At 82, Mikel Miller has quite a career behind him. As a kid in Missouri, he dove into journalism using his grandfather’s typewriter. He went on to report for United Press International from the Louisiana state capitol at the height of the U.S. civil rights movement, worked in the federal government and more. Later, in Ajijic and Guadalajara, he helped writers edit and publish independently, including Dr. Michael Hogan and his book “Lincoln and Mexico,” for which Miller enthusiastically helped marshal recognition and sales.
Miller’s advanced age was a big part of what led him to forego a colonoscopy he was offered in 2020, at age 76, during an annual physical exam in San Diego.
“CDC [Centers for Disease Control] guidelines say colonoscopy is optional for people over 75 with a favorable family history,” he explained.
But in June 2022, he was floored in a Guadalajara restaurant with “terrible pain,” landing him in Hospital San Javier. The result of three days of tests showed a complete blockage of his intestine and stage three colorectal cancer (a disease that has spread a limited amount from its original site).
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