The CT scans are mostly clear - no definitive evidence of cancer. And the blood marker, which indicates cancerous activity, is normal. However, there are a few very small nodules in my lungs that were of some concern. They want me back in 6-8 weeks to scan again. These are not the same spots as a couple nodules that showed up a couple years ago but since disappeared. I asked Dr Hoff, who has seen hundreds of patients in remission, if such spots typically turn out to be cancerous or not. "More often than not," he said, "they turn out to be nothing."

Of course, I would have liked more certain results - but I learned a long time ago that there is no certainty with cancer.

Certainty must be found elsewhere.