Cancer update - 12/2

Well after a failed appointment Monday where I waited 45 minutes at the office just to be told the results weren’t yet available (grrrrr!), the second time was the charm and I saw the doctor this afternoon.

My esophagus, stomach, and the first 2/3 of my small intestine all show up fine; however, there are lesions in either the lower third of the small intestine (called the ileum), or the first part of the colon (the cecum, ascending, and part of the transverse colon). With the capsule endoscopy, exact location is difficult to discern and there was some disagreement between several radiologists of whether this was in the small or large intestine, but it does have these areas narrowed down to the lower end instead of the upper end.

The doctor cannot tell from the images whether these lesions are cancerous, but he wants to hop on this asap and also to have results available to me asap to take with me to Moffitt when I go next Friday (12/11). To that end, he has scheduled me for the colonoscopy/ileoscopy procedure this Monday (12/7). He says that the scope will be able to reach all the necessary areas, and he will also be able to take biopsy samples, etc. with the scope which was not possible with the capsule.

He said that he can give me pictures and a report that day before we even leave the surgical center, so that will give me plenty of time to have it in hand for Moffitt. It’s a quick turnaround, but we agreed that having the most information as quickly as possible in hand before Moffitt should reduce the likelihood of further treatment delay once I get there. We’ve certainly done just about every test and scan that the other doctors could think of at this point. It has been emphasized many times to me that they will look and look until they find the primary tumor, so in this case, we’re hoping that they’ll will find it as this affects the treatment regimen.

Thanks to all for your continued prayers, support, thoughts, and encouragement. Through this difficult five weeks of waiting on Moffitt, we have had many trials but have really known the presence of the Lord through it all. We know that the prayers are helping and God will see us through this. It’s so great to have the love and support of our friends and family during this difficult ordeal.