Monday, January 4, 2010

"Perhaps I Can Help You With That Hump"



















PET scans from last Tuesday have been reviewed (I actually looked at them on the screen. Amazing stuff). The lump that the surgeon noticed a few weeks ago shows no activity and the remaining scar tissue, that was the alien, is slightly smaller in size. The level of activity that was apparent in the November PET scan has reduced minimally - but still has reduced.

At this point, the oncologist with whom I met at MCV is of the opinion that we are in a "watch and wait" mode. What that means is that due to the continual trend of reduction of the size of the scar tissue and reduction of the glowing activity in the scar tissue, we will hold off on any surgery or radiation for now, pending the outcome of future scans and tests that are part of the regular follow up schedule. My next set of scans would occur in February/March.

My next "test" is a bone marrow biopsy that is scheduled for this Friday. The Nurse Practitioner, that administers the biopsy, and I get along just fine during the procedure so I have no anxiety about it at all. It's a difficult procedure for some folks, but I'm good with it.

So....I'm back at it full tilt. I may not even have to get re-immunized. I asked the doctor about it today and he said that autologous stem cell transplant patients typically don't require re-immunizations but that he would confirm if I needed them. Interesting. It makes sense that I wouldn't need them, but I'd rather confirm whether I need them or not.