Bring on the robots!

If fully independent robots can put a passable version of the iconic Mona Lisa in the foam topping a cappuccino, surely a human-guided robot can successfully excise the cancer that has once again taken up residence in my body. Right?

TC and I were a bit early on Wednesday for my appointment with the oncologist at the OSU James Cancer Center, so we couldn't resist giving the BistrOH! RoboJo animated coffee bar in the lobby a try before heading upstairs to see my doctor.

It was pretty incredible to see the machine behind the glass prepare coffee after coffee, sliding each completed custom order into a numbered slot accessible to customers who watched a video screen to follow the progress on their particular beverage. 

When the order screen asked TC what image should be used to mark his order, we both figured it was to put an identifier on the to-go cup, not in the cappuccino foam itself. Whoa!

But even that was not the most impressive part of our visit. 

Much better was what we heard from the doctor -- that the results he saw in the full-body PET scan I had earlier this month were the best we could have expected. This was the official pronouncement that the scan showed no new sites of concern. 

I had some trepidation before the appointment that the oncologist and surgeon might clash in their recommendations for my care, but those fears were also put to rest. The oncologist fully supports taking the sucker out ASAP, so we continue marching toward my June 9 date in the surgery suite. 

One downside is that he also recommends follow-up chemotherapy, but I'll do whatever it takes to fight this battle to victory. And if the long hair that took a few years to grow to its current length past my shoulders is part of the price, at least I still have my two wigs from earlier bouts. 

Pre-surgery tests on June 2 will tell whether the surgeon will be able to do the robotic surgery that he and I both prefer or if it will have to be a more open, hands-on operation to navigate safely past my heart. 

I'm taking the RoboJo coffee performance as an omen that more robots are in my future.