Ok so I have had all my talks with radiation oncologist and twice now with the surgeon. Here is where I am at . Follow along if you can. This makes my head spin but here it is. So the radiation oncologist after reviewing my case suggests that I go to a facility in Naperville for proton radiation therapy. He said I am young and will benefit from the proton therapy because it will not damage my heart and lungs. Normal radiation therapy would have some effect to my heart and lungs because of the spot we have to target is in my chest. So they also suggest that I get this small spot biopsied so that they can tell if there is any cancer there at all or is it just scar tissue. If it is still showing signs of cancer then protocol says that the treatment I just had the last six months did not work.
Now here is where things make my head spin and get crazy. If this is still cancer then I am looking at more intense chemotherapy treatment where I am hospitalised for the times I go in for chemo and at the end I need a bone marrow transplant. If they biopsy this lymph node and it is nothing but scar tissue then they would just hit it with radiation and get another pet scan to make sure. So now I go see the surgeon and he explains what the surgery entails. Basically I would be asleep and they would collapse my lung turn me on my side and make 3 incisions in the side of my chest. One gets a camera I guess my insides get a selfie who knows. Then the other a scope and the third a tool to grab the lymph node. The surgeon tells me for this little tiny spot he would just take the whole lymph node out. It is the size of the tip of your pinky. the spot they found is about half a centimeter. Surgery for a half a centimeter?
Now talking with my surgeon I get the feeling he is not pushing for the surgery. he agrees with me that maybe we did the pet scan to early after my last chemo treatment. Maybe waiting and just doing the radiation then the scan will prove the cancer is gone. Since at this point I even saw my scans and as the surgeon said it's all gone. Yes this little spot but it could be scar tissue. Basically we are looking at a spot so small that if it would have been a half a point dimmer on the pet scan I would have been cleared and been back to normal life. Because my oncologist wants nothing but the best for me and total perfection she is looking into all options. That makes me feel great. Still I really do not want to do this surgery for something this small. So I see my oncologist next week on Tuesday and will see if we can skip this surgery and just hit the radiation and then get the scan after.
She did mention to me if the biopsy was not a simple in and out surgery then we would just go in for radiation and go from there. Obviously this is a lot to take in and not what anyone wants to hear after six months of chemo hell. But I have to look at this as a good sign. They want to take care of this and do what they can to help me. Still I have to have some say in what they do to my body in the meantime. I am confused right now and I have more questions. Once I sit with my oncologist and go over everything then I will feel better. There is obviously some thinking I need to do. Cancer is never black and white and there is always something that can throw a monkey wrench right in the middle of life. Just when I start to feel better this comes up. I have to say that I am now just tired of feeling fat and bloated and just want to get back to the shape I was in and feel back to normal. In the meantime, two days until The Force Awakens!!!!!
SMIB \m/
Now here is where things make my head spin and get crazy. If this is still cancer then I am looking at more intense chemotherapy treatment where I am hospitalised for the times I go in for chemo and at the end I need a bone marrow transplant. If they biopsy this lymph node and it is nothing but scar tissue then they would just hit it with radiation and get another pet scan to make sure. So now I go see the surgeon and he explains what the surgery entails. Basically I would be asleep and they would collapse my lung turn me on my side and make 3 incisions in the side of my chest. One gets a camera I guess my insides get a selfie who knows. Then the other a scope and the third a tool to grab the lymph node. The surgeon tells me for this little tiny spot he would just take the whole lymph node out. It is the size of the tip of your pinky. the spot they found is about half a centimeter. Surgery for a half a centimeter?
Now talking with my surgeon I get the feeling he is not pushing for the surgery. he agrees with me that maybe we did the pet scan to early after my last chemo treatment. Maybe waiting and just doing the radiation then the scan will prove the cancer is gone. Since at this point I even saw my scans and as the surgeon said it's all gone. Yes this little spot but it could be scar tissue. Basically we are looking at a spot so small that if it would have been a half a point dimmer on the pet scan I would have been cleared and been back to normal life. Because my oncologist wants nothing but the best for me and total perfection she is looking into all options. That makes me feel great. Still I really do not want to do this surgery for something this small. So I see my oncologist next week on Tuesday and will see if we can skip this surgery and just hit the radiation and then get the scan after.
She did mention to me if the biopsy was not a simple in and out surgery then we would just go in for radiation and go from there. Obviously this is a lot to take in and not what anyone wants to hear after six months of chemo hell. But I have to look at this as a good sign. They want to take care of this and do what they can to help me. Still I have to have some say in what they do to my body in the meantime. I am confused right now and I have more questions. Once I sit with my oncologist and go over everything then I will feel better. There is obviously some thinking I need to do. Cancer is never black and white and there is always something that can throw a monkey wrench right in the middle of life. Just when I start to feel better this comes up. I have to say that I am now just tired of feeling fat and bloated and just want to get back to the shape I was in and feel back to normal. In the meantime, two days until The Force Awakens!!!!!
SMIB \m/
Ugh what a pain dude, Im sorry, just keep hanging tough and may the force be w. you, We all are
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