Doctor's Visit Update, and We Get to Go Home

Well, after another restless night of sleeping for a couple of hours, waking in pain, going to the bathroom, taking an oxycodone, then going back to sleep to start the process all over again, I finally got out of bed about 8 AM.

Roni was already up, and had already eaten breakfast. So while she was getting ready for the day, I went down to eat. I actually ate two slices of french toast, and had a half cup of Best Western coffee. One of the problems I've had in the recovery was getting my appetite back, but it is coming back, slowly but surely.

About 9:30 AM we headed to the doc's, thinking it might take awhile as I am walking much slower these days. But I did pretty well and we got there about 15 minutes early. The nurse came out and got me, took my vitals (all good), weighed me (about the same weight as a week before) and then it was only a matter of waiting for Dr. Loggie. He was in the middle of a consultation with a couple that we had actually met the night before, and spent a couple of hours with, just talking about having cancer. We were sure they getting smacked up the head with a very big reality stick, so wanted Dr. Loggie to take all the time he needed. In the meantime, the nurse gave us the initial pathology report and the surgical report to read. That's when we learned some very interesting (notice I didn't say "good"?) things.

We knew that the doctor had to leave some tumor, what we didn't know was that tumor contained signet ring cell. That is the most aggressive form of this cancer. We certainly weren't expecting that. This was the tumor that the doctor was able to see, but if he took it, it would require taking too much small bowel, which would mean a big decrease in quality of life. Fortunately, the doctor believes it is in such a place that it will not cause any problems for a long time.

Finally the doctor came in, and the first thing he asked is if I would be part of a research on signet ring cells in patients with colo-rectal/apendix cancer. He explained that they are learning some new things about how signet ring cells work, and how they are different in different patients. I think that because I had it before, and am still alive, he thinks my case is worth studying.

The other thing that we were hoping wasn't going to have to happen was more chemo. But it looks like since the tumor had invaded the spleen, and there was metastasis in a couple of lymph nodes (and because of the signet ring), it looks like chemo will be on the menu. We will discuss what would be the best regimen with my oncologist at home in a week or so.

The other disappointing part of the visit was that the drain they put in during surgery was still draining fluids, so they didn't pull that. It is difficult to take a shower with that, apart from the discomfort of having this tube sticking out of your stomach. Hopefully the fluid output will go down, and I can have it removed at my oncologist's office later this week.

So, that is the news for now. The cancer is still there, and again, the trick is not to let it take over our lives. We still have some uncertainty about what our future looks like. We have some disappointments, but we also plan on having some fun too. We plan on having some adventures, and good times with friends and family. We just need to learn how to treat the cancer, and still live life.