My story started at the end of 2021 when I wasn't able to get rid of a persistent cough and went in to see my doctor. My doctor sent me in for an x-ray and found multiple spots on my lungs. He ordered a biopsy of two spots and found that it was Sarcoidosis which I had never heard of. These are nodules that can vary in size which can appear in any organ but are primarily in the lungs. The course of treatment for sarcoidosis is a steady dose of steroids which I was on for almost three years. They tested a few of the spots found during multiple x-rays and treated a spot in my eye and lungs with steroids. I got a new doctor after two and a half years of treatment, he recommended that I get a second opinion from a sarcoidosis specialist with UCSF in San Francisco. I met with the UCSF specialist in 2024; she recommended that I begin tapering off of the steroids and to check the diseases progression with testing. I still had the persistent cough, but it took about three months to finish tapering off the steroids.

Once I was no longer on steroids, my new doctor ordered an x-ray to check the sarcoidosis disease's progression. The x-ray found that I had a 1.8cm x 2.5cm mass in my chest along with additional nodules in my lungs and other internal organs, we assumed each of these were sarcoid nodules, while waiting for the scheduled testing, the mass had increased in size to 5.1cm x 7.2cm so my doctor ordered additional testing and requested a biopsy of the mass. He also requested a biopsy of any other nodules that could be accessed without invasive surgery. They found in April 2025 that the mass was small cell cancer of the thymus, which is extremely rare, especially for a non-smoker and that it had increased again in size to 5.8cm x 9.4cm. The other nodules were not cancerous, so they concentrated on scheduling removal of the mass. However, due to the size of the mass, it needed to be reduced in size to remove it safely since it was next to the heart. I began four rounds of chemotherapy which consisted of three consecutive days of chemo every three weeks. After about the 3rd round of chemo treatments, they added radiation treatment twice a day to blast the mass. I don't remember much of the process since it drains you physically, my wife called it chemo brain. I was extremely blessed to have an amazing wife of 41 years who happens to be a nurse, we also have a strong church family (Waipuna chapel) that saw me through the whole process. My wife arranged through our church for me to have a ride to and from chemo and for each of the two a day radiation treatment. After the treatments, the mass was small enough to be removed surgically so I had surgery to remove the mass September 17, 2025. Removal of the mass required that my chest to be opened up, removal was successful and I began the recovery process. Eventually my hair grew back, and I was able to get up and move about more freely. I started immunotherapy but stopped after the second immunotherapy treatment due to it agitating the sarcoidosis disease causing me to cough.

My doctors scheduled follow up testing after the first of the 2026 year. During one of the scheduled tests, they found that I had two small spots in my heart sack. We were hopeful that the spots were sarcoidosis nodules so they started me on a high regimen of steroids with the hope that if the spots were sarcoidosis, they would be reduced or eliminated. Unfortunately, after the steroid dosage stopped, the two spots had merged into one larger spot measuring 8.2cm x 4.3cm.

Thankfully the mass is protruding outward from the heart and not inward. I do have neck pain and what feels like heartburn whether I have eaten or not, (doctors attribute these as a side effect of the mass pressing against nerves). I started another round of chemotherapy last week and just finished my first set of the three-day treatment regimen, so far, I haven't lost my hair yet.

I am so grateful to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the 63 years of life he has given me, for my family and the many friends I have made over the years. I'm not sure what the outcome will be, but I trust in God's plan and that He will take care of me and my family.

Thank you for reading my story.

Sincerely

Doug Pickering