He explained that the X-ray showed a large mass in the area of my mediastinum, which is where the windpipe branches into two passages to go to the lungs. The mass had pushed one of my lungs to the side to the point that it was almost completely closed off. Some fluid had collected in the lung, which was why I was coughing. I would have to go to the hospital for several tests, scans, and special X-rays.

I sat there taking this all in. Then I asked, "How bad is it, doc. Really, just tell me how bad it is."

"It might not be bad at all," he said. "It might just be a benign growth, but it might also be something far more serious."

"More serious?" I asked.

"Yes," he replied, "this could be a malignant tumor of some sort. From it's appearance it might be Hodgkin's Disease."

I felt panic. My father's brother, Bernard, had died from Hodgkin's before I was born. "If it is Hodgkin's," I asked, "how long will I have?"

"Don't panic, Bill," the doctor told me. "Even if it is Hodgkin's, we have some very effective treatments. But we have to treat this quite seriously. I'm going to refer you to a colleague of mine who will admit you to American Oncologic Hospital. The sooner we get you treated, the better chance we have of getting you cured."

Suddenly I had hope. Dr. Perotto used a word that I didn't think could co-exist with cancer: CURED!