“He kept reminding Janet and me that you never know what things are going to be like when you come out of the surgery,” said Flippin. “He kept using the word ‘wonky’ and said I may be ‘off’ for a bit. We didn’t know what to expect.”
Even before the surgery, Flippin was what many people would call “a character.” Given that, determining post-surgery wonky-ness was hard to ascertain.
“I woke up feeling totally normal,” he said. “They gave me cognitive tests and everything came back fine. I was very fortunate.”
His road wasn’t over, and it remained bumpy. A few days later he found out the tumor was, indeed, malignant. That brought 25 rounds of radiation on the front of his head, taking out the hair in that area. Within a year, follow-up PET scans showed the beginnings of another tumor, this time on his breast bone. Within another year after that, cancer growth started in other areas, particularly his ribs.
Flippin had learned by this point that he had a rare blood disorder predisposing him to tumors growing on his bones. Soon, tests revealed another one growing on his skull.
Radiation was no longer an option, so in October 2021 Flippin underwent bone marrow and stem cell transplants. He has been cancer-free since.
His experience and response week after week has impacted those at Lakeside Baptist.
“People want me to tell this story and that my faith has inspired them and been an encouragement. I hear that about every week,” he said.
Last year’s operation left him in a condition where Flippin couldn’t visit either of his kids or grandchildren for Thanksgiving. This Sunday after church, he and Janet will get on the road for the 8 ½ hour ride to Jonesboro Arkansas to make up for it.
RELATED: Timothy Keller ‘Celebrating’ Two-Year Anniversary of Cancer Diagnosis, Shares Health Update
And he’s not off his bike. In fact, he was back on it six months after the accident that he says saved his life.
“God brought me through this situation in an accident I truly believe He caused,” said Flippin. “I joke with people and say I wish it hadn’t taken a broken hip to find the brain tumor.”
Then again, he pointed out, it took a serious accident like his for doctors to insist on checking for a concussion, which found the tumor. Thankfulness doesn’t typically mesh with being thrown over handlebars and eating up a patch of Texas asphalt. But it is something for which Flippin is thankful, nonetheless.
This article originally appeared at Baptist Press.
