ExRx.net

I'm sorry to say that Tim passed away in the early morning hours of January 2nd, he was 62. He died of complications from skin cancer, which had been left untreated for too long.

Tim was a friend I've known on here for several years. He really cared about helping others with the vast amount of knowledge he had gathered over the years. He was a major, long-time fitness enthusiast too. So he knew about all the different types of training that came in and out of vogue, and even back again; even some really obscure stuff. With that knowledge, he helped coach many people over the years, to help them realize their fitness goals. Tim was a friend, and I'm going to miss him.

This news makes me sad. I hope the important people in his life know his contribution here was constructive and valuable. He will be missed.

Tim was always patient in answering questions, even the same question he had answered a few days earlier, or questions that might have seemed like "dumb questions". He got stern once in a while when a thread began to verge on flaming, and would lock them down before they went too far.

I remember that he commented that he did some isolation lifts around the house, and kept dumb bells around to use at odd moments, while on the phone, watching TV or at other times. Since he was divorced and lived with his elderly dad, I pictured a man house, littered not with half-empty beer bottles, but with dumb bells!

He last logged onto the forum the day after Christmas. The cancer had gotten into his brain, and was causing events that at first were thought to be TIAs, with brief times of dysfunction with forgetfulness. I would assume that these increased in length and severity.

He is missed.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

I just saw this
Man, that really sucks. I know Cancer has a long way to go to catch heart diesease, but boy it sure seems to be trying. It really impacts so many around the patient as well.

I’m curious, if he did say it was ok to share information, if you all know if he had caught the cancer and just put off dealing with it, or if he ignored the signs and confirmed too late that he had it? I’m pretty sure, I’d post pone too, afraid of Doctors. I do not doubt my mother did the same thing with her case.

He was independent on here. And respected and respectable.

As I recall without looking back at the message, he just said that he waited too long. It's a very unusual situation for one of the common, relatively non-agressive skin cancers (basal cell, as I recall) to spread away from the local site, and very unusual to spread to the brain. I think he was told pretty early on that there were no good treatment options. Yeah, it's sad. It actually is pretty important to get those moles and non-healing sores checked.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

My father discovered one on his head a few years back. The doctor just cut the tumor off, and that was it. It didn't ever come back or anything. It's definitely important to get them treated right away.

My mother died from malignant melanoma, exactly one week after Tim, actually. It eventually spread absolutely everywhere. Although I'm not religious at all (my mum was, though), I still like to ponder the unknown. They were both the same age, passed around the same time, from a similar disease, and she was very keen on keeping fit, so I like to think they've crossed paths and he's helping her out like he has helped me over the years.

In my mothers case she had a non threatening form about 4 years ago, on her leg. Got it cut out and got the all clear. Got the all clear for almost 3 years. Apparently the 3 year mark is quite significant, although right before this is when my mum found another lump. Not to scare anyone or anything but, next thing we knew she was given, in all likelihood, 3-6 months. Statistically with what she had, less than 5% make it beyond one year, and she lasted 10 months.

I wonder if they should screen better but, who exactly are "they" and what are the logistics involved, ya know. I realise it's complicated. Obviously with my mum the cancer was working away internally whilst externally she was getting the all clear. My dad said the screens basically involved having a look a round and saying, "yeh, looks fine, see you in 6 months". All the while the most aggressive form of skin cancer and surely one of worse forms of cancer ever (I have no experience with any other) was working away under the surface.

So, yeh, I think screening is a huge deal.

I know health care is different in the US, and I wonder if this may of been a factor in Tim not getting his addressed. I used to be quite critical of our national health service but, not any more. They're not so great if you have a bad knee but, if your terminally ill I doubt you'd get any better treatment anywhere else, at least in our experience anyway.

Anyway, not that I want to turn this into a religious debate or a healthcare debate, as we've all been there before, plus, we don't have Tim to come in and keep us under control so it's a recipe for disaster.

Another great person taken by this horrible disease.

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Thanks TimD

Screening is, indeed a huge deal. Sadly, it's neglected, but it's really simple. It's a matter of looking and paying attention both for patients and for doctors. Just by looking at the skin, a doctor will pick up the vast majority of skin cancers. If the patient is already in an exam gown, it takes maybe 30 seconds to do a complete skin exam. In the US, most insurers won't pay for it, if that's the only reason you're seeing your doctor. Most won't even pay for the old annual "complete check-up", and for the most part they are justified, as those are pretty useless overall. Back in the day when the complete annual check was common, doctors didn't very often do skin exams, so it's all pretty ironic. But when a doctor has a patient in for any reason, it takes so little effort to make a big difference. I could tell stories, but I'll resist the temptation.

So beware of your own skin. When you see something new, get it checked. When you see something old that changes in some way, get it checked. When you see your doctor for any reason, say, "hey, doc--how about giving my skin the once-over?" And if he or she wants to biopsy something, don't hesitate.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

That's very sad. I learnt a lot from Tim and was especially interested in all the old bodybuilder type routines of the past that he had a lot of experience in.

I'm very sorry to hear this about TimD. From what I've read in the past year or so, I think he was a good fellow.

Well, no-one can do all those analyses every month like we are supposed to do. It was his time.

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Don’t run if you can walk, don’t walk if you can stand, don’t stand if you can sit,
and if you sat, might as well lie down and take a nap.

Rest in peace TimD.

You will be sadly missed :(

Just about everyone in my family has died of cancer. Prostate, Breast and Bowel.
As a result, i'm having Colonoscopies every 5 years, Had my first one in November aged 41. My dad died in 2010 aged 59 from Bowel cancer, his Mother died of the same aged 52.

It seems nobody dies of old age anymore.

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...I don't have a signature...

Cancer... what is there to say. I've never had it, touch wood, but I've been indirectly effected by it since I was 18. Lost a mate less than a year ago, had another survive it, and have another mate who is in recovery currently, I'm only 28, and my friends were all struck down 25 or younger.

Sorry to hear someone who was so helpful, and a friend to a lot of you has been taken.

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You'll never walk alone, safe in the wide open arms of hell.

Colonoscopy works. My wife's dad died of colon cancer at about the age of 50. Her older sister was the last of the kids to get scoped. They found a malignant polyp, but the cancer was still relatively well-confined. A relatively simple operation has apparently been a cure for her. If she had waited even a few months longer, it would have been much more complicated at best.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan

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Thanks TimD.

Kenny, it seemed more sudden, because he hadn't shared the problems he'd been having. He mentioned in a post several weeks before that he'd had some TIAs. I PM'd him and asked about this. By then he had found out that they weren't really TIAs, but the cancer. He didn't share any more on the board, so I didn't bring it up until after he "disappeared". IM did some searching online, and found a neighbor who gave him the additional detail, scant as they are. There was information that he was living with his father, but we don't know any more than that.

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Our greatest fear should not be of failure, but of succeeding at things in life that don't really matter.--Francis Chan