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