ABSTRACT
On a recent visit to New York City, as I was taking a 15-block walk in midtown Manhattan, I was thinking about how fortunate I have been. In 1998 I underwent a transluminal coronary angioplasty with stent placement and subsequently I received anticoagulant therapy, which resulted in painless hematuria. This led to the discovery of renal-cell carcinoma, for which I had a radical nephrectomy. This experience has prompted me to share with you my perspective as a patient for 44 years, now facing the added uncertainty that a cancer patient has to live with.
