Tuesday Jan 17th - Answers

Today we met with the cancer doctor for Mom.  I went with Dad and Mom to take notes and help.  The doctor showed us the results of the PET scan, the MRIs and the other tests.   They said that the cancer is breast cancer.  They found two large masses in the left breast.  These had spread to the bones and the liver.  There is just a small spot on the liver right now.   They told her that she is in Stage IV and that the disease could be controlled but not cured.  Tomorrow she will have a brain MRI and a full body MRI to see if there is anything in these areas.  She is also having the Hur2nu test which will help them determine the treatment.  They recommended radiation therapy and a hormone manipulation pill that will decrease the estrogen to stop the cancer cells from spreading.  Then in three months they will rescan and see if the tumors are shrinking.    After meeting with the cancer doctor we were able to meet with the radiation doctor, Dr. Smith.  He explained that he will give Mom radiation on the right hip and the sternum area because those are the ones that are causing the most pain at this time.  The radiation will be a low dose of radiation with the use of an electron beam.  She will have a 2-3 week course of radiation treatment, four days a week.  They were able to start today with the first planning session where they did another cat scan to locate the exact area to radiate and in the morning she will get the first radiation treatment.  Mom was in a lot of pain today after that session.  She is home resting and doing the best she can.   It is frustrating to Mom and to all of us that she told doctors a year ago that her back and her hip hurt but no one did anything for it but to give her pain meds and tell her it was old age.  The doctor said this has probably been going on for 9  months to a year.   We will take it day by day as we see how the cancer responds to the treatment.   He told Mom that she might have 2-3 years left or possibly 8-9 years.  He just doesn't know until they see how aggressive the cancer is and how it responds.   Mom is strong and being brave but sad to hear the news today.   Thanks for the prayers. They are needed.