Hello Everyone,
I haven’t posted much at all lately but I do read the board almost daily. We’ve been so busy-life is flying by and I am trying as hard as I can to catch its tail and hang on!
We went to UPMC in Pittsburg to see Dr. Luketich Thursday. Things went very well. He was very honest and up front with us. He took a lot of time explaining some of Daddy's scans and describing what surgery would entail if Daddy is a candidate.
We are to return to UPMC in about 6 weeks. They will do an endoscopy, ultrasound, biopsy some lymph nodes and a CT scan. Once that is done, we will discuss surgery. His preliminary thoughts are that although the lymph nodes just under the tumor are cancerous, it would not be a problem to remove those along with the esophagus. However, if there are more distant nodes involved this may rule out surgery.
We also met with Dr. Gibson, the medical oncologist on Dr. Luketich’s team. He felt that Daddy’s cocktail of cisplatin and irinotecan were appropriate methods of treatment but also stated that there are many others that are available for him to try. He shared my concern about the irinotecan. Daddy’s has been cut down to ¼ of the original dose due to diarrhea. I don’t want him to be on something that makes him sick but he and I both want him to be on enough of something to shrink this thing!
God is good and He has brought us this far; he never leaves or forsakes us or those who love Him. I am putting my trust in Him and I know that He will provide all we need.
On a non-EC note…I have a 17 yr old son who is a junior in high school. He eats, sleeps, and dreams baseball. This past week he accepted a scholarship offer to play college ball at a Division I school. He is on cloud nine and we couldn’t be prouder! His granddaddy is his biggest fan of all but hasn’t been able to attend a game this year. With the season coming to a close and playoffs nearby, he would love to look past the umpire from the pitcher’s mound and see G-Daddy perched behind the fence at home plate cheering him on. God answers all prayers, big and small. My prayer is that He will answer this one too.
Please continue to pray for Daddy. He took his last chemo treatment in this cycle Friday and is looking forward to a break. His last radiation treatment will be on April 24th, my parents’ 49th wedding anniversary! We are looking forward to our next appointment with Dr. Luketich.
You are all in thoughts and I pray for you daily. Keep fighting-hold on to life’s tail and keep kicking EC in the teeth!
I will keep you posted!