Last October, Jim Becker did not think much of the sore throat that dogged him. It wasn’t until months later, when he heard the word “cancer,” that his life turned upside down.  Becker, who is retired and lives in Midway City, said the issue started as a simple ache. He tried over-the-cou nter lozenges, bought a strep test and went to an ear, nose and throat doctor. They all said the same thing: “I’m not sure why your throat is sore.” Then, Becker’s lymph node in his neck began to swell. He couldn’t eat solid food. At 67, Becker is still active in the mountain recreation scene, but his sickness began to interfere with that, too.  Becker was diagnosed with HPV-positive squamous cell carcinoma on April 1. He said it was a “gut punch” to hear the words applied to him. But his doctors launched into action.  “Once I had the diagnosis, things moved really quickly,” Becker said.  He had surgery to remove a “fairly significant” tumor on the right side of his tongue and right tonsil. Then, he started chemotherapy and radiation. He began to drive down to the Intermountain Health Cancer Center in Murray, in the Salt Lake Valley, for chemoradiation.  “Those were long, really difficult days,” Becker said.  It wasn’t only chemoradiation and surgeries, but also blood draws, appointments with oncologists and infusions. Becker’s days ranged from three to seven hours in Murray. That’s on top of more than two hours of driving each day.  Becker ended up putting more than 3,500 miles on his car.  “The whole driving to Salt Lake, it was exhausting and expensive,” Becker said.  His wife, Amy, was with him every step of the way.  “She’s an angel,” Becker said.  Cancer, he said, is tough on more than the patient, with family and friends watching them go through sickness and treatment.  “For me in particular, chemo was absolutely horrible,” Becker said. “That cycle of feeling bad, it consumes your life and there’s really nothing else.” The good news is that Becker’s cancer was treatable. Now, Becker is heading toward remission.  The timing is somewhat ironic. As Becker inches toward recovery, a new cancer center opened in the Wasatch Back at Intermountain Park City Hospital. There, the center will serve up to 1,500 patients annually with expanded space, high-tech equipment and treatment options closer to home.  Becker would have saved thousands of miles of travel and an exorbitant amount of money had the center opened sooner. Now, Becker said he is relieved for patients in the Wasatch Back who will receive care closer to home.  “I hate to use the word happy for them because they’ve got cancer, and you can’t be happy that they’ve got cancer,” Becker said. “(It’s) a lot less burden and cost on them and their family just getting to the treatments. I think it’ll be a huge, huge benefit for this region in its entirety.”  Becker is hopeful he will never need to visit the center.  As he enters recovery mode, Becker said he is looking forward to getting back to what he loves.  “I’m a very active guy. I’ve spent most of my life in this area, so I love this time of year. I should be riding mountain bikes and riding dirt bikes and backpacking and fishing and doing all of those things,” Becker said.  Then backcountry ski touring and snowmobiling, all the “winter stuff” Becker is excited to get back to.  “Even though I’m done with my treatments, it’s still a long way back to that,” Becker said.  For now, Becker is focusing on building back strength and gaining the weight he lost over the past months. He can eat solid food again. He can work out at the gym again. However, he said he needs an hour-long nap for every workout he completes.  Apart from participating in his favorite sports and activities, Becker said he is looking forward to the normalcy that comes with healthy living. There are limits on everything, but being able to pack a lunch and spend a day in the wilderness where it’s quiet and peaceful has been most liberating for Becker.  “I”m looking forward to really getting my life back,” Becker said. The post Midway man’s road to recovery covers thousands of miles of travel for cancer treatment appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less