Hi Viewers...we're up here in the beautiful White Mountains just enjoying the fall weather and the peace and quiet of our mountain home. We are so blessed to have been able to build this beautiful home and to be able to spend so much time up here. It's just good for the soul and we thank God every day. Fall is in full swing. The days are warm and the nights cold. Phoenix, on the other hand, is recording 100 degrees today...that's just wrong! It's the end of October for heavens sake!
So we went to see Dr. Saavatis, Brenda's Oncologist, on Tuesday. The approach is different than when we went to Houston. In Houston they got her into chemo right away, but they are going to wait with chemo until after her surgery on November 10th because they might put the radioactive seeds in the disease area. Of course all this could change when they staff her case at the "tumor board" on Tuesday. The next appointment we have with him is December 1st. We still have to get the hearing test and the weigh in my the neuro-eye doctor. Dr. Saavatis did talk about doing some gene-sequencing and that was a tact we were hoping they would take at some point. Let's kill this damn thing already!
The good news is that we got to come back up to the mountains and just feel the peace and quiet before the world ramps up again when we have to go home...that should be around Nov. 8th. Brenda has lots of tests on the 9th and then again the surgery to identify the margins of this crap is on the 10th. Our house is still in the renovation stage...they are now laying the new tile floor but they will be closer to being done by the time we have to leave Pinetop. (I HOPE!) For all of you who have renovated your homes...you know how that goes. HA!
Brenda is totally enjoying her time away from the doctors and is getting her head around the trail to be blazed. She is such an amazing woman and I am so very blessed to have her in my life. I'm going to charge the boat batteries and hope to do one last fishing trip before we close the place up for the winter.
So dear ones, that's the update I have for you today. Things are moving along and Brenda is good and loving life...that's what matters.
Love to you all.
Dee...the nurse is on vacation for now!
Thursday, October 27, 2016
Friday, October 21, 2016
The Meeting with the Radiation Doc
We left the cool temps and the falling leaves of Pinetop on Tuesday to meet the Radiation Oncologist that came highly recommended to us by Brenda's Neurosurgeon...Dr. Little. It was really hard leaving the mountains to go back into the chaos of the big city, the remodel of our house, and having to once again prepare for the fight that is to come. It was like having to go into a dark building looking for a suspect when we were cops. You didn't want to do it, were scared shitless, but it was a job you had to do. I think you get the picture.
To our amazement when we went to Dr. Youseff's office at St. Joseph's/Barrows we saw an old acquaintance. Venessa, the medical assistant for our GP (Dr. Mello) was now the medical assistant for Dr. Youseff. We have know her for years. There are no accidents in life and this was a sign that we were headed in the right direction and she would be there to help us internally.
Dr. Youseff was very nice, had Brenda explain everything that has happened since she was originally diagnosed with cancer in 2009, and then we got into the discussion of the treatment. He showed us the recent scans they had done before the craniotomy. He saw an area in the upper right sinus that he didn't know if it was the location of the cancer or scar tissue. The optic nerve is in that general area and that is also a concern with the upcoming radiation. At first it sounded like it might be in a place that couldn't be treated...which is NOT OK with us but then I asked some very pointed questions and he said that they could treat it but needed to locate where it was exactly and that it was SURVIVABLE! That question was soooo very important. We hang on to that concept with all our might. Let's all envision that outcome...hang on to that with all your might and send all that energy in that direction. There is power in our collective consciousness.
So he described 2 possible radiation protocols that they could use. One is called "Brachytherapy" There is either a temporary or permanent kind. It's where they implant radioactive seeds in the tumor/s. They would do this at the time the surgeons go in to try and identify the margins of the current outbreak. The other type is called "Cyber Knife" and is a very specific and targeted radiation beam that hits the affected area. The radiation treatment she got in Houston was called IMRT and it was just a flood of radiation to all the areas that were affected...neck, sinuses, and that nasty lesion to her brain. The cyber knife is very, very specific.
Dr. Youseff wants Brenda to see a Neuro-Ophthalmologist because of the optic nerve issue and the one he recommended isn't accepting any new patients...wonderful. So now we're on the hunt for a new one. He also has ordered all the records from MD Anderson and they will again staff this at the Barrows Tumor Board. It was staffed once already.
Once that meeting was done we were back on the road to Pinetop. We stopped at the house to get the dogs but we were otta there! We are so blessed to have a place to go to that brings us calm and the ability to think through some of this stuff. We thank God every day for this gift.
We again have to leave the mountains on Sunday. I have to take my Mom to the doctor on Monday and on Tuesday we have an appointment with Brenda's oncologist. As you can tell, things are still in the investigative stages. Those that know me know that I am not a very patient person! LOL! This is such a challenging time because I want to know and have this over with and the cancer KILLED for Brenda...we have more living to do! Brenda is such a strong person. She feels so much better now that they have the CSF leak repaired. She has her energy back and is getting stronger every day...that's important. She's focused once again and is doing tons of research about all these options that have been presented thus far. Vic has been a big help to offer advice and research as well. We have the best friends!
