The MRI Results are in.....

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you. He will never let the righteous fall. Psalm 55:22

It has been quite a couple of weeks. The patient waiting, the anxious waiting, the not thinking about it waiting, the being consumed by thinking about it waiting....oh brother I hate waiting. However, before I tell you the results...I have to tell you the story that has brought me to this point. Read on and you'll see why it's been quite a couple of weeks!

It all started on Tuesday, August 31st....MRI at 7:00am at the Cancer Center. No big deal, been through this many times before, laid on the table, head in the MRI machine. If you've had an MRI before you know the loud noises (even with earplugs..omg) that this machine puts out. Came out for an IV of dye, back in again for a few more minutes and then finally finished and a major headache after forty-five minutes. I was hoping to get the technician to give me a hint of what he thought the images looked like...but couldn't get him to budge...oh darn!

My appointment with Dr. Hu (medical oncologist) was not until Thursday, Sept 9th...how in the world am I going to be able to wait that long. As it turns out, I was able to find out sooner. My sister, Tracy, is a CRNA at St. John's and she knows my surgeon and works with him quite often. After my test, I texted Tracy and asked her to call him to see if he could pull the scan and/or results and have him tell her the results. He is a very good and very busy doctor and was unable to find anything out until Thursday, 9/2. When he viewed and read the scans, he thought he saw some change in the nodule that is at the tumor site. (This nodule, which has been there since my original surgery, is either scar tissue or resistant tumor, without surgery we are unsure which.) He considers this change in the nodule as tumor regrowth.

Oh my goodness....you can't imagine my disappointment. It was terrible waiting for the results, but now even more terrible I'm thinking after 10 months of hard fought battle, the tumor has started to grow....what the hell! We went to the Lake of the Ozarks for a long, relaxing weekend, but I can't say it wasn't difficult and not without tears. All I could think of as I looked around was that I am so thankful for the last 10 months but oh my gosh, I want more time; selfishly I want MORE TIME....PLEASE!!.

I have to tell you friends, it took me several days to regroup and refocus myself for the continued fight. But I assure you...the fight continues.

Tuesday, September 7th, I called St. John's to get copies on CD of my MRI's and CT Scans. I got on the brain tumor center at Duke University website and referred myself as a patient. Within 45 minutes, a doctor called me back, asked me if I wanted to come to Duke, of course I told him 'yes'. He said okay and told me what I needed to do. I picked up my CD of scans and my pathology slides and had them at FedEx by 4:15 that day. Once they have looked at everything, the doctor will call me back and we'll see where that goes. They are doing some awesome stuff at Duke. Most importantly, the doctor's message is "there is hope!"

The story continues....
Thursday, September 9th, I have blood work and see my oncologist. He comes into the room and says, "The MRI results look good, there is no evidence of recurrent or residual tumor growth." I said "OH MY GOSH, WHAT?" "But the surgeon said there is regrowth!" He shows me the image results documented from the radiologist and circles and underlines the results. I can't flippin' believe it...I was speechless. UN-BE-LIEV-ABLE!! My blood work came back looking good, my platelets are back up and my white cell count is up. Since I am doing well with the chemo drug, I can continue with chemo therapy. Of course we need to keep our heads about us and remain cautiously optimistic, but it feels great to get good news.

To the surgeon's credit, he may not have had my last scan to compare to this one, there probably are differences in monitor resolution, there could be many reasons for the misinterpretation of the results. He is a great guy and a great surgeon and I would highly recommend him and his staff.

I'm sure you are asking, "What about Duke?" Well, they are supposed to be reviewing what I sent and I am anxiously waiting for a call back. I am very interested in speaking with them and hearing what they have to offer and how soon I could get an appointment. What it so awesome is that I know I have options.

Well, that is the story today. Please continue the heartfelt prayers, they are most definitely being answered. We are on the road to good things happening!!

Patience is a virtue!

+Peace,
Sandy