Essayist and pundit Christopher Hitchens writes about his cancer

UPDATE: Here's Hitchens being interviewed by Anderson Cooper of CNN. 

Hitchens is an interesting fellow. British; he is intelligent, quick, and glib. But lacks wisdom. His political views are mixed, but the one consistency is his militant atheism. Years ago he wrote a book attacking Mother Teresa, entitled "The Missionary Position"; his most recent screed is "God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything".

 

He seems to have no real understanding of Christianity; he constantly sets up a straw man and attacks. It must drive him a little nuts that his brother became an Evangelical Christian years ago. Must have interesting conversations at family reunions.

Anyway, he was recently diagnosed with esophogeal cancer (heavy smoker!) and has started chemotherapy. Here's his story:

Working back from the cancer-ridden squamous cells that these first results disclosed, it took rather longer than that to discover the disagreeable truth. The word “metastasized” was the one in the report that first caught my eye, and ear. The alien had colonized a bit of my lung as well as quite a bit of my lymph node. And its original base of operations was located—had been located for quite some time—in my esophagus. My father had died, and very swiftly, too, of cancer of the esophagus. He was 79. I am 61. In whatever kind of a “race” life may be, I have very abruptly become a finalist.

It's a ten minute read - here's the last interesting three sentences -

Against me is the blind, emotionless alien, cheered on by some who have long wished me ill. But on the side of my continued life is a group of brilliant and selfless physicians plus an astonishing number of prayer groups. On both of these I hope to write next time if—as my father invariably said—I am spared.