March 29, 2011 Update

Well, we are still digesting this information:

Dad was scheduled to return to the surgeon who did the biopsy last week. That appt was for 2PM followed by a visit to Dr. M. at 3:20. Dr. M’s office called and said they cancelled the appt because the results didn’t show anything. As the kids might say, “WTF!?!”

Dr. Kay, the surgeon said the results did not indicate anything and that Dr. M would likely request another biopsy probably from under the left arm. If you listened to the audio with Dr. M. we asked where the first biopsy would be and he said he would leave that up to the surgeon. When pressed, he said that was the best way to go. Now, Tom and I remember him spending a lot of time under Dad’s left arm and wondered why he didn’t just go there first.

Dad says he’s done for awhile. It’s hard to blame him. Each part of this journey we’ve (or the Dr.) said, “Just this test and we’ll know exactly what’s up and be able to fix it.” And the results have always been another test. The inactivity from having the tests performed has probably affected his health more than whatever is going on. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but I don’t think we really know.

For now we believe he is going to take a break from the doctors. Tom asked him if he wanted to schedule an appt with Dr. Nichols and he declined. Nedra will be back on April 1 and we think that may really perk him up.

Love you,

John

March 22, 2011 Update

Tom just called. Everything went well and Dad is in the recovery room. The doctor removed two lymph nodes from Dad’s abdomen. He can not drive for a week. He can not play tennis for three weeks. They want him to stay with Tom for a couple of days to recover. We have a follow-up with the cancer specialist on Tuesday the 29^th and another with the surgeon just to make sure this surgery is healing properly.

I think that was all for now…

John

March 21, 2011 Update

Dad goes to Memorial hospital tomorrow at 9:30 am for a lymph node biopsy. We are told this is a minor, out-patient procedure that will get us a definitive result on the condition of Dad’s lymph nodes. Tom will take Dad in and get him back home. I will update everyone via email as soon as Dad is back at home safely.

Love to all,

John

March 9, 2011 Update

Hi all,

Dad had his consultation with the blood specialist yesterday afternoon. I digitally recorded about 8 minutes of the Dr.’s discussion. I missed about the first 10 seconds. You can download the discussion, if you wish, using this link:

http://www.mediafire.com/?daeucil3c1n5isl

The Dr. suspects lymphoma but needs to confirm the diagnosis, type, and style of the lymphoma and has recommended a surgeon take one of Dad’s lymph nodes for biopsy. Tom is taking Dad to the surgeon today for an initial consultation. It should be an outpatient procedure. We have a follow-up with the blood specialist in three weeks.

We also got a copy of the PET scan results. I would be happy to fax anyone a copy if you wish. There a couple of frustrating points from the visit, mainly the fact that we didn’t get a concrete diagnosis. Perhaps that’s good though. It could still be a non-malignant lymphoma. The pet scan was listed as “a comparison to the prior CT scans …of July7, 2009” which I interpret to mean that they saw something back then, but failed to adequately communicate their concerns to Dad. The PET scan report is fairly technical document, but I can see a few positive notes such as this statement, “Again, the overall changes suggest mild progression of lymphoma.” And, “Both lungs are clear without pulmonary nodules or pleural effusion.”

I am hopeful that this biopsy will give us a firm diagnosis and a list of treatment options to choose from. Saw Dad this morning. His tennis game is about the same. His eyesight seems to be pretty good. I think he has lost some muscle strength though.

That’s about it for now. Let me know if you need anything.

Love you all,

John