Matthew Slater
@matthewslater.bsky.social
Philosopher of science at Bucknell University; living with cancer (so far...); microblogging about my treatment here: scroll to first post for the backstory if you're interested.
https://www.mhslater.com/
https://philpeople.org/profiles/matthew-h-slater
https://www.mhslater.com/
https://philpeople.org/profiles/matthew-h-slater
Health update: things are healing up reasonably well and my energy is coming back (resting heart rate reverting to normal). Relieved that my GI system seems to be back to normal. I find this kinda amazing: excise ~25% of a colon and in a few weeks the rest is like "meh, we got this."
January 26, 2026 at 2:24 PM
Health update: things are healing up reasonably well and my energy is coming back (resting heart rate reverting to normal). Relieved that my GI system seems to be back to normal. I find this kinda amazing: excise ~25% of a colon and in a few weeks the rest is like "meh, we got this."
Followup with my surgeon similarly positive; he would put my condition more modestly: "there's presently no evidence of disease". Fair enough. I may not have decisively beat stage IV colon cancer, but we certainly won this round.
January 8, 2026 at 9:49 PM
Followup with my surgeon similarly positive; he would put my condition more modestly: "there's presently no evidence of disease". Fair enough. I may not have decisively beat stage IV colon cancer, but we certainly won this round.
Just had my followup appointment with my oncologist. Pathology report looked pretty good; mostly dead cells / mucin pools in the biopsied tissues. She proclaimed me “disease free” for now. Next step is monitoring (CT scan in 6 mo.).
January 7, 2026 at 3:57 PM
Just had my followup appointment with my oncologist. Pathology report looked pretty good; mostly dead cells / mucin pools in the biopsied tissues. She proclaimed me “disease free” for now. Next step is monitoring (CT scan in 6 mo.).
Can't fail to mention that Laura has been an absolute godsend in all of this — keeping me fed, comfortable, motivated. . . . I am definitely getting the better end of that "in sickness and health" clause. Couldn't do any of this without her. ❤️
January 3, 2026 at 10:15 PM
Can't fail to mention that Laura has been an absolute godsend in all of this — keeping me fed, comfortable, motivated. . . . I am definitely getting the better end of that "in sickness and health" clause. Couldn't do any of this without her. ❤️
Continued progress on the health front here. I'm extending my walking distance / time, getting in some naps, reading, listening to music, trying to stay away from the news, and gradually getting my appetite back. GI system still on training wheels, but showing some signs of improvement.
January 3, 2026 at 10:01 PM
Continued progress on the health front here. I'm extending my walking distance / time, getting in some naps, reading, listening to music, trying to stay away from the news, and gradually getting my appetite back. GI system still on training wheels, but showing some signs of improvement.
First 15 min walk outside in a while. Pain manageable. Making slow, steady progress. Eager for my gut to get past this "training wheels" phase, but it'll take time — and months, possibly, to fully get back to normal.
December 30, 2025 at 6:53 PM
First 15 min walk outside in a while. Pain manageable. Making slow, steady progress. Eager for my gut to get past this "training wheels" phase, but it'll take time — and months, possibly, to fully get back to normal.
Well, it’s been a journey within a journey. But it seems that body is getting used to 12” less colon (no appendix or peritoneal lining) adequately. Still have a few challenges to work out: tachy heartrate, edema, pain, and such, but the team here is working hard at tackling these.
December 27, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Well, it’s been a journey within a journey. But it seems that body is getting used to 12” less colon (no appendix or peritoneal lining) adequately. Still have a few challenges to work out: tachy heartrate, edema, pain, and such, but the team here is working hard at tackling these.
Happy Christmas from MSK! A successful surgery seems like an excellent present.
December 25, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Happy Christmas from MSK! A successful surgery seems like an excellent present.
Third time’s the charm? 🤞 As before, @lolamaya.bsky.social will update.
December 23, 2025 at 11:06 AM
Third time’s the charm? 🤞 As before, @lolamaya.bsky.social will update.
Got confirmation that the surgery do-over will be on the 23rd. So it's gonna be a (hopefully) magical "Christmas on 67th St. (and York)" Possibly also NYE. . . . Hey, I'll take it. Just sorry to miss the parties. And this way I'll likely be ready to roll (just not literally) by the start of classes.
December 17, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Got confirmation that the surgery do-over will be on the 23rd. So it's gonna be a (hopefully) magical "Christmas on 67th St. (and York)" Possibly also NYE. . . . Hey, I'll take it. Just sorry to miss the parties. And this way I'll likely be ready to roll (just not literally) by the start of classes.
Well, surgery got postponed because of a miscommunication about my last chemo. Good that they caught it otherwise my healing could have been badly compromised. But super frustrating still. Waiting to hear when we can reschedule but probably late December at the earliest. 🙄
December 5, 2025 at 6:33 PM
Well, surgery got postponed because of a miscommunication about my last chemo. Good that they caught it otherwise my healing could have been badly compromised. But super frustrating still. Waiting to hear when we can reschedule but probably late December at the earliest. 🙄
Oh boy did I want a bacon egg sando this morning. Ready to rock. @lolamaya.bsky.social will reply with an update.
December 5, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Oh boy did I want a bacon egg sando this morning. Ready to rock. @lolamaya.bsky.social will reply with an update.
Waiting for pre-op testing and appt at MSK. The fancy coffee machine here is taunting me (liquid only diet today).
December 4, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Waiting for pre-op testing and appt at MSK. The fancy coffee machine here is taunting me (liquid only diet today).