To get her mind off all this, Brenda and Toni went out to the casino to have some fun. Brenda came home a winner and she'll come home a winner in this fight as well.
I'll keep you posted on our Tuesday meeting and appreciate everyone's prayers and positive thoughts...please keep em coming!
Love you all from the White Mountains...
Nurse Dee
To our amazement when we went to Dr. Youseff's office at St. Joseph's/Barrows we saw an old acquaintance. Venessa, the medical assistant for our GP (Dr. Mello) was now the medical assistant for Dr. Youseff. We have know her for years. There are no accidents in life and this was a sign that we were headed in the right direction and she would be there to help us internally.
Dr. Youseff was very nice, had Brenda explain everything that has happened since she was originally diagnosed with cancer in 2009, and then we got into the discussion of the treatment. He showed us the recent scans they had done before the craniotomy. He saw an area in the upper right sinus that he didn't know if it was the location of the cancer or scar tissue. The optic nerve is in that general area and that is also a concern with the upcoming radiation. At first it sounded like it might be in a place that couldn't be treated...which is NOT OK with us but then I asked some very pointed questions and he said that they could treat it but needed to locate where it was exactly and that it was SURVIVABLE! That question was soooo very important. We hang on to that concept with all our might. Let's all envision that outcome...hang on to that with all your might and send all that energy in that direction. There is power in our collective consciousness.
So he described 2 possible radiation protocols that they could use. One is called "Brachytherapy" There is either a temporary or permanent kind. It's where they implant radioactive seeds in the tumor/s. They would do this at the time the surgeons go in to try and identify the margins of the current outbreak. The other type is called "Cyber Knife" and is a very specific and targeted radiation beam that hits the affected area. The radiation treatment she got in Houston was called IMRT and it was just a flood of radiation to all the areas that were affected...neck, sinuses, and that nasty lesion to her brain. The cyber knife is very, very specific.
Dr. Youseff wants Brenda to see a Neuro-Ophthalmologist because of the optic nerve issue and the one he recommended isn't accepting any new patients...wonderful. So now we're on the hunt for a new one. He also has ordered all the records from MD Anderson and they will again staff this at the Barrows Tumor Board. It was staffed once already.
Once that meeting was done we were back on the road to Pinetop. We stopped at the house to get the dogs but we were otta there! We are so blessed to have a place to go to that brings us calm and the ability to think through some of this stuff. We thank God every day for this gift.
We again have to leave the mountains on Sunday. I have to take my Mom to the doctor on Monday and on Tuesday we have an appointment with Brenda's oncologist. As you can tell, things are still in the investigative stages. Those that know me know that I am not a very patient person! LOL! This is such a challenging time because I want to know and have this over with and the cancer KILLED for Brenda...we have more living to do! Brenda is such a strong person. She feels so much better now that they have the CSF leak repaired. She has her energy back and is getting stronger every day...that's important. She's focused once again and is doing tons of research about all these options that have been presented thus far. Vic has been a big help to offer advice and research as well. We have the best friends!
To get her mind off all this, Brenda and Toni went out to the casino to have some fun. Brenda came home a winner and she'll come home a winner in this fight as well.
I'll keep you posted on our Tuesday meeting and appreciate everyone's prayers and positive thoughts...please keep em coming!
Love you all from the White Mountains...
Nurse Dee
Sunday, October 16, 2016
The Calm Before the Storm
Morning Friends and Family...
Now that I've again figured out how to post on this blog, I'll give you all an update and then get the blog address out to everyone. We are breathing in the cool fall mountain air up here in Pinetop at our summer home. It's so healing and its the place we go to get back to nature and to calm our stressed out bodies and souls. It's an amazing place.
So let me get to the latest update...things are starting to fall into place...now if we could only get the damn cancer to fall OUT of Brenda's head!!! We went to see Brenda's new oncologist in downtown Phoenix at the University of Arizona Cancer Center that has partnered with Dignity Health/St. Joseph's Hospital and Barrows. His name is Dr. Saavitas and he's the head of the head and neck section of the hospital so once again my girl and her proclivity for creating rare things has awarded us the top doc! He said that the treatment would probably be the same as last time...chemo and radiation but maybe not as extensive...GOD! We can only hope! There are still lots of things they need to review and put together before the final treatment plan is in place but this is what she's facing right now. She needed blood work, a chest CT, a hearing test (the chemo can destroy part of your hearing,) an appointment with the radiation oncologist, and they are also going to do a biopsy of the area they found the cancer in to determine the margins. There's probably more but that's enough for now! We see the radiation guy (Dr. Yousef) on the 19th and she has the biopsy on Nov. 10th. This is going to be done by her ENT and Neuro-surgeon. Great guys! It will be a surgery with an overnight stay in the hospital. Please pump out those prayers and positive thoughts that this damn thing is small!
