Cancer Update

Exciting news on actual progress.

There are a lot of recent new subscribers here. You wouldn't have known that I have been in a prolonged recovery and rehabilitation from throat cancer.

I've had extensive radiation, with a bit of chemo and radical surgery that removed my larynx, amongst other parts and pieces.

As a result, I've not been able to speak since early August. I should have been able to voice by now. The problem is my stoma, the hole in my neck that I breathe through, is big and irregular in shape. The commercial products that form an airtight base seal don't work for me.

My son came up with what we hope will be a brilliant solution. He used to work in film and met people who made prostheses for actors in horror movies. He contacted one of his contacts and pitched a prosthesis idea to make my stoma adaptable to commercial-based products. Stacey out of Calgary is all in.

We now have a Team Ken to create such a device. The team includes Stacey, the Prosthesis creator; Victoria, my speech therapist; my son Jske, who coordinates everything; and me, the lab rat.

My neck area has been laser scanned, molds are under construction, and several prototypes using various silicone materials are being worked up.

The Team is scheduled to all meet in Edmonton on March 17 to experiment with the various prototypes to review, revise, and optimize.

This experiment is not guaranteed to work, but it is promising and could be a game changer.

I could then do short videos even though my voice will sound like a blend of Tom Waits and Darth Vader.

Here's HOPING!