Some rough days...

Mom had a 4 hour chemo treatment on Monday, March 3rd. Tuesday and Wednesday were ok, but she got sick on Thursday. We knew it might happen, but weren't really prepared for how sick. She is on 3 anti-nausea medications and steroids again. Hopefully that will make her feel a bit better. Needless to say, her appetite has been really poor. Yesterday Taylor got her to eat some Oreo cookies and a cup of milk. I used to get in trouble for stuff like that, but I guess we'll let it slide. That is the only chemo treatment she will have. With any luck it will slow the growth of the nasty cells. Another update soon....

Another treatment tomorrow...

Mom had surgery on Friday to place a metaport in a main artery in her chest. This will be the direct line for chemo treatments and pain medication when that time comes. She has started to see a new oncologist (Dr. Williams) here in Roseburg. He is very young and very good at what he does. He was straight with us from the beginning and he talked to us very openly. He said that he will not cure Mom, but that he will keep her comfortable for as long as he can. He has decided to do a cycle of chemotherapy to help slow the growth of the cancer cells. If it makes her sick or uncomfortable at all, he will stop and just manage her pain. Her hair already fell out during radiation, so what has she got to lose! : ) It will be a 4 hour treatment (IV chemo) and that will be all for 3 weeks. I'll keep you all updated on the details.

A sad turn of events

We had some very bad news yesterday. After the good news in Portland last week, we have been hit pretty hard. The PET scan that was done at OHSU has revealed some new lesions of cancer. It has spread to Mom's liver. As we knew in the beginning, it is a fast growing very "hot" type of cancer. The doctors are sure that it started in her lungs, then spread via the bloodstream to her brain, adrenal gland, lungs (lymph nodes) and now liver. What we are hoping now is that she can remain comfortable and pain-free. Today the radiation oncologist in Roseburg told us that the next place it can metastasize to is the bones, which can be very painful. We have an appointment on Monday, February 16th to meet with a different oncologist in Roseburg. The doctors at OHSU said not to come back to Portland, that the focal treatment will not be effective now.
Mom was given three options today: more whole body radiation, chemotherapy and/or hospice care to keep her comfortable. It was also mentioned that the physical therapy probably wasn't helping much at this point. Very sad news to a family that is really pulling together to make her better. A lot can be said for modern medicine and the latest technology, but they can only do so much. So on to Plan B which will be to spend as much quality time with her as possible. Sometimes it is hard to put on a happy face when you are feeling so down, but I'm sure that she doesn't want to see how worried we are.
Several friends, family members and aquaintances have asked me about my Dad and how he is holding up. Some days not too good. He is the one that gets to see the very worst of it 24/7. On bad days, he is the one that is there for the anger, sadness and the helplessness. I have always said how strong of a person he is and how he has always been the backbone of our family, but one man can only take so much. Mom has asked me several times to "please take care of your dad". That is her only concern at this point. She will always think of others before herself. That's my Mom.

Yet another OHSU trip....

We had a great trip on Friday with terrific news! The radiation that Mom had in Roseburg has shrunk the 2 tumors on the left side of the brain so that they weren't even visible on the MRI! They went ahead and zapped the resection site on the right side of the brain as a precaution. I guess that the place where a brain tumor is removed has the highest chance of recurring. This was a fairly short procedure. Set-up took about 45 minutes, but the actual "zapping" was considerably shorter. So....on to the issue in the lungs....

She has an appointment this Tuesday, February 10th for a PET scan on her whole body. This specialized test (Positron Emission Tomography) will tell us exactly where the lung cancer is located and if it can be treated with the stereotactic radiosurgery technique or if chemotherapy will be needed.

Again, I have to say that this is all very exhausting and emotionally draining for Mom, but she is a trooper. A bit grumpy at times, but she doesn't sleep all that good, so I guess that is to be expected. We just smile and say, "Yes, Mom."

As she continues treatment, I hope that everyone will continue to call or visit her with words of encouragement. It really helps to lift her spirits. Until next the next update...please keep her in your thoughts!

On the road again...

Thursday, January 29th 2:00pm: Appointment at OHSU for CT scan and stereotactic

radiosurgery mask fitting.

Back to hospital at 8:30 pm for MRI. This procedure took 1 hour 16 minutes and 30 seconds. A radioactive dye was infused intravenously and then shows up in an MRI at problem areas. We will have results when we go up again on Friday, February 6th at 2:00 pm.

The radiation oncologist will take the results of the two tests, overlap them on the computer and determine a plan of attack on Mom's brain.They will do the procedure that same day.

She gets very frustrated and emotional about all of the testing and feelings that go along with that. We share her frustration to a degree, but do we really know what she is going through? Probably not. She definitely has some situational depression going on. We can help with that some, but we can't be there every moment, and alone time is hard for her (and Dad too). We try to keep her as involved in everything that is going on like Taylor's volleyball games, etc. She enjoys being in the stands for that. She is a bit self conscious with all of her hair out now and the burn from the radiation hasn't helped much. We know that it will all pass and be just a memory soon. I really hope that she is going to get to a place where she is happy again. Going on family outings, camping, drives in the woods, fishing with Dad.....these are all happy places. Doctors, hospitals, clinics, physical therapy....these are places she'd rather not be. But I guess if she had to choose anything right now, it would be FAMILY FAMILY FAMILY!!!! And we will be there no matter what it takes.

Trip to OHSU

We had an uneventful trip to OHSU on Friday. We met with the senior resident in oncology and also the radiation oncologist that specializes in stereotactic radiosurgery. A lot of information in a very short time. They went over all of the previous MRI's, CT scans and plans for future treatment. There are two masses on the left side of the brain that will be treated stereotactically which is high doses of radiation at a very localized area. They will also include the surgical bed of the mass removed in November on the right side. After that, they will continue on to the two areas of the left lung. One is a nodule in the upper lobe of the left lung, the other in the mediastinal lymphnode that is near the lung. The last thing to be addressed is the adrenal gland on the left side. What this means for Mom is more testing and more testing and lots of treatment. We go back up one day next week (not sure of what day yet) for another MRI and a specialized PET scan. Both of these tests are non-invasive but require extended periods of time to set up computers to deliver the high doses of radiation. That means that they have to be very precise! This treatment protocol will be completed in two days on the brain and 5 treatments on the lung every other day. Depending on what day it is started, it may extend over a weekend. Dad plans to take the motor home up and park it in the RV center at the hospital. This is a free service for the first 12 days during treatment. That way Mom can go back and rest between procedures.
So.... a lot to do over the next few weeks. Keeping Mom's spirits up and making sure that she gets plenty of rest and plenty of nutrition are our priorities right now. Her appetite is good and with my Dad's cooking, she can't go wrong! (Just kidding, those of you that know my dad, know that he CANNOT find his way around the kitchen!) Please keep us in your thoughts as we prepare for more treatment.

Heavy Duty Drugs....

Thank goodness for modern medicine! Mom will start a heavy duty regimen of radiation and chemotherapy for her lungs. The cancer is also in her lymph system, so one more hurdle on the journey. She had her 8th treatment of radiation (out of 14) on her brain. It has given her a burn (like a sunburn) on her scalp at the incision site. After the 14th treatment she will then go up north for specialized stereotactic radiation on specific brain tumors. She is starting to have some conversational memory loss, but the doctors told us to expect that. We will find out more information on Tuesday, Jan. 13th. She is a trooper (was there any doubt???) and continues to go to Taylor's volleyball games and stay involved in family life. Papa has a few new bruises on his shins from her cane, but I'm sure they will heal!
Again, thank you family and friends for your continued support. We couldn't do it without you.