The best news today was that mum's brain is "unremarkable" ! Even better was that her vital organs , lungs, liver, kidneys showed no "definite soft tissue metastasis ". The doctor today focused on the bone metastases which are "widespread" . The largest lesions are in the pelvis, particularly the right hip and right femoral neck . The issue that Dr O'Conner is most concerned about is that there is "epidural disease " within the spinal canal that starts at the C7 level to T4 . At the "cervical thoracic junction " there is a mass encroaching onto important soft nerve tissues of the spinal cord. Thankfully, the radiologist could see no evidence of spinal cord compression which would be very serious indeed. As a result of this, Dr O'Conner wants mum seen immediately by a neuro -radiation oncologist and she is fortunate to be able to be seen by Dr Prasad who is a world- class neurosurgeon and radiation oncologist . Her appointment is at 10am tomorrow. In addition, we are still waiting for the appointment with the orthapedic oncologist . Our sense is that mum will get radiation very soon on her spine and hip .In terms of general treatment, Dr O'Conner was very positive and relatively optimistic. Mum will be receiving treatment of Zometa by I.V once per month . Zometa helps by
- Slowing the bone–destroying activity that occurs with bone metastases.
- Fighting the abnormal cells that cause bone to wear away.
The most significant side-effects of Zometa are possibly an increase of bone pain in the short term , jaw complications and kidney function can be affected. Mum will be followed carefully and hopefully, she will do well on the medication .
Mum has also been put on Decadron which is a steroid. The reason for the drug is to reduce the swelling of the normal tissues around the bone tumours and to control any symptoms. She is probably only going to be on Decadron for a couple of weeks, three times per day . Decadron typically causes increased energy and increased appetite (not a bad thing !)
There are some stomach side effects with these medications and so she is also on Prilosec which reduces stomach acid. The scans have also revealed that mum has severe Diverticulitis . This is news to her , so she will probably see her GP about it at some point. Apparently, it is quite common and a high fibre diet is recommended to avoid complications. Considering the other things she has going on though, its not #1 on the list of priorities !
As mums cancer is estrogen sensitive, she is now back on a medication similar to Arimadex . This drug, called Aromasin®, interferes with the body's ability to make estrogen.
Lastly , mum is now on a drug called Oxycodone (5mg) which is a narcotic painkiller . She is to take 1 or 2 tablets when needed for pain . At the moment, pain is not too much of an issue, so she will probably start off with a low dose and increase it as necessary .
All the medications were thouraghly explained to us by Dr O'Conner and also Ellen Kossoff , a pharmacist at Roswell Park stopped by and chatted while mum was getting the infusion of Zometa.
There is an incredible amount of information and support available at this hospital . Its a very unique place and I feel we are very fortunate to be able to have such an outstanding team behind us . Everyone is extremely polite, friendly and helpful . It makes a huge difference and "humanizes" the whole experience.
Tonight we are going back to our favourite mall in Buffalo. The prices are great , lots of sales and we have both taken a fancy to Dunkin' Donuts , the most fattening sweet treat you can possibly imagine. We keep justifying this indulgence because of "stress" and our favourite phrase at the moment is "what the hell ".....but now that we have this reasonably positive news, its time to cut back !
More tomorrow, but right now, its time for a break .
