By Bryn Nelson. This is article was first published in March 2016 on mosaicscience.com. It is republished here under Creative Commons.

A visit to a dysphagia support group in Seattle to explore what life is like when you struggle to swallow.

“I’m sorry, but you have cancer.”

With those six jarring words, my life was suddenly divided into two stark contrasts: B.C. (before cancer) and A.C. (after cancer).  While on the phone with my otolaryngologist, who had just operated on me the day before, I fumbled for a piece of paper and a pen to write down the diagnosis. Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma. I remember asking him to spell it. “A-D-E-N-O-I-D-C-Y-S-T-I-C.” A type of salivary gland cancer seemingly arising from my sinus cavity.

By John E. Ready

“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot

Growing up in the Sixties, I could croon, not well, but I still gave it my best. My aspirations consisted of singing along to the Beatles, Smokey Robinson and the Temptations, mostly in private. No need to scare people. I never dreamed that one day I would be known as one of the best singers in the world without vocal cords.

Byline: Tom Dawson, an expert world traveler and tube feed user, has contributed blog posts to the NFOSD to raise awareness about traveling with a feeding tube. His prior posts include: A Moveable Feast (11/25/16) and Traveling Space Available II (6/20/17), Report from Old Greenwich (9/10/17).