US Navy veteran Ken S. made his living for decades as a poker player, learning to survive and often thrive at the table with the hand he was dealt.
He knew it was time to fold. Instead, it was time to up the ante and raise the bar.
Ken, 68, whose name is being withheld for privacy, was diagnosed in July with malignant pleural mesothelioma, a rare but aggressive
incurable cancer and little reliable treatment options. Instead of accepting his fate, he rejected it, the get-your-business advice tidy little hope of
his hometown oncologist, and undertook an aggressive search for the best odds he could find.
He led his hometown of Billings, Mont. at the University of Chicago Medical Center about 1,0 miles.
In August, he underwent major surgery, six hours removed the trim around his heart and lungs, an important part of his diaphragm, and a good part of
his right lung .
he likes his chances better now.
"Mesothelioma is a disappointment from one hand to deal with, but you live with it. Then it became how to get the best results from what you are being treated," he
said Asbestos.com his Billings home. "Poker takes a lot of study, research and efforts to develop the skills
level to make it profitable. That was my theory with mesothelioma."
Ken has become his own advocate the last summer, spending hour after hour researching the disease, experts who deal most effectively, and cancer centers that handle better. He
watched Boston, Minneapolis and New York. He settled on Chicago and renowned oncologist Hedy Kindler, MD, chief of mesothelioma program at the University of
Chicago.
Get her best odds possible
"I think in my case of mesothelioma, the jury is still out if I'm sitting here five years from now -. This is my over -and-under bet - with a decent quality
of life, betting that I took to go to Chicago for major surgery was worth it I will be happy with this decision, "he said.. "If I had folded, that
is essentially what my oncologist suggested it would have meant the will get together and make funeral arrangements."
Ken is in the middle of a post-surgery four chemotherapy cycle that will end
around the holiday season. It has been walking two miles a day, sleep a little more than usual, but ahead of his rehabilitation program. much of his
normal routine is back. it feels good, given where he had been in recent months.
he celebrated Veterans Day at home earlier this month, as he usually done, hoist the American flag, and remembering with his wife and her friends about her
days in the navy. He served in the mid-1960s, on a destroyer stationed off the coast North Vietnam
missile launch on the shore. He often worked in the engine room as a mechanic, handling of all valves, gaskets and pipes covered with asbestos, a known
cause of mesothelioma cancer.
"I have no anger, no bad feelings towards the Navy. There is no remorse there. I'm a Navy veteran, and I'm proud of that, "he said. "The only thing I will
going on is that" the price of freedom is never cheap. I'm proud of my service to my country. "
Navy Enlistment Came Suddenly
he is serious about helping others with a dark-doom and disease like mesothelioma, he jokes about his Navy enlistment of origin .
in 1964, Ken was not so serious 19 first year at Eastern Montana College, now called Montana State. It was approaching mid-term exams, but
not been a one class.
After a long night of partying, the sun rose, and stood on the sidewalk outside the local post office where the various service branches kept
recruitment offices . the naval officer came to his peers army or Marines, who
set the debate. He signed this morning with the Navy, and never returned to its mid-term exams.
"I took very seriously the party then," he said. "I was going to flunk out of college anyway, and I was raised in a very conservative family where you
had two main obligations: Get an education and serve your country. I just place the order and entered the Navy first. "
Ken later used the GI Bill to finally get his business degree from the university, which has led to decades of making a living playing poker. Although he always
from his home in Billings, he spent two weeks per month in Las Vegas at the poker tables.
"it was a hard way to make an easy buck," he said. "I've done other things, too, sold real estate, built storage sheds backyard, but mostly it was the industry
game as a poker player. The people thought it was a fun lifestyle: Traveling around the country, sleeping in a fancy hotel rooms, and throw
$ 100 bills like they were water It worked for me.. "
Helping others is its purpose
Since returning from surgery, it binds with another man with the same rare cancer. They call
themselves "The Two Montana Meso men." He also spoke with the mother of a victim of mesothelioma much younger nearby, offering advice and support to
both.
His goal now is to help others, spreading the word to give up and give in to the disease is not necessary - and not usually the best option. He
wants to make an example of success.
"This is a fatal disease, a deadly cancer, but the prognosis does not have to be so dark. The most important advice I can give is to get a second and third
notice , making sure to explore all options. Take an active role in your health care. Find a specialist who is an expert in this disease, "he said. "So
many physicians do not know enough about the disease to treat. You almost have to train them. "
Ken has his odds remain long. Even with surgery as his own, the majority of patients do not live more than two years. Its original oncologist gave him 12 months. Ken
prefer to think some who beat the odds and lived longer.
"I am prepared for the worst but hoping for the best. I always considered a strong Catholic Christian, and all happens, I'll accept that God
will, "he said. "But that does not mean giving up. Not at all. I have done a lot to live as long as I can. I have accepted my original prognosis, but I
decided to play my hand a little differently" .
