ITHACA - For a few weeks last month, Bert Scholl was able to experience some things that recently become rarities.
Christopher Caskey / The Citizen
Bert Scholl stands with his wife, Daniela, and son, Beau, outside their home in Ithaca. Recent surgery was able to remove a tumor from Bert and send him on a path to recovery from rectal cancer.
Bert Scholl stands with his wife, Daniela, and son, Beau, outside their home in Ithaca. Recent surgery was able to remove a tumor from Bert and send him on a path to recovery from rectal cancer.
He took a walk down the street and looked at the early autumn leaves on the ground. He cleaned up his garage. He occasionally ran an errand. He went to a farmers market.
Because of this, Scholl headed into his third round of chemotherapy with an optimistic mix of hope and frustration.
He hoped this would be his last treatment. His frustrations are rooted in the fact that, for the first time, he faced the exhausting, difficult treatment without any pain or apparent cancer in his body.
“I was a little ticked because I said I feel great,” Scholl said two weeks ago while relaxing in his home near Ithaca. “It's tough to be pain free and have to do chemo.”
Scholl, 38, was diagnosed in March 2007 with rectal cancer. This July, after pursuing multiple treatments and therapies, he underwent successful surgery to have his tumor removed.
“Once the surgery had been completed, there was no longer any cancer in my body,” Scholl said.
The news has given him a chance to plan a future with his wife, Daniela, and his son and stepson, Beau and Cal. And with the new beginning, Scholl has also taken the opportunity to revisit his love of making music.
This Friday, Scholl's friends and family will throw a benefit to support him in what he expects to be his last stretch in the battle with cancer. At the event, which will take place in Ithaca, Scholl will also have copies of his CD, “Letters from Prison City,” available.
The songs from “Letters” reach back to his life before his diagnosis. That seems like almost a lifetime ago, Scholl said.
“It almost feels like a completely separate chapter,” said Scholl, who lives near Ithaca but grew up in Auburn. “It's kind of like an old friend who has come back that I haven't seen in a long time.”
The chapters since then have taken Scholl on an emotional ride.
Not long after his diagnosis, Scholl decided to pursue an alternative, nutrition-based treatment. Named Gerson Therapy after the German doctor who developed it, the treatment involves an intense diet of fruits and vegetables to detoxify ones system.
That summer, he traveled to Mexico to undergo the therapy regimen. He was there for three weeks, and he had to cut the treatment short because his body was not reacting all that well to it, Scholl said.
In March of this year, Scholl underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatment before the July operation. When the procedure was completed, the surgeon didn't have good news, Scholl said.
“The first thing he said was that he is sorry but the tumor tore,” Scholl said.
That's like taking a dandelion and blowing the seed pods all over the grass.
But when test results came back a week later, his fortunes had changed, Scholl said. The cancer tissue was dead from the chemotherapy and radiation, according to the doctor.
“It was like I got the gold medal. I cried for like four days,” he said.
Scholl said his doctors had him undergo a round of chemotherapy after detecting some irregularities. They won't be ready to announce that he is cancer free until he continues this way for a few years, he said.
For Scholl's wife, Daniela, making it through such trials has shown her how supportive a community can be. It's not easy asking people for help, she said, but their friends and family have given nothing but support in recent years.
“It really brings you face to face with love with a capital L,” she said.
The experience has been life-changing, Scholl said. He even describes it as a “gift.”
Before the diagnosis, Scholl had to take control of life. Things had to happen the way he wanted them, Scholl said.
“It's amazing how much surviving cancer can change your outlook,” he said. “I had to let go of how I think life should be. “Now, I don't fight the current. It's not natural.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey
can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net
Because of this, Scholl headed into his third round of chemotherapy with an optimistic mix of hope and frustration.
He hoped this would be his last treatment. His frustrations are rooted in the fact that, for the first time, he faced the exhausting, difficult treatment without any pain or apparent cancer in his body.
“I was a little ticked because I said I feel great,” Scholl said two weeks ago while relaxing in his home near Ithaca. “It's tough to be pain free and have to do chemo.”
Scholl, 38, was diagnosed in March 2007 with rectal cancer. This July, after pursuing multiple treatments and therapies, he underwent successful surgery to have his tumor removed.
“Once the surgery had been completed, there was no longer any cancer in my body,” Scholl said.
The news has given him a chance to plan a future with his wife, Daniela, and his son and stepson, Beau and Cal. And with the new beginning, Scholl has also taken the opportunity to revisit his love of making music.
This Friday, Scholl's friends and family will throw a benefit to support him in what he expects to be his last stretch in the battle with cancer. At the event, which will take place in Ithaca, Scholl will also have copies of his CD, “Letters from Prison City,” available.
The songs from “Letters” reach back to his life before his diagnosis. That seems like almost a lifetime ago, Scholl said.
“It almost feels like a completely separate chapter,” said Scholl, who lives near Ithaca but grew up in Auburn. “It's kind of like an old friend who has come back that I haven't seen in a long time.”
The chapters since then have taken Scholl on an emotional ride.
Not long after his diagnosis, Scholl decided to pursue an alternative, nutrition-based treatment. Named Gerson Therapy after the German doctor who developed it, the treatment involves an intense diet of fruits and vegetables to detoxify ones system.
That summer, he traveled to Mexico to undergo the therapy regimen. He was there for three weeks, and he had to cut the treatment short because his body was not reacting all that well to it, Scholl said.
In March of this year, Scholl underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatment before the July operation. When the procedure was completed, the surgeon didn't have good news, Scholl said.
“The first thing he said was that he is sorry but the tumor tore,” Scholl said.
That's like taking a dandelion and blowing the seed pods all over the grass.
But when test results came back a week later, his fortunes had changed, Scholl said. The cancer tissue was dead from the chemotherapy and radiation, according to the doctor.
“It was like I got the gold medal. I cried for like four days,” he said.
Scholl said his doctors had him undergo a round of chemotherapy after detecting some irregularities. They won't be ready to announce that he is cancer free until he continues this way for a few years, he said.
For Scholl's wife, Daniela, making it through such trials has shown her how supportive a community can be. It's not easy asking people for help, she said, but their friends and family have given nothing but support in recent years.
“It really brings you face to face with love with a capital L,” she said.
The experience has been life-changing, Scholl said. He even describes it as a “gift.”
Before the diagnosis, Scholl had to take control of life. Things had to happen the way he wanted them, Scholl said.
“It's amazing how much surviving cancer can change your outlook,” he said. “I had to let go of how I think life should be. “Now, I don't fight the current. It's not natural.”
Staff writer Christopher Caskey
can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or christopher.caskey@lee.net
