My Two Year Journey of My Prostate Cancer Diagnosis And Recovery

Hello, everyone. Here are two photos of me. The first is from September 2018, and the second is the most recent. I have changed a lot in four years. On December 10, 2019, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was one of the worst days of my life. I have been the admin of Vanished Chicagoland Facebook for ten years now. When I received the terrible news of my cancer, I thought of giving up the page. After some serious thought, the next day, I decided not to. My mother, and my two brothers, all agreed not to tell anyone during the holidays. I decided in late January 2020 to go public with my prostate cancer on social media. The responses and well wishes were phenomenal. People were shocked and sad about it.

On April 6, 2020, I was admitted to the hospital and had my prostatectomy. It was successful. In August 2020, I started radiation therapy for thirty-nine days. It went well. I continued my social media accounts, and in March 2021, I launched my podcast, Vanished Chicagoland Stories. I am having the time of my life. I have lost about 25 pounds since the operation two years ago. In 2022, I was admitted again to the hospital twice. One was for acute urinary retention, and the second was for a kidney stone. I am doing fine right now. I am walking every day and cutting down on my eating. It has been a crazy two years, but I am happy now. On July 27, I will be nine months cancer-free! I want to live for a long time and will continue to post on my social media accounts and record my podcast. I have full support from my family, friends, and followers on social media. Thank you! Pete Kastanes.