PET results are in ....

I finally got a copy of my PET report this morning. I *think* it sounds really good, but it almost seems too good, if that makes sense, so I'm waiting to hear what the doc's interpretation is before I really celebrate.

Here's the wording:

The patient has undergone resection of the previously demonstrated lateral left hepatic lobe metastasis since the prior outside study. There is physiologic accumulation of tracer within the remaining liver tissue, with no suspicious hepatic uptake identified at present.

Tracer distribution throughout the remainder of the imaged body is also physiologic, with particular normal concentration noted within brain, myocardium, gastrointestinal tract and genitourinary tract. No areas of abnormal uptake are identified.

The lungs are clear. The heart is normal in size. The bowel is normal in caliber. There is no pleural effusion, pericardial effusion or ascites. Allowing for the lack of intravenous CT contrast, no focal visceral organ lesions are seen. There is no hydronephrosis, and no abnormal gynecologic findings are seen. .... No lymphadenopathy is identified.

IMPRESSION: Interval hepatic metastasis resection. No malignant findings at present.


There were a few other random observations in there that I took out, but that's everything relating to possible cancer.

The previous PET showed uptake in the left hepatic lobe (obviously) and also in the left supraclavicular lymph node and 2-3 lymph nodes in the right upper retroperitoneum. It also showed a solitary site of bone metastasis in the mid thoracic region.

And now, there's nothing ... hard to believe. The nurse I talked to about the report said the doctor (interventional radiologist who did the SIR-Spheres procedure) was very pleased, but that they didn't have the disc yet, so he was waiting to get the disc and look at it himself. So, I'm feeling like maybe they missed something that they'll find on a second look ... I'm just not used to getting *all* good news.

I probably won't hear from the docs until next week, so I think we'll spend the weekend feeling cautiously optimistic. Can't celebrate too much yet anyway because I'm still suffering with tummy troubles. Going in for more IV fluids today ...

PET scan done ... results tomorrow?

I got my PET scan done today. They said my doc should have the results tomorrow ... we'll see.

It's been an eventful week in cancerland. Mostly not good, unfortunately. Tomorrow morning I will attend the funeral of my friend, Candie Jaeger, who died last week at the age of 32. Candie befriended me at the doctor's office on the day I was diagnosed with liver mets. As Alan and I sat shell-shocked in the treatment room, while my first dose of chemo for mets poured into my veins, Candie introduced herself - at the time, she was a nearly 7 year survivor - and gave us a pep talk. She talked about how she had beaten liver mets and how you have to keep fighting - never give up. And that's what she did, until last week, when she finally let go on her terms. She was a real inspiration to me and many others, and I will miss her very much.

I've had my own challenges this past week. Just as I finished up my second round of Xeloda and was looking forward to spending the weekend with my friends Shelby and Nicole, I was hit hard with another fun side effect. Let's just call it "tummy trouble". Along with tummy trouble came the inevitable nausea, so I spent most of my weekend in Birmingham not eating and near a bathroom. By the time I got home on Monday, I was pretty severely dehydrated, so Alan had to take me in for some IV fluids and a couple of shots to help with the tummy trouble. I was feeling better today, although still a bit dehydrated, so I went in for another liter of fluids. This evening, however, tummy troubles have returned with a vengeance, so I guess I'll spend my third day in a row tomorrow getting IV fluids at the doctor's office. It's what I need to do to avoid being hospitalized (yikes!). I did have a nice time with Shelby and Nicole, despite all the tummy troubles.

One bit of good news amid the bad is that my tumor markers have taken a huge nose dive! CA 27.29 is down to 53.9 from a high of 172.6 six weeks prior. We are hoping that this means that the SIR Spheres are doing their job. Tomorrow, hopefully, the PET results will support this theory. Stay tuned ...

Sam's First T-Ball Game and an update

Here are some pictures from Sam's very first T-Ball game this morning. I took them with my phone, so the quality isn't great, but I am so impressed with myself that I figured out how to send them via Bluetooth from my phone to my computer ... all by myself! Sam batted twice and ran to first base (not third as he had done in practice) both times. He played third base and short stop, but he had more fun kicking the dirt than paying attention to the batters (as did most of the other kids on the field)! Ben has been playing Rookie ball (coach pitch), and he's done very well. I will take some pictures at his next game and post them soon.

I scheduled my PET scan for next Tuesday, after I get back from a second annual girls' weekend with my two best friends from high school, Nicole and Shelby. Last summer, they came up to Chicago for a weekend in the city. This summer, we are going to Shelby's neck of the woods, Birmingham. We plan to stay in a nice resort there and just hang out and visit. Our plans to venture further out to Atlanta, Chattanooga or Asheville had to be canceled due to the side effects I'm having on my current chemo. I've developed hand-foot syndrome, leaving my hands and especially my feet red, hot and painful. It often feels like I'm walking on shards of glass, so I need to stay off my feet as much as I can.

The high tumor markers aren't worrisome to my doctor yet. They're checking my tumor markers again this week, and hopefully, they'll be on their way down now that I'm back on chemo. The PET scan will also give us a look at what's going on, so next week we should have good idea of how things are going in my liver and elsewhere.

MRI Results

Good news! The pituitary tumor has decreased in size to 2mm x 5mm x 6mm. That's down from 4mm x 7mm x 9mm 3 months ago and 1.3 x 1.2 x 1.2 cm at the beginning of March. The rest of my brain is "unremarkable", which is good in MRI-speak! I haven't spoken to the neurosurgeon yet, but I suspect I'll get another MRI in 3-6 months to check on it again. Considering I wasn't on any chemo for 2 1/2 out of the last 3 months, I'm starting to think this tumor may not be a met after all. As long as it stays small, I won't have to have the surgery to find out for sure!

I also got a call from my SIR-Spheres doctor yesterday. He wants me to get the follow-up PET/CT scan at 2 months rather than 3 months. I'm not sure why he changed his mind, but I'm glad I'll get a chance to see what's going on sooner - especially with the higher tumor markers. I don't have any aches & pains (aside from chemo side effects) or other symptoms of cancer elsewhere, so I hope the PET/CT won't show that it has spread anywhere else. I'll schedule it for sometime in the next couple of weeks, so we'll know for sure pretty soon!

30 June

Here's a smiling Sam pic. He's as cute as ever... and he sure keeps us on our toes.

Sarah's not feeling too bad - the sensitivity on her hands and feet is getting a bit better. Quick update on tests: she had tumor markers measured just before starting Xeloda three weeks ago and her numbers were the highest we've seen come back on tests, but we think they could actually be down from their peak while she was off chemo and before the SIR treatment. CA-27.29 = 172 and CEA = 133. We're not sure what to make of this but these may not be bad or unexpected given how quickly the liver lesion was growing just before the procedure. Our hope is that the next round of markers will be down significantly if the liver met was the primary contributor.
Sarah also got a brain MRI today to check up on her pituitary lesion. We'll get results either tomorrow or Wed -- she hasn't had any pain or symptoms so we hope that nothing adverse shows up. But, Sarah's approach is always to be braced for any news good or bad - sort of an emotional survival tactic after past hard knocks. Ok, more to follow when we get those MRI results.