July 09 MRI results

It has been too long since my last entry and I appologize for the vast delay, I've been dealing with alot of emotion battles and fighting a deep depression. I know that for several of you this blog is the only means you have to keep yourself updated on current events and status changes and I feel horrible that I stopped trying to update it on a regular basis. With that said, here is the latest news.

Over the past few months the tumor, which showed slight signs of shrinking, had stopped doing so and maintained it's size. These factors led to my Doctor's concerns that we needed to possibly consider alternate treatment options. I had an MRI on July 8th, following round 11 of Chemo, to see if the treatments were making a difference. The results of this MRI are very prelimenary but very discouraging. The tumor, much to our surprise, appears to have grown. Dr. Fink decided that we may be doing more harm than good to my body and cancelled all future Chemo treatments. Over the next two weeks she will be taking these images to her colleagues (The Tumor Board) to, again, obtain a collective decision on what the next step should be. I have another appt on July 30th to discuss radiation treatments and to hear what specific treatment plan they have designed for me and my case. She wants me to begin soon and it would take six weeks to complete, Mon-Fri, at the Baylor facility in downtown Dallas. She also mentioned that the chances of me having seizures would be elevated once we stopped the chemo process. The most disturbing bit of info that she had for me, and again this very preliminary, is that the point of the Chemo was to shrink, and ultimately dissolve the tumor......since that didn't work, the radiation's main objective would be to "extend my survival time"....radiation is not a cure, it merely slows the progression and intensity of the tumor. At this point it is highly probable that I will have to take a leave of absence from work for these treatments as I will not be able to drive myself the 25 miles or so to Dallas everyday, then be strong enough to deal with the day to day duties of my job. Jennifer, my sister, and I are taking steps to get all of the appropriate paperwork in order to be prepared for the "worst case" scenario. Not to be fatalistic....just prepared for anything.

I will do my best to update this blog after the July 30th appt and not let so much time pass between entries. I will be giving all of my access information to my Sister and my Father in the event that I am unable to maitain it myself. As always, I want to say thank you to everyone who has shown their support and especially to my family whom, without them, I could have never made it this far. You all mean so much to me and keep me going, for that I could never repay you. I love you all!

Restarting Chemo

FINALLY after several road blocks I am, once again, back on chemo. I anxiously started again last night. I still have the "shock" feelings but they are not as frequent as before however, they do occur daily. I am not, at this point, convinced that it is a result of abruptly halting my anti-depressants since it is still with me despite the fact that I removed myself from them several months ago. My headaches have come back over the past week or so which is why I have been so ready to begin treatment again. The headaches subside with the Chemo treatments and become almost non-existent. I have also experienced some dizziness and nausea as a result of these headaches. This round is the second of the higher dosage and I'm not quite sure what to expect. I will update as soon as I can once this round has commenced. As always, thank you all for your constant and continued support. It really is the difference between getting through this or not.

August 20 MRI Results

I'm relieved to tell you that the results of Wednesdays MRI were very good. There is no growth of the tumor at all, even after skipping Chemo for a month. The doctors seem to think that the "shock" feelings were a side effect of taking myself off of my anti-depressants abruptly. It has been fading in and out for the past three days or so and I am told it should just go away with time. I will resume Chemo again on August 27th.

Halting Chemo

My Doctors appointment yesterday did not go quite so well. I have new symptoms that have developed and others that have worsened. For the past week I have experienced feelings that I can only describe as electric shock whenever I move. These feelings are strongest when I have eye movement or when I'm walking, primarily when my feet touch the ground. On the worst days I also experience some minor dizziness. Memory has also been an increasing issue over the past several weeks. I have been frustrated about it but I shrugged it off as stress, my Doctor is not so convinced. She put me through the usual memory test yesterday and I didn't do so well. She has decided to stop the Chemo treatments immediately and I will undergo a three hour MRI on the morning of Aug 20 at 9:00 am, followed by a neuro-oncologist visit at 3:oo pm that same day to review the results. These exams are to see what is causing my "shock" feelings and to see if the tumor has advanced or grown.

MRI results and Chemo round 3

I had another MRI 2weeks ago and the results were positive. The images showed no growth of the tumor. My neuro-oncologist did not expect to see any shrinkage this early, that usually doesn't begin until the 4th treatment. She did, however, increase the dose on my Chemo to 400mg. I was surprised that the small increase did result in some more intense side effects. I did experience some nausea for one day and the exhaustion level was elevated and longer lasting. I will begin my 4th treatment in mid Aug followed by another MRI to see if the tumor begins to shrink.

2nd round of Chemo

I finished my 2nd round of Chemo on sunday and so far have yet to experience any nausea or illness. To date my only side effect has been severe exhaustion that lasts for approx 2 weeks, each day being a bit better than the one before. My 4th, 5th, and 6th days are the worst and I am unable to work on those days. I am taking a trip to Pennsylvania to see my sister and I will return on July 7th. Upon my return I will have another MRI (my first since treatment began) to see how effective the Chemo has been, if at all. The good news is that I have suffered very few headaches in the last month and all of my weekly blood tests have come back in the normal range.

First treatment complete

David made it through his first treatment feeling pretty good, but VERY sleepy. He said he would rather sleep a lot then have other issues from the treatment.

More news to come if needed before the June treatment.