Some Welcome News
We have very welcome news. Keith had an MRI last Saturday and Monday morning we met with the oncologist for a readout. A comparison of the latest MRIs with those taken earlier in the summer suggests that the tumor is again a tiny bit smaller.
Even more exciting, the pre and post contrast images on the latest MRI look virtually the same. This is significant because the "post contrast" is taken after they inject Keith with a glucose solution that stimulates the active cancer cells so that they "light up" on the scan. In our case nothing really "lit" up. So, for now, the cancer is being very quiet and we are at a winning equilibrium.
This news is further confirmation that the regime we have right now is working very well. While we have been advised that there is a strong likelihood that there are tumor cells still hanging around - we just don't see them. So for right now, we are ahead of the game.
Given our success with the current regimen, we discussed how long Keith will be able to take Temodar - the chemo which is helping to hold the tumor at bay. The FDA has approved the drug for 24 cycles, but our doc reported that he has a patient who has been taking Temodar for 5 years. The concern is that eventually the drug may harm Keith's bone marrow and cause other problems. However, our oncologