August, 20, 2024
It has been 4 months since David finished radiation and it was time for a follow up visit with Dr. W this morning. He was very glad to see David and commented that he thought he looked really good. He said he had followed the progress and was interested that he was having the y90 procedure and would be hoping everything went well. He said he participated in a few of those during his residency and found it interesting. He confirmed the tumor in his colon seemed stable at least it was not worse and although there was significant shrinkage of the tumor he said he was not confident that he got all of it “killed” and there was a good chance there were some cancer cells still there based on the thickening of the colon wall. He said cancer cells or radiation scar tissue but either way it looked as if something was going on there. We knew this but I guess hearing it again just brings it all back. He said the liver was the main issue and he was glad we were headed in the y90 direction. He asked about David’s pain and mentioned the lung nodules. He said those would be no problem to treat when the time came and also he told him if he ever felt a different pain in his chest area or elsewhere to let him know. He said sometimes cancers move into the bones and he said this was also something that could be treated without problem. He said bone radiation could be done even while dealing with other issues. He said he didn’t want him to be uncomfortable if it was something he could treat easily. I asked Dr. W about cancer centers and if he had any experience with them. He said no, but if it were him, he would wait until all options were exhausted here because we had a great liver team. He said it may not be a bad idea to start checking with insurance on approvals that would be needed and also travel expenses. He said expenses would add up pretty quickly especially if things were not covered in network. He mentioned MD Anderson and also said Mayo Clinic would be ok as long as we went to the main hospital and not a satellite location. He said he wouldn’t do a branch location for something like this. He was very attentive and we appreciate his willingness to help when he can. He wants to see David in another 4 months just to check in. We left another doctor’s office this week feeling discouraged and again confronted with an unfair reality. It is the same with writing this blog. We just relieve it over and over, so sometimes, I get behind updating because I just can’t go over it again and still function in the daily routines of life that just keeps rocking on no matter what.