Post-Cancer Comeback

I went thru treatment for follicular lymphoma 3a in 2018; FL 3a is an aggressive non-hodgkin lymphoma. I had a mass of conglomerated lymph nodes in my abdomen measuring 4” x 6”. The treatment was 4 1/2 months of R-CHOP (biologic plus chemotherapy) and one month radiation. I ran a 7:22 1500 meters two months after chemotherapy and a month before radiation. It was the hardest race I have ever run.

In March I ran a 3,000 meter tempo run in 14:49. The progress has been slow, and the set back large. I am also nearly 70, so age is certainly a factor. Tempo runs and less volume has worked for me. I would think high intensity and high volume might be a hindrance to the health of a cancer survivor.

Good luck.

Igy

I don't know about running after cancer, but I just wanted you to know you definitely have talent (and your heath battles show amazing strength and perseverance!).

Don't read too much into the 7:52 mile...the first mile back always sucks. Anyway pick a focus ( mile, 5k, half marathon). Then a goal ex: I want to break 6:30 in the mile this year. Then build your training and stepping stone races (when they are available, hopefully by September) to reach that goal. You won't see big jumps in improvement like when you were younger. So you have to be patient and enjoy the training and racing to get you there. Be careful not to run differently to compensate for the"fake" pain you are having... you'll end up with a real injury. Be mindful of that. All the best to you!

Thanks for the kind words.

Most days, I am borderline dizzy and disoriented. Permanent hearing damage with screaming tinnitus every waking second makes it hard to stay sane. I find it difficult to think straight and I don't have a lot of mental stamina. Long-term effects of repeated extremely high doses of chemotherapy.

But I was proud as hell of that 7:52! Couldn't believe I made it past the 2nd lap without stopping. It was an all-out effort and it was much harder than any race I ever ran in HS or college.

Right now, my goal is just to see if I can get into any kind of shape, or if I am able to run consistently at all. If so, I'd like to do another mile time trial in a few months.

So, here's where I'm at: About 2 months ago, my resting heart rate was low-mid 50's. I started some walking (2-3 miles) and biking (about 2-6 miles), plus a little jogging once a week (1 min jog, 2 min walk, 8-12 reps). Jogging is a challenge; my feet burn with that phantom pain and my HR spikes up to 170 with each rep. But my fitness is improving -- resting HR is down to mid-high 40's now. (For reference, it was 37-38 when I was training 10 mi/week 13 years ago).

I am going to keep up the walking and biking, and try to transition to more jogging.

If you are looking for inspiration, look up the old thread about a comeback by the "used to be cancer guy" or something. Sadly he didn't make it in the end, but following his journey was one of the most inspirational things that this $hit hole has ever given us. Hopefully someone will produce a link.

Good luck!!!!

Doing these little workouts more-or-less regularly over the past 2 months has improved my fitness. I'm stronger and I've lost 6 lbs, from 182 to 176.

I'm 6'0" and skinny-fat. My racing weight was around 163. During 3 years of cancer treatment 2015-17, my weight first zoomed up to 205 (lots of steroids to help me get thru the early phase of treatment), then slowly down to 175, then suddenly crashed to 140 with more intense treatment (couldn't walk; was in a wheelchair for a while), then slowly up to 182.

Yesterday, I did 2 little workouts:

AM - 1.5 mi brisk walk @ 25 min

PM - 8 x (1' jog at easy run pace, walk 2')

The running workout went better then previous attempts. HR was up to 160-165 each rep (better than 170-180 previously) and recovered down to 100-110 with the walk (better than 120-135 previously). My feet burned a bit, though. Nothing to do about that!

So, maybe next running ... um, jogging "workout", I'll jog for 2 minutes with 2 minutes walk, and see how that goes.

been around here awhile wrote:

If you are looking for inspiration, look up the old thread about a comeback by the "used to be cancer guy" or something. Sadly he didn't make it in the end, but following his journey was one of the most inspirational things that this $hit hole has ever given us. Hopefully someone will produce a link.

