Family portrait provides a look at one of the families that make Central Minnesota unique.

SAUK RAPIDS — Ivan Cruser went to the doctor for his flu symptoms at noon Dec. 16. By 5:30 p.m. he had met with a urologist, had an MRI, and was scheduled for surgery at 5:30 a.m. the next day to remove a testicle and an orange-sized tumor from his groin.

On Dec. 19, when the full diagnosis came that he had testicular cancer with cancer particles that had spread to the lungs, he immediately started an aggressive chemotherapy program.

"It all happened so fast. He found out, we came home and ate supper, and he was back in the hospital. Not even 24 hours had passed," said Amanda Cruser, who drove her dad to that first checkup.

Since that weekend the Cruser family has been taking Ivan Cruser's illness one day at a time, but it is his positive attitude that keeps his family's spirits up. Amanda Cruser and the two youngest boys, Blake Cruser, a senior at Sauk Rapids High School, and Wade Cruser, a freshman at Ridgewater Community College in Willmar, trust their dad's assurances that he is going to be all right.

"If he would have been more torn up about it, it would have affected us differently. His positive attitude has helped a lot," Amanda Cruser said.

Missing the day to day

When Ivan Cruser's oldest son, Preston Cruser, a state trooper who lives in Hutchinson, got the call from his dad that weekend, he was cautiously optimistic.

"I was concerned. Even now it's a waiting process to find out what's going on," he said. "We try to be optimistic. You can't go any faster or any sooner, so you just wait and hope."

What Ivan Cruser is missing now is watching his boys wrestle and helping Preston Cruser and his wife, Megan, and their children, Bryn and Broc, remodel their new house in Hutchinson. But what they are all looking forward to at the moment is having a big Sunday dinner, a favorite family tradition.

"There is a big expectation for (Dad's) meatloaf today. We haven't had a Sunday dinner in a long time," Amanda Cruser said, as Ivan's kids and his girlfriend, Jill Childs, sit around him at the dining room table Jan. 29, the Sunday before he begins what will hopefully be his last week of chemotherapy.

According to Ivan Cruser, family dinners are a time to stay close.

Laugh, not cry

When Ivan Cruser says in an exaggerated whine, "If everybody walks around and says 'Geez look at Dad, he looks terrible. I hope he doesn't come by so my friends see him,' " his kids crack up.

"That's the way we are. We can laugh," he said. "We don't walk around sad because of what happened to me. We're going to lick this thing and go forward."

Thinking ahead, he sees the perfect vacation as just spending time talking to his kids, and he has booked adjoining rooms at a casino in March.

Ivan Cruser encourages other men to be aware of warning signs. He says his prognosis is good with a 90 percent recovery rate, but the key is to act as soon as you notice an abnormality.

"It only takes a couple minutes to go to the doctor, and then you'll know for sure," he said.

Doing what it takes

Although he has had some weight loss and shaved his head and beard in anticipation of the chemotherapy, he hasn't experienced many of the typical symptoms like hair loss, nausea and muscle aches. He wants others to know chemotherapy doesn't have to be a bad experience, but even if it is, it's worth it.

"When you've got a cancer, you've got to go with whatever goes with it because it might give your family more time with you."

On Feb. 25, there will be a benefit to help Ivan Cruser pay for his medical expenses. His sister, Joyce Johnson, came up with the idea, and now with the whole family and many friends involved and donations like 2006 Packers/Vikings tickets, a laptop computer and a spa package rolling in for the silent auction, the event has snowballed from an expected 45 people to almost 300.

In true Cruser fashion, they are printing T-shirts for the event that reflect their positive attitude. Ivan's T-shirt will say, "I fought cancer and won."

Others will say "My dad fought cancer and won," "My uncle fought cancer and won" and "My brother fought cancer and won."

If there is power in positive thinking, Ivan Cruser and his family will be able to wear these shirts for many years to come.

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