[Previous entry: "Germanium"] [Next entry: "Omega-3"]
09/18/2007: "Recent Doctor Visit"
Yesterday I went in for my every-three-week (tri weekly?) oncology appointment. The doctor confirmed the message I got last time that my chest x-ray showed no progression of tumor growth since the last x-ray in May. I have been trying to taper off of steroids but have had to hold onto a 20mg dose of Prednisone because of increased difficulty breathing and pain in my arm and chest. These were the reasons I was on steroids to begin with but I feel like the trade off of increased pain may be worth to get off this nasty drug.
I feel cautiously optimistic, as my doctor has ordered a full set of scans. This will be the first PET scan I have had in almost a year. This scan is very accurate in finding all tumors throughout the body. I will also get a CT scan of my torso and an MRI. The last CT scan I had showed some small unknown spots in my liver that had my doctor concerned.
So the scans over the next few weeks will give us a good idea of where my whole body is and what I am up against at this point. I hold out hope that the lack of growth in my lungs is a good sign that there is no further metastasis. But I have had PET scans deliver a blow before so I can’t guess. As Tom Petty sings, “The waiting is the hardest part.”