] This is a weblog of my current battle against stage IV
] (metastatic) melanoma. I'm John Hall, a 24 year old
] hacker/geek/pilot in southern California.
]
] One of my main purposes in blogging this is to alarm
] people into getting suspicious moles checked out by a
] doctor immediately. If you are even remotely concerned
] about anything on your skin, please make an appointment
] with a doctor today. You definitely won't regret it.

John "Reeves" Hall is a GT grad who was quite active in the LUG and se2600 scene before moving to California to write XBox games.

Though I haven't seen him for over a year, I am proud to call him my friend. Blogging his war takes balls, and we can all learn something from it.

] Congratulations, you have cancer! Your life is about to
] turn upside down. It causes a lot of stress, and many
] patients crash and burn horribly. Chemotherapy can save
] your life, but in the process it'll make you feel like
] you've been run over by a Hummer. Alternately, your
] doctors may choose to irradiate you in one of several
] ways, which is not altogether unlike being shoved into a
] microwave oven on "high" for a few minutes. Your
] medications probably won't make you feel better, so do
] yourself a favor and buy some weed. Get used to needles;
] you're going to be poked with a lot of them. Be strong,
] and you might live. Good luck!

I just got news yesterday that a good friend of mine has been diagnosed with lung cancer. He is going to be undergoing surgery to remove a tumor soon. The blues is in full effect.

It was good to read this and see that John is winning his war.. I hope my friend Rick wins his.

This is a weblog of my current battle against stage IV (metastatic) melanoma. I'm John Hall, a 24 year old hacker/geek/pilot . . .
 
One of my main purposes in blogging this is to alarm people into getting suspicious moles checked out by a doctor immediately. If you are even remotely concerned about anything on your skin, please make an appointment with a doctor today. You definitely won't regret it.

And remember that there is still a very good chance that I will recover from this. Melanoma is bad news, but it is not a death sentence. (Update: my case is currently in a partial remission.) (Update: no, actually it's not.) I have a strong feeling that this will be a monumental hassle but that I'll make it through in the end. Either way, though, I want to make as much noise about the experience as possible so that others can learn from my mistakes.

Overcode is a guy who's probably like a lot of you reading this. He's in his early 20s, is highly intelligent, very computer-literate, attends Georgia Tech University, and has been to Def Con a couple times.

Up until recently, he led an active lifestyle -- competing in marathons, flying a small plane, and hanging out with friends. In late 2004 though, it was discovered that an unusual mole on his shoulder was actually a signal that he had developed cancer.

His condition has had its ups and downs over the last several months. Overcode has a gift for writing though, and has documented the entire journey thus far, including his emotions throughout the diagnosis process, and pictures of his CAT scans. The folks at the yak.net site have been kind enough to host this information (since he's a fellow Georgia Tech student), and it's a fascinating and alarming read.

I don't know Overcode personally (he's a friend of a friend), but I offer him my best wishes for a recovery.