WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!  Congrats, Steve!  You are NOW a cancer survivor indeed.  You showed that nasty cancer the door.  I'm happy for you.

 Congratulations Steve...that's fantastic news !!!  You and Mary deserve some peace of mind by golly.

I am so glad for the both of you!! Congratulations and now on to the best of life!

 You're gonna have to have a disclaimer now before you play golf with your buddies Steve.......

+Glory to God for all things+ 

 You are a rock star.

Go party like one.

 That's good news Steve you are an inspiration to us all........Never give up.

 Uncle Steve,

We all knew you would beat it.

Take your wife out to dinner, and get the most out of your new outlook on life.

We all love you, Jeff and Julie

 Good!

 That is great Steve.  I am new to the bloggers, but still would like to give you my fondest regards.  You are a real hero for those with this disease.  My Dad had small cell lung carcinoma and unfortunately he was not as lucky as you.  But he did not tell anyone early when it could have been treated better.  I know the suffering of cancer survivors and the victims too. 

Yes by all means you are worth every dime spent on your treatment.  Don't even begin to doubt this. 

Wonderful success story of beating the big C.  

 CONGRATS!!

 Excellent, Steve!

 I know you had a loving wife and sounds like a great medical team but most of credit has to go to you.  You must be a very strong man.  Great success story. 

"HIP HIP HURRAY!

"HIP HIP HURRAY!!

"HIP HIP HURRAY!!!"

 Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow................AMEN!

HOT DAMN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  YOU GO STEVE!! YOU ROCK!!!

My sister survived breast cancer & double mastectomy.

 This is the happy report I've been hoping and praying to read!  Thanks to God and the medical people and you!

  Has health insurance coverage paid most of those bills?

  Did the doctors say what they thought the cause of the cancer was? 

  You are a wonderful writer and a great person!  We fans look forward to many more years of  your excellent essays.

 YYYYYYYEEEESSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!! Great to hear it! Enjoyed hearing your voice, and therefore proof that you still have one, a few weeks ago on the phone. You sound terrific, and hopefully you are feeling just as well. The money be damned; in light of life and love, it is nothing more than dirty green paper.

good to hear.....way to kick it's butt.......one for the good guys

 Steve,

   I AM ELATED TO HEAR THAT IT IS ALL GONE! I remember when Mary wrote me with encouraging words about my papa and his diagnosis back in May of last year.Then BAM all of the sudden you were hit!

I almost didn't believe it. Everything you wrote in this particular post I watched first hand with him (nothing compared to being the patient,but I understand the medical jargon...and still have about 12 cases of Ensure!) PaPa followed your stories and got a kick out of you being able to explain so perfectly what he was going through.Almost as if to say "See,I told you" not that anyone doubted him.

In the end it just has to be the sheer will to kick the butt of something that had no right entering your body,the bizarre inherent need to play golf :) and  most of all the desire to walk this world for years to come with the love of your life.

I'm glad PaPa is now walking in another world with his love.I miss them but at least they are together.

Give Mary a kiss (or a hundred). Love you.Rach

Whew! Congrats from Shannon and me!!! (hear the sound of a long sigh of relief)

Now that you are mostly well and have been officially pronounced cancer free, can we now address an ancillary but important issue of catastrophic illness, specifically the coverage and the actual monetary value of your medical insurance?

No question that the treatment cost was worth every penny and must be made, but it's unclear whether your medical insurance covered the $80,000 in costs you described, or if those charges were extra and uncovered - and if not, why not? 

One would think that a supposedly good group insurance plan should cover the entire treatment and the costs of all meds and procedures, perhaps with a small minimum deductible charge.

One would hope that an adequately insured cancer patient would not have to mortgage one's home or wipe out one's IRA to cover treatment for an unexpected catastrophic illness - or worse, that one would be unable to raise the cash at all and be denied proper treatment.

In these days of soaring healthcare costs, many are wondering whether we all might be better off with nationalized healthcare coverage than with one of the inadequate, lower cost group plans often provided by employers which seem to be common these days and which pay only a measured portion of actual costs and often leave the insured with bankrupting medical debt.

Many are wondering where we would raise $80,000 or more with the equity in our homes disappearing daily and the value of our IRAs shrinking with inflation.

The underlying fear is that a victim of major illness with only modest resources might be unable to purchase the proper needed treatment and simply be forced to go without.

 I'm very, very happy for you, Steve.  I've kept you in my thoughts and prayers all along and now we get to offer prayers of thanks and praise.

 Thank you all for your comments.

My insurance paid for almost all of the cost, though they paid far less than what was billed. I'm guessing our out of pocket expenses  were $200 to $300 for co-pays on doctor visits and drugs. I was very happy with the coverage and the medical care I received.

Rachel, darling, you are just too cute. Thanks a bunch for your care.

Sabehagen, Mary and I will be up to see you during the Lilac Festival. I'll hug both of you, but Shannon will get the better of the two hugs.

Witterpitters, My wife survived the same thing. She and I will be at Relay for Life. Last year I watched her walk. This year we'll walk together.

Amazing success, Steve.  The doctors were lucky to have you for a patient!

 Yay!  Awesome news, Steve!  You and Mary deserve the best.

 Great to hear the good news Steve.  Been following your story from the beginning and it is truly uplifting.  All the best to you and your family

 What an inspiring story! Glad to still have you around. And thanks to all the medical personnel for their skill and knowledge. But most of all, thanks be to God! Good going Steve!

 Steve, I really can't say how happy I am for you, Mary and the rest of your family.  Congratulations.

StevE: "My insurance paid for almost all of the cost, though they paid far less than what was billed."

Isn't amazing how insurance companies are able to forge prenegotiated deals with healthcare providers paying a fraction of the "billed" charges?

It underscores the true "real" value of the provided goods and services.

In fact, the price the insurance companies pay the provider reflects and sets the fair market value of goods and services provided.

However, the vastly higher "billed" charges are the amounts an uninsured patient is charged and expected to pay.

What's wrong with this picture?

It's like a restaurant with a secret menu offering lower prices for preferred customers.

Is it even legal to charge one patient one price and another a small fraction for identical services? If so, no one seems to care.

Aren't business licenses granted under a tacit agreement to provide goods and services at fair market value without gouging?

Aren't healthcare providers gouging when they charge one patient many times more than another?

Isn't gouging illegal?

Doesn't such a selective pricing policy at least amount to discriminatory pricing?

Isn't the State Department Of Consumer Affairs charged with oversight of business practices and enforcement of regulations preventing unfair pricing and practices by businesses like mechanical repair shops and contractors?

Are healthcare providers excluded from adherance to those same laws regulating fair business practice?

Is anyone in local, state or federal government ever going to do anything about artificially inflated healthcare costs and other associated abuses in the heretofore unregulated industry?

If not, why not?

 Saber, I agree with you completely.  However, I would think this is a topic better suited for a different blog post.

Jus' sayin'.

Spam code...just to show TBD computer genie has a sense of humor.

WATHL

 Steve

Celebrate!  I'm so happy for you.  Now you can heave a sigh of relief and give  Mary a big smooch for pulling you through.

 Cool!

I was happy to read good news in the paper......You are the bomb (bomb is a good thing)!

God Bless!