnostic procedures) and the doctors, nurses and other providers truly cared about me.

I was surgically treated by the great folks at Brigham and Dana Farber in August 2016. My urologist Steven Chang, MD and his group, in tandem with Joe Ciccone, MD and Neil Birnbaum, MD at Dedham Medical, diagnosed me, followed me, and treated me. My prognosis was and remains excellent. My PSA returned to zero. At the time (and today), I consider myself cured from cancer.

However...

In my post-op MRI, the radiologists at DMA, DCFI and B&W noted a incidental finding, a growth on my kidney. It didn't look like a cyst, but appeared essentialy benign. In an effort to be careful, my doctors again recommended biopsy and investigation. In Novembert, 2017, they determined that the growth was renal cell carcinoma. Panic truly set in. No one in the family ever had this disease. I had no frame of reference...my optimism from my previous encounter with cancer was dashed.

My B&W/DCFI team came through again. Enlisting the assistance of Dr. Paul Shyn and the Interventional Radiology Team, I underwent surgical ablation of the tumor in December 2017. I was lucky-my tumor was in the earliest stages. I again have an excellent prognosis. EARLY DETECTION MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD.

I will try to give back. Sheff Law Offices will continue to support me (Thanks, Doug, Frank and the rest of the SLO tribe). We are proud supporters of the PMC because it is leading a charge to beat cancer. In fact, last year 100% of rider-raised revenue went directly to support the Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's tireless commitment to finding a cure for cancer. The doctors supported by Team Perry take on the most recalcitrant cancers, the hard ones. They are looking for screening procedures; they are looking for cures. They will defeat pancreatic, colon and other hard GI cancers.

So, Costa, let’s get ready. Joy, time to get back on the bike. Wanda, we are riding each weekend. Jean, please continue to leave me in the dust. Team Perry, ready or not, I'm back.

To all of PMC supporters, thank you. To SLO, thank you. To all others, please help me give back. Please help them. Please help others so that early detection procedures are available to all patients, not just the lucky. I'll see you out there on the road.