Hey Don,
My brother was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of the disease about 15 years ago, was given very little chance of living more than a few years... He's always been my hero, but even moreso for his determination to beat the disease, in much the same fashion that you have - tons of research on his own, and the willingness to get involved in some very cutting-edge treatments that were being done at USF and Stanford at the time...
Thanks for your post, keep up the good fight, hope to see you next time I'm back in your neighborhood...
best regards,
Jon