Home from Houston (2/25/10)

We got home about 8:00 last night. It was good news again from Dr. Abbruzzese – the tumors have been basically stable or shrunk slightly since December. There is barely anything visible in the liver. The artery near the pancreas which was almost completely blocked in the first scan last April is now wide open.

Dr. Abbruzzese decided it is time to start radiation. Side effects of chemo can now start to disappear, so I can prepare for a whole new set of side effects. I will start radiation on March 8, and it will be 5 days a week for 3 weeks. We originally thought it might be 6 weeks, but the radiation oncologist said in my case I should benefit from a higher dose for a shorter time.

We have again been blessed with one of the best doctors for a radiation oncologist. He is Dr. Christopher H. Crane, Program Director and Section Chief, Gastrointestinal Section, Associate Director, Gastrointestinal Center, Department of Radiation Oncology. His intern, Dr. Sharp, told us he is the best in the country, and possibly the world, at this specialty.

I went in Thursday morning for what is called a simulation of the radiation treatment. I was positioned on the table with my arms above my head, and a mold was made around my shoulders and upper body to be used to locate me the same way each time. Then with the aid of a CT scanner and lasers they made 3 giant crosses on me (with magic markers) as locator points. I was told if they start to wash off, just use a Sharpie to remark them. When I go for the first radiation, small tattoos will be made on the points for permanent markers. I never planned on getting tattoos, but now maybe I should ask for something “real nice”.

We plan to leave on March 6 with our travel trailer. We will arrive in Houston on Sunday, March 7. We have a reservation at an RV park in the same area we have been staying on S Main Street. If fatigue from the radiation, or some other appointment doesn’t change our plans, we will head home on March 27 or 28.

You would think that Houston, being way down south, would have warmer weather. It was in the upper 60s when we arrived on Sunday night, but it never was that warm again while we were there. Tuesday evening we met friends at a sports bar in Cypress (NW of Houston) for dinner and KSU vs Texas Tech. Thanks to Houston traffic, the 30 mile drive took us an hour and 45 minutes. During the drive we experienced rain, sleet, and snow. We sat in the bar chatting and watching the game while the snow was blowing outside. Fortunately, it stayed above freezing and the drive back to our hotel only took 25 minutes. And K-State won by 19 points. Thank you Mark & Karla for meeting us, and waiting for an hour while we waited in traffic.

Time to start working out the details of our 3 week (or more) trip.

Joe & Vicki