So normally I'd be back to chemo this morning. But all that's on hold in the leadup (and hopefully aftermath) of my surgery. 🥳Instead, I'm back for a CT scan to get a pre-surgery baseline. And no grape for me this time! Brought my own orange gatorade.
November 17, 2025 at 7:35 PM
So normally I'd be back to chemo this morning. But all that's on hold in the leadup (and hopefully aftermath) of my surgery. 🥳Instead, I'm back for a CT scan to get a pre-surgery baseline. And no grape for me this time! Brought my own orange gatorade.
Met with my MSK oncologist yesterday and she was very enthusiastic about the surgery and its potential to keep me from chemo for a good while (again, assuming that there aren't any surprises awaiting in my abdominal cavity!). So we're in.
November 14, 2025 at 12:17 PM
Met with my MSK oncologist yesterday and she was very enthusiastic about the surgery and its potential to keep me from chemo for a good while (again, assuming that there aren't any surprises awaiting in my abdominal cavity!). So we're in.
Going for the surgery (unless my MSK oncologist takes an unexpectedly contrary view). Booked for 12/5. Basically I get a retry on my first surgery a little less than a year later. Whatever comes from it, I'm reeeeeaalllly looking forward to a break from #chemo.
November 7, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Going for the surgery (unless my MSK oncologist takes an unexpectedly contrary view). Booked for 12/5. Basically I get a retry on my first surgery a little less than a year later. Whatever comes from it, I'm reeeeeaalllly looking forward to a break from #chemo.
Good news from my MSK surgeon: surgery is tenable; the biopsies came back clean, indicating that the chemo has been working better than expected. It's a major, open procedure that will mean a several week recovery, but at the very least it can beat back remaining tumors and provide more information.
November 4, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Good news from my MSK surgeon: surgery is tenable; the biopsies came back clean, indicating that the chemo has been working better than expected. It's a major, open procedure that will mean a several week recovery, but at the very least it can beat back remaining tumors and provide more information.
I started #chemo session #22 in the *private* room in the clinic for the first time (since the rest of the chairs were occupied). No one told me that this chair has a massage feature! As a bonus, I got a lunch hangout with my friend Miranda who was passing through before heading back to CA.
November 3, 2025 at 7:13 PM
I started #chemo session #22 in the *private* room in the clinic for the first time (since the rest of the chairs were occupied). No one told me that this chair has a massage feature! As a bonus, I got a lunch hangout with my friend Miranda who was passing through before heading back to CA.
Halloween marks an easy-to-remember anniversary for my "cancer journey" (I remember thinking about going to my colonoscopy in costume). In those early days when the fear and uncertainty level was high, I did wonder at times whether I'd see another. So it's a happy milestone that it's been a year.
October 31, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Halloween marks an easy-to-remember anniversary for my "cancer journey" (I remember thinking about going to my colonoscopy in costume). In those early days when the fear and uncertainty level was high, I did wonder at times whether I'd see another. So it's a happy milestone that it's been a year.
Chemo round #21 in the bag. Not super-psyched to be back to a Tuesday–Thursday schedule given that I'm teaching this afternoon. Hopefully my students will feel a bit more active than I am. . . . Followup appointment with MSK surgeon on 11/4.
October 21, 2025 at 3:42 PM
Chemo round #21 in the bag. Not super-psyched to be back to a Tuesday–Thursday schedule given that I'm teaching this afternoon. Hopefully my students will feel a bit more active than I am. . . . Followup appointment with MSK surgeon on 11/4.
Pre-surgery last night. The team at MSK is so good in so many ways. Everything was smooth. No nausea this time. Will have some abdominal pain for a few days (4 incisions) but not too bad. No news to report. Apparently it’s hard to tell the difference between live cancer and dead (due to chemo). 🤞
October 18, 2025 at 12:17 PM
Pre-surgery last night. The team at MSK is so good in so many ways. Everything was smooth. No nausea this time. Will have some abdominal pain for a few days (4 incisions) but not too bad. No news to report. Apparently it’s hard to tell the difference between live cancer and dead (due to chemo). 🤞
So my procedure has been serially moved back to 7:30pm today. Mind you, I was ordered not to eat after midnight last night. After some pushback, they said that I could have a light breakfast. My omelette and Laura’s pancakes at Sarabeth’s were very light and fluffy. So we’re good!
October 17, 2025 at 3:06 PM
So my procedure has been serially moved back to 7:30pm today. Mind you, I was ordered not to eat after midnight last night. After some pushback, they said that I could have a light breakfast. My omelette and Laura’s pancakes at Sarabeth’s were very light and fluffy. So we’re good!
In NYC for my diagnostic laparoscopy tomorrow. Pre-surgical testing in the bag. Managed to avoid the temptations of their automatic espresso machine (lest it wreck my BP!).
October 16, 2025 at 10:04 PM
In NYC for my diagnostic laparoscopy tomorrow. Pre-surgical testing in the bag. Managed to avoid the temptations of their automatic espresso machine (lest it wreck my BP!).
Celebrated my 20th chemo session with donuts for the crew here. One of them (understandably) asked if this was my last session. Ah, unfortunately not. . . .
October 6, 2025 at 2:25 PM
Celebrated my 20th chemo session with donuts for the crew here. One of them (understandably) asked if this was my last session. Ah, unfortunately not. . . .
Weird phenomenon: I used to have a bad habit of absent-mindedly picking at my cuticles. (Gross, I know.) Since chemo started, though, I haven't done it at all. Like a switch flipped. . . . I'll take the win.
September 27, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Weird phenomenon: I used to have a bad habit of absent-mindedly picking at my cuticles. (Gross, I know.) Since chemo started, though, I haven't done it at all. Like a switch flipped. . . . I'll take the win.