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Feet on the sidewalk I feel kinda sick Hands out front I need a white stick Blurred in the morning Bruised at night Falling in the darkness Could've been a fight My blind life I can’t see the road I can’t see the light  - My Blind Life by Chris Dreja, sung by The Yardbirds Those lyrics are exaggerated, but I am going blind. Thanks to rociletinib, the experimental drug I took for eight months, I have rapid onset cataracts. From Wikipedia   Fortunately, this problem can be pretty easily fixed. Massachusetts General Hospital sent all of its patients who took rociletinib and developed cataracts to a specialist from Tufts University, but we are lucky to have a very skilled eye surgeon locally. He has scheduled me for surgery as early as possible; I get my right eye fixed on July 26, and my left eye fixed on August 9. It’s a fascinating experience. The first sign was in late April, when my eyeglasses no longer corrected for distance vision....

Does it sound strange to spend a weekend with 300 lung cancer patients and caregivers? Does it sound gloomy or frightening? It turns out that if you are a patient or caregiver, such a weekend could be a highlight of your year, one filled with hope and fellowship. In late April, Robert and I set out on a two week trip that combined conference going with vacation. Our first stop was Burlington, VT, where we attended a day-long Lung Force Expo . This was an interesting day, filled with good information about managing one’s health with a serious lung disease and with information about the great promise of lung cancer screening. I was able to meet some fellow patients and some doctors who are relatively close to me in what is a terrific little city to visit. It also served as a warm up event for what was coming up next: the annual HOPE Summit put on by LUNGevity in Washington, DC. We flew from Burlington to DC, thanks to a travel grant from LUNGevity that paid for my airfare and f...