MRI Results--May

The doctor's appointments went pretty good last week. They have decided to introduce a chemotherapy drug called Carbopaltin that will be administered through an IV at the same time he gets the Avastin. They are not putting a port in at this time and treatment time is now a few hours instead of just an hour or so. He got his first dosage of both drugs last Wednesday and has been a little more tired and irritable and his appetite is starting to change a little. Yesterday he wasn't very hungry for lunch or a snack but Mom and I grilled dinner for Mother's Day and he went back for seconds and even had dessert!

The picture below is a comparison of MRI's.. the one on the left is from last week and the one on the right is from roughly two months ago. The original tumor is the top spot of the scan and the doctor said it's looking smaller. However there is a second spot that has gotten larger, that's the lower spot. They don't seem too concerned about it at this point and are just going to keep an eye on it. It's not worth putting Dad through a surgery to biopsy it when they're not sure what it is.

May 1st Update

I've heard many comments from everyone that the blog hasn't been updated in a while, let's just say that's a good thing! Dad has been doing so well since starting the Avastin, his appetite is back to normal, his energy is back up, and he's making so much progress at physical therapy. We've noticed only a couple minor side effects from Avastin, Dad bruises very easily now, the site of his last IV treatment has a softball sized bruise and his bicep has some spotty bruising from the blood pressure cuff. He's also on a blood pressure medication now from having high blood pressure, which the doctors say that's a pretty normal side effect.

Dad had an MRI this past Friday (April 29th) and will get the results later this week. I won't be able to go with them but they have a long day of doctor appointments and treatment. They'll meet with Dr. Huang (radiation oncologist), Dr. Anstass (chemo/medical oncologist), Dr. Chicoine (neurologist), have blood drawn, and receive the Avastin.

In physical therapy, they have been working on putting weight on Dad's left leg while walking and weight on the left arm/shoulder while on all four's. He still doesn't have much mobility in the left hand but says he can feel a difference in his shoulder. We're hoping that the further out from radiation we get, the left side will become stronger and stronger. The picture below is from physical therapy the other day. He starts out in that position and then moves his right foot so it's on the table, like the position you would get in when you're proposing.

May is also Brain Cancer awareness month. Unfortunately there is no cure for any kind of cancer, including brain cancer. The only thing that we can do, other than support those fighting, is raise awareness and funds for cancer research. This September I will be riding in my first Pedal the Cause, with a goal of riding 20 miles and raising $375. What I love about Pedal the Cause is that all the money raised stays in St. Louis to fund cancer research. Last year they supported several research projects focused on Glioblastomas, which is the type of cancer that Dad has. I've never been one that's really enjoyed asking people for donations, but this is a cause that has affected my family so much and something that I'm really passionate about. You can click here to access my fundraising page and read more on why I ride.

We really can't thank our family and friends enough for all the support that you guys have given us. We all have our days when things are especially tough but it would be even tougher without our support system. We love you all!!