Good luck!!!!

Thanks for this link! His story is really something.

I am fortunate to be cancer free for 2+ years now, but at one point it was beyond dire. My lungs were nearly completely full of hundreds of nodules; I was coughing blood and it took me 45 minutes to walk 300 meters from the parking lot into the hospital. The doctor said that there was no explanation for how my body was getting any oxygen at all.

The doctor then refused to have any further consultation or conversation with me in his office. He said "This is a three hour situation" and I was rushed into a room ... later, they discovered that my liver also had hundreds of tumors, plus the organs in my abdominal cavity were being crushed by "multiple, uncountable" tumorous growths.

Researching nationwide, the medical team told me that there was no precedent for a human to be alive with that much cancer. There was no such thing as a known treatment protocol, because there was supposed to be no such thing as ... me. I guess that since I was in my hospital room deliriously shouting "F*** you! You don't kill me. I KILL YOU" they figured I was at least going to fight so they decided to try giving me some crazy s*** and see what happens, instead of just letting me go.

Realistically, without exaggeration, I had about zero point zero chance of making it: the cancer would kill me at any moment, or the very intense chemo would kill me any day, or the fact that the chemo was working would then result in death because, say, the huge pile of tumors in my lungs would turn into mush and I would drown in it, or other similarly gruesome results (there was a long list).

Well, so I'm here. Not as smart or as strong (long term effects) but I sure as hell am going to get back to running if I can.

Sub-8 Mile,

Interesting story, and glad you are here to share it. I was never that dire, but could be dead by now. Some of the latest research on my disease is the treatment can change the DNA. In the past this was theorized, but can be proven today. Of course that does not mean the whole process cannot be re-scrambled. I am three months out from my 24 month CT scan, with luck I will move to annual monitoring from quarterly.

Igy

Igy,

Congrats on your progress. Thanks for sharing your story.

You, my friend, are a frigging legend! I teared up reading this. I can't imagine the sh** you've gone through. I have no advice, only praise. Keep at it, and keep posting. You are incredibly motivating. I have colitis and thought my colon was going to have to be removed 4 years ago. I'm on Remicade now, and I am ever trying to get back in running shape. I remember the 9 days I spent in the hospital hoping they could save my colon. The treatment worked and I'm doing well. Not anywhere as dire as yous situation, but I felt compelled to share my story, and that I'm routing for you! I'm 42 now by the way. Young in the scheme of things, but living on pills and borrowed time as my grandfather used to say. All the best with your comeback. I think I'll run a little longer and tougher tomorrow in your honor.

Did anywhere from 30-60 mpw in college. At 29 I went through 2 months of heavy radiation to my head and neck after a very intense initial surgery to remove the tumor. Went from 155 to 140lbs and really felt too skinny and weak. I tried running a few times in the first few months/year after radiation and there was no way I could consistently train. My body would just completely run out of gas. I’d be tired for weeks early on if I ever did any strenuous activity. I got the weight back in fairly quickly but that wasn’t the real issue. The radiation just destroyed my ability to recover.

It’s now 5 years later and I’m running 30 mpw and seemingly keeping up. I’ve kept the easy days really easy but I still feel pretty decent. It took patience and honestly didn’t really worry about running for a few years. Finally felt like giving it a go and it’s been pretty good overall. Hoping to race some longer races this summer. Best of luck and stay patient!!

I was really lucky. My cancer was pretty minor considering my health and age. I had Hodgkin's Lymphoma during my junior and senior years in college. I went through chemotherapy and radiation.

Doctor wasn't too encouraging, but I was fortunate to be able to come back and run with minimal troubles. I ran some throughout most of chemotherapy and radiation, but struggled to run a couple miles at a slow pace. Coming back was tough for a few weeks or more where I could barely break 10 minute pace without a struggle, but I was able to go on normal runs after not too long. I jumped in a race after a couple of months and was able to run my high school equivalent time in the 3K.

