Bad News; Prune Juice; Second Opinions

BAD NEWS: Dr. Taylor informed us that she wanted to do a new MRI. So we scheduled it for Thursday August 27th in the morning. They did it at the Federal Way branch of Virginia Mason. We were able to get my radiation treatment rescheduled from our regular 2:00 PM time slot to 12:30. So we did the MRI, had lunch, and then went to Radiation. Then at 4:45 we had to be at the Seattle location for our consult with Dr. Taylor.

Earlier we mentioned Dr. Taylor’s MIR plan to my radiologist, Dr. Pham, and she raised questions about why Dr. Taylor was ordering an MRI at this time. She indicated that it was very unusual. Of course this raised all kinds of red flags in our minds. Dr. Pham said she would consult with Dr. Taylor and see if she could determine the reason. Keep in mind that Virginia Mason uses the team medicine approach, which I really like and which gives me great confidence. Everyone playing on the same team working toward the same goal. Anyway, they talked and the plan stayed in place.

So when we met with Dr. Taylor she had the MRI ready to review. She said she ordered it because in the process of reviewing my previous MRI she had noticed a tumor growth that she wanted a better picture of. The result of the new MRI shows that the tumor was growing pretty fast, not a good thing but typical for the type of cancer I have. Not what she was hoping to see. We were more than a little concerned about her comments. When asked what it means she just said that she would talk to Dr. Pham about adjusting the radiation target. I asked her if it was something that could be removed with another operation and she said probably not, they tend not to perform two operations so close together. She also said that she would probably try a new chemo treatment because she wasn’t sure the current one was doing the job she expected.

All in all it was a very depressing meeting. I have always realized that the doctors can’t really guarantee anything and that every body reacts differently, I just have to accept that they do this for a living and they will try everything at their disposal to manage this for the best possible outcome. My job is to live one day at a time and remain as physically and mentally fit as possible. That I can and do do, even though some times it is really hard.

PRUNE JUICE: One of the unpleasant side effects of chemo is constipation. It affects most patients. I am no exception to that rule. I have been taking over the counter medications since day one, mostly without positive results. One of the radiation nurses suggested Prune Juice or Apricot Nectar. So Marlys picked up a bottle of each. I don’t know if any of you drink Prune Juice on a regular basis, or even occasionally. But if you do, I take my hat off to you and acknowledge you a a better man than I. I took one drink and immediately thought “this stuff has gone rotten”! Marlys assured me that it was perfectly good and I needed to finish my glass. Right! She has a better chance of getting me to mow the lawn during the Seahawks opener.

After a very short conversation which ended with me pouring the entire bottle of Prune Juice down the drain I moved on to the Apricot juice. Wow, this stuff was really good. I liked it so much I drank two and a half glasses (about an hour before bed). Now let me tell you, there is absolutely no reason in the world for any company to waste time or money squeezing prunes into juice when Apricots will produce the same results, “IN SPADES”! And you can take that to the little room with you (3-4 times a night!). I’m not always the fastest learner, but here’s my advice: 6 ounces three times a day. DO NOT OVER DO!

SECOND OPINIONS: Every Tuesday after my radiation treatment I meet with Dr. Pham for a consult. Marlys and I were pretty anxious to talk to her about her impression of Dr. Taylor’s MRI findings. Interestingly, Dr. Pham had a significantly different take on the situation. As she had told us before it was very unusual to take an MRI in the middle of radiation treatments. She said that the MRI often picks up images that are significantly distorted by the radiation treatment. She didn’t dispute Dr. Taylor’s opinion but she suggested that we not read too much into it. She said that she didn’t see anything of significance that caused her to believe that we weren’t getting the results we were looking for. She also cautioned that we wouldn’t actually be able to tell anything for sure until we see the MRI that will be taken 4-6 weeks after the 6-week radiation treatment is completed. I am scheduled to have my 30th treatment on Monday the 14th. She also clarified Dr. Taylor’s statement about trying a different chemo drug. She said it was not the least unusual to try different chemo drugs and she suspected that Dr. Taylor would be having me on both at the same time. Needless to say we felt a whole lot better after our talk with Dr. Pham.

This “process’ is very difficult. So many up's-and-down's. In life we get used to being able to have a certain level of predictability. I am learning that taking it “one day at a time” is not just a slogan, it is a new life style. Not and easy one, but one you “have” to learn to adapt to. I’m working at it. One day at a time.