K
KathyC
Guest
We spent about 40 min with the oncologist today; good news is that last wk's CT shows NO spreading or enlargement in the lymph nodes or the nodules on the lungs from CT 7 wks ago. Said cancer that goes untreated spreads & the patient shows additional symptoms of pain, weight loss, etc. which DH is not showing so we are getting further & further away from the cancer diagnosis we were given several wks ago but he is not ready yet to give us an all clear on cancer. He said there have been instances where false negatives have come back from biopsies but unless DH shows some significant signs of cancer he does not want to put him thru those procedures again. All blood work that was sent to Mayo a few wks ago came back negative--no fungus growing or weird infections. However, in the midst of all this, DH had a gout attack (or at least they think it was gout but without a needle biopsy of the joint they can't be 100% sure & DH has had his fill of needles). He was given a very strong anti-inflammatory drug which to EVERYONE'S surprise not only got rid of the gout symptoms but DH showed an amazing improvement in his ability to walk! Only time DH has had any actual pain was during the gout attack but his lower body was gradually becoming so stiff he could barely move. The gout meds have taken that horrible stiffness away & his mobility has improved by at least 50%. Sooo, we are trying 2 new drugs for anti-inflammatory problems & unless DH shows some other symptoms, we will repeat the CT in Feb to see what these drugs are doing on the trouble spots. Hopefully there will be no further spreading of whatever this is. In the meantime, we see the neurologist next wk who will focus specifically on the spine & those lesions that are there. Did discuss going to Mayo & dr said to give these meds a chance to see what happens. Said if our backs were up against a wall he would say go right now as Mayo's is 1 of the best in the country but since we have NO spreading of this stuff, no additonal symptoms (not yet anyway), & what seems like significant improvement on these drugs he thinks we should give it a little longer. Looks like we are heading to some kind of auto immune problem instead of cancer. However, he reiterated that should it be cancer, it is at stage 4 & even Mayo cannot help us. He truly does not believe it is cancer but says he just isn't ready to give us that 100% assurance that we of course would like to have. As long as DH's mobility is improving on these new drugs, we're willing to give it a chance. Dr says if additional symptoms come along before the Feb CT's that he will send us right away to Mayo. And so, although we still don't have any real answers, compared to where we were several wks ago, I have to say that we have a lot to be thankful for this yr. I've been on the high stress/anxiety diet these past few wks & have lost 20 lbs. Hope I don't gain it back thru the holidays. Thanks to everyone who has kept us in your thoughts & prayers--perhaps this power of prayer & positive wishes is what has turned things around for us--at least for the time being things look a lot brighter for us. I know there are many people on this board who are also facing serious issues & I truly hope that all of you can squeeze just a little bit of happiness out of the coming holidays. This is a wonderul community to turn to for friendship as well as support & I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being here for me.