Those of you that know us know that we don't do things half-ass. So in true Brenda and Dee fashion, as all this medical stuff is going on, we are also doing a MAJOR remodel of our house in Mesa! Now don't yell...we started the planning for this months ago before we had any idea the C-Beast would rear it's ugly head once again. Brenda didn't see any reason to postpone this. It''ll probably be finished by the time treatment starts. When in Mesa we are living out of my sister and brother-in-laws vacation home. Thank you Barb and Tim. Our house will be beautiful when it's done but we can't live there right now...it's a holy mess!! Word to any that think about remodeling...get a great company and don't be there while they are working. AMEN!
So we are so very thankful that we have been able to build our dream home in the mountains and can come up here to be at peace. Thank you God, and Kevin and Josh Funk...our fabulous builders.
I'll post more as things happen and, as before, we look forward to your comments and efforts to make us laugh. It really helped the last time. Hopefully Marshall Vic and the gang will come out of retirement and Brenda and I can laugh our way out of the C-beast nightmare.
Sending love to you all...
Nurse Dee
Now that I've again figured out how to post on this blog, I'll give you all an update and then get the blog address out to everyone. We are breathing in the cool fall mountain air up here in Pinetop at our summer home. It's so healing and its the place we go to get back to nature and to calm our stressed out bodies and souls. It's an amazing place.
So let me get to the latest update...things are starting to fall into place...now if we could only get the damn cancer to fall OUT of Brenda's head!!! We went to see Brenda's new oncologist in downtown Phoenix at the University of Arizona Cancer Center that has partnered with Dignity Health/St. Joseph's Hospital and Barrows. His name is Dr. Saavitas and he's the head of the head and neck section of the hospital so once again my girl and her proclivity for creating rare things has awarded us the top doc! He said that the treatment would probably be the same as last time...chemo and radiation but maybe not as extensive...GOD! We can only hope! There are still lots of things they need to review and put together before the final treatment plan is in place but this is what she's facing right now. She needed blood work, a chest CT, a hearing test (the chemo can destroy part of your hearing,) an appointment with the radiation oncologist, and they are also going to do a biopsy of the area they found the cancer in to determine the margins. There's probably more but that's enough for now! We see the radiation guy (Dr. Yousef) on the 19th and she has the biopsy on Nov. 10th. This is going to be done by her ENT and Neuro-surgeon. Great guys! It will be a surgery with an overnight stay in the hospital. Please pump out those prayers and positive thoughts that this damn thing is small!
Those of you that know us know that we don't do things half-ass. So in true Brenda and Dee fashion, as all this medical stuff is going on, we are also doing a MAJOR remodel of our house in Mesa! Now don't yell...we started the planning for this months ago before we had any idea the C-Beast would rear it's ugly head once again. Brenda didn't see any reason to postpone this. It''ll probably be finished by the time treatment starts. When in Mesa we are living out of my sister and brother-in-laws vacation home. Thank you Barb and Tim. Our house will be beautiful when it's done but we can't live there right now...it's a holy mess!! Word to any that think about remodeling...get a great company and don't be there while they are working. AMEN!
So we are so very thankful that we have been able to build our dream home in the mountains and can come up here to be at peace. Thank you God, and Kevin and Josh Funk...our fabulous builders.
I'll post more as things happen and, as before, we look forward to your comments and efforts to make us laugh. It really helped the last time. Hopefully Marshall Vic and the gang will come out of retirement and Brenda and I can laugh our way out of the C-beast nightmare.
Sending love to you all...
Nurse Dee
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
The Battle Begins
Well, here we go again...damn it! A lot of you have followed our blog through the first battle of the bulge...sinus tumor back in 2009. And you have also leaned from us that the DAMN cancer...although small...is back. With this latest CFS repair via craniotomy...Dr. Little (Brenda's neuro-surgeon) found some suspicious tissue that he sent to pathology. They determined that her neuro-endocrine cancer had returned in about the same spot that it originally cropped up. Well CRAP!
So we are back on the hamster wheel of cancer killing once again. Brenda is so strong and so determined that this will again be a thing of the past and our life will go on once again. That's what we pray...dear Lord.
It's been a few years since I did the blog and so I'm trying to start it up once again. It was a great way to update everyone and get your feedback. So bear with me as I figure out the new format.
Hang in there peeps...
So we are back on the hamster wheel of cancer killing once again. Brenda is so strong and so determined that this will again be a thing of the past and our life will go on once again. That's what we pray...dear Lord.
It's been a few years since I did the blog and so I'm trying to start it up once again. It was a great way to update everyone and get your feedback. So bear with me as I figure out the new format.
Hang in there peeps...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)