CHRISTIANSBURG -- Seventeen-year-old Jack Sherman begins his story back in 2002, when he was a straight-A student and first-chair saxophone player in the seventh grade.

"In April, I came to dinner one night and found that I couldn't speak," he wrote in his journal, his language matter of fact. "The words were there, but I couldn't get them out.

"My parents took me to the local hospital where I had a seizure. They performed a couple of CAT scans and advised us to be transported to another hospital. After conferring with the doctors, my parents chose the University of Virginia Medical Center. I was transported and got there at about 11 p.m.

"When I woke up enough to understand where I was, I looked down to find myself wearing Virginia Tech shirt and sweatpants."

It was the garb of UVa's arch-rival, of course, and Sherman saw the humor in it.

More serious news followed, however. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

He underwent cranial surgery when the tumor proved malignant. For much of it, he had to be awake to talk and move his fingers and hands to make sure regions of his brain were not being affected. "I can still remember them stapling my head shut," he wrote in his journal.

Recalling all this Thursday at his home in Christiansburg, Sherman's varied interests were apparent. His room is crowded with posters and other items ranging from Japanese monster movies to music and from "Seinfeld" to "That '70s Show." He is also interested in writing and taking an advanced journalism course at Christiansburg High School. He decided to use his writing to chronicle his experiences with his illness.

The journal he created is a rather remarkable account, recalling moments like his bright greeting -- "Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad" -- when his parents, Alan and Shannon Sherman, went to see him in the recovery room. They had no idea he would even be awake. He was sitting up and watching television.

It follows the round of hospital visits as Jack Sherman had his stem cells harvested to be re-introduced into his body with high doses of chemotherapy. His folks took him to a Fairfax hospital for treatments. He had two seizures and was transported back to UVa after getting a dose of Ativan for stabilization.

"Unfortunately, we found out the hard way that I am allergic to ativan. I was hallucinating, seeing faces, hearing voices and talking gibberish. My dad said, if he hadn't been so concerned, it might have been funny."

It was actually pretty scary, Sherman wrote.

He started off 2003 with six weeks of radiation treatments. Then came more chemo, complicated at one point by an infection that kept him hospitalized in Washington, D.C., for five days. He began physical therapy after coming back home to treat to nerve damage in his feet from one of the drugs. Numbness in feet and hands persists to this day.

"I found that I actually liked working out and joined the fitness center after my rehab was over," he wrote. He resumed his school activities.

"Fast forward to May 2005. I had been going to D.C. every three months since my last chemo treatment. No problems had been noticed. In fact, this was to be my last visit before beginning six-month checkups. But could things go that easily, noooo."

Another tumor was found, and this one was inoperable. Sherman's brain could not handle more radiation, and it was obvious the chemotherapy had not killed all the tumor cells.

He enrolled in a clinical trial of two new drugs. Another seizure put him back on anti-seizure medication. His energy level dropped, and so did school attendance. His school has been sending teachers for home visits under a program it has for such cases.

"I still have my intelligence, my brain is just having a hard time processing words and getting them back out. I am also having trouble when there are a lot of things going on at the same time. Mom and Dad usually have to mute or turn off the TV to ask me a question," he wrote.

The tumor continued to grow, and doctors took Jack off the new drugs Nov. 5. "I get a week off (yea) and then I start an every-two-week chemo treatment. The fun never ends," he wrote.

But this was not as bad as the previous treatments, he found. He actually bounced back enough to go see the 1933 version of "King Kong" at The Lyric in Blacksburg and visit the Extreme Makeover home site .

Because Sherman is a year shy of formally becoming an adult, the family's insurance carrier is not covering Avastin, one of the new drugs he's been using. It's approved for adults diagnosed with Jack's type of cancer but not for children.

The Shermans are paying $5,000 to $6,500 a month for the drugs while they appeal the insurance company decision.

Sherman's father said all the hospital trips and related activities caused the parents to neglect their other son, Cord, 15, a high school sophomore.

"We left a child alone and came home to a young adult," Alan Sherman said.

The most recent page of Jack Sherman's journal looks forward.

"I don't know what the future holds for me but I am just trying to follow God's plan for me

"I have been talking to one of my mother's friends in Richmond who has cancer. She seems to enjoy speaking to someone who has been through many of the same things she has. I also just began e-mailing a guy in Roanoke who is beginning to undergo chemo treatments. Hopefully, I can let him know that it's not the end of the world and that, if he keeps a positive attitude, he will pull through just fine."

Some actions that might seem small have meant much to him, he said, in coping with his illness, including his contact with composer Russ Freeman, whose autographed photo he has in his room. When Sherman attended one of Freeman's shows recently, Freeman formally dedicated the show to him.

"To all others out there who may be facing hard times, remember to never give up, keep a positive attitude and Keep The Faith!" his journal concludes.

Sherman wants to use his own experiences to help others in similar circumstances and would like to hear from some of his school friends with whom he has not been able to socialize lately. His e-mail address is sax1chair@aol.com.