I enjoyed running a lot more after going through the process, but didn't have much desire to race competitively. I ended up running under 31 for the 10K after a few years and considered training hard again. However, I was never able to recover from hard training and my immune system seemed to always break down on me after a couple of weeks whenever I attempted to get "serious" with my training. I had check ups for over ten years after treatment and had some minor side effects from the treatment, but nothing that would prevent me from running. I am in my upper 30s and continuing to run, but I don't have much desire to race anymore, but continue to run 50-70 miles a week and coach.

So glad you are doing well and are active. God bless you!

Hodgkin's Lymphoma wrote:

I ended up running under 31 for the 10K after a few years and considered training hard again. However, I was never able to recover from hard training and my immune system seemed to always break down on me after a couple of weeks...

Wow! You weren’t running seriously, had a hard time recovering, yet ran a 30 minute 10K? That is remarkable. Were you professional or D1 at one time.

Hodgkin's Lymphoma,

Thanks for sharing your experience with getting back to running and trying to train. I've been wondering what I'll be able to do, in terms of hard training, if and when I am able get to the point of attempting it.

Ease into it with a mix of walking and running. Train, don't strain, at least initially.

I do not, but that's awesome, keep us updated!

amigos,

Yeah, I hear you about giving it time and forgetting about running for a few years. Thanks for your perspective. Glad to hear that after 5 years you've been able to run more!

In 2017, after completing all my treatments and surgery, I went on a few walks and even jogged for 50m or so here and there. But I was pretty destroyed and my feet burned like crazy when walking or running. I was disoriented and dizzy, and frankly I was just pooped. So I just rested for a couple of years except for a few walks here and there.

Last spring (2019) I ran my 7:52 mile and was absolutely wiped out for 2+ weeks. I probably could have gotten back to it, but I felt pretty demoralized so I gave it up for another year and put on 15 lbs of chubb.

Maybe 5 years is the right amount of time. This summer, it will have been 3 years for me. I'm probably not going to PR in the 400 this year (haha) but I can't stand sitting here rotting any longer.

And, yes, I should definitely keep in mind to give it time. Thanks for the reminder, I appreciate it!

covidiot23 wrote:

Ease into it with a mix of walking and running. Train, don't strain, at least initially.

Sometimes, it's weird to discover little things that I have forgotten with all the chemo. Thanks for the reminder of that simple saying, and the wisdom that comes with it. "Train, don't strain." Oh, right ... yeah, I used to have that in my mind. It's like some small valuable tool that I had, but misplaced, and now it's there again.

This week, I did a lot of walking. I pushed myself on the walking pace one day, and my lungs ached. Not sure what that means. I do know that I have residual, permanent scarring in my lungs and so that may impact my ability to perform aerobic exercise ... I don't know, I guess we'll find out. Anyway, here's what I did this past week:

Sat 25 April AM: 1.5 mi brisk walk @ 25 min

PM: 8 x (1' jog at easy run pace, walk 2')

Sun 26 April OFF

Mon 27 April AM: 1.5 mi brisk walk @ 25 min

PM: 1.5 mi slow walk, with 8 sets of 10 walking lunges

Tue 28 April AM: 1.5 mi brisk walk @ 25 min

PM: 1.5 mi slow walk, with 8 sets of 10 walking lunges

Wed 29 April AM: 1.5 mi brisk walk @ 25 min

PM: 1.5 mi slow walk, with 8 sets of 10 walking lunges

Thu 30 April AM: 1.5 mi fast walk @ 23 min, difficult, lungs ached

PM: 1.5 mi easy walk @ 30+ min (very tired)

Fri 1 May AM: 1.5 mi easy walk @ 30+ min (tired, easy day)

PM: 1.5 mi easy walk @ 30+ min

Sat 2 May running workout TBD