Latest Scans

In the past couple weeks, I had another round of scans which were compared with the ones I had at the end of September.  I was quite sure these ones would show a marked improvement, so I eagerly read over the reports and was surprised that they didn't confirm the almost miraculous recovery I've been experiencing.  Once I got over that, I was able to re-read the reports to find that there is a mix of good and bad news.

I'll start with the bad... the area of bone affected by the cancer is more extensive.  There are many spots on my skull, spine, pelvis, femoral heads (hips), ribs, and humeral heads (shoulders).  Fracture lines are showing up in my pelvis and neck, which I knew about, but also in my ribs, which I didn't know about.  This picture more closely matches how I felt in October through December, but not what I'm feeling now.  In fact, I'm pretty sure I don't still have acutely broken bones as I can literally jump up and down on one foot, and it doesn't hurt at all while I breathe.  I find it strange that when I first started feeling worse in the spring and summer, my scans hadn't changed for the worse at all.  Those negative changes didn't show up until September.  So now that I'm feeling better, the scans still show an aggressive bone picture.  Does anyone know how long it takes for CT and bone scans to pick up on improvements?  Something for me to look up.  Oh, I also have nodules on my thyroid which are being investigated.

And onto the good news...The cancer is showing up as less intense in my sternum, a couple of my ribs, my sacrum and the left side of my pelvis.  All of the bony lesions (except a few spots on my spine) are said to be "sclerotic" which means there is extra bone being laid down, as opposed to "lytic" which refers to weaker bone.  Sclerotic bone can either mean extra cancer cells or a healing process, and without a biopsy it's impossible to tell which is the case, but at least my risk for breaking bones is less now.  The other great news is that my vital organs are stable.  The spots in my lungs have either gotten smaller or stayed the same.  The 3 spots in my liver are nearly gone, but there are 2 new small spots.  All my other organs are normal.

As you can see, it's a mixed picture.  The oncologist here in Calgary recommends going back on a traditional chemotherapy.  I thanked him for the info, but have decided to continue with the monthly trips to Vienna.  Because I feel quite well and strong, I want to carry on with my current treatment.  I'll re-visit the oncologist here in another month, and likely re-scan everything in 3-4 months.  In the meantime, I'm enjoying my morning exercise routine.  I'm able to walk Alexis to and from school with a cane in one hand and Penny's leash in the other.  I don't even need the cane if I know I won't have to negotiate ice and snow, and my limp is pretty much gone.  It's been nice to get back to cooking (and even cleaning!), and I'm finally working on our Disney cruise photo album.

Will and I are going to Canmore today for a late Valentine's lunch date.  Alexis finally had her 9th birthday party last weekend, a few months late.  All in all, we're doing well.  God's taking good care of us through the people He has placed in our lives.

Blessings to you and your families,
Shawna, Will, Alexis, Penny (the dog) and Chloe (our new fish, bought while I was away in Vienna...I wonder what I'll come home to next time?!?)