As he was turning 30, Tom Willner of Atlanta learned he had testicular cancer. He was a computer manager, not a writer. But as he sat at home recuperating from surgery, he decided to write a musical about it.

''I had to get out what was in my head,'' he says.

The musical, Turning Thirty, traces stages he went through:

Your Number's Up describes the terror of diagnosis:

Because your number's up it's time for you to sweat,

Yes your number's up and thirty's all you get.

Masturbating in a Cup tells the indignities of treatment:

Other men I know are so jealous of me,

I get to leave work early and watch pornography.

Life is Good celebrates the elation of recovery:

I got friends I got foes easy comes and easier goes,

I got more than anyone should 'cause I got life and life is good.

A piano and guitar amateur, Willner has performed his songs at Eddie's Attic and other Atlanta clubs. He has made a CD, and is seeking backers to turn it into a fully staged play. But if that never happens, he's satisfied that it helped him get through the disease.

''I'm in remission,'' he says. ``In July I'll be a three-year survivor.''

Readers can see Willner's play and buy his $10 CD at http://www.turningthirty.org/.

-- FRED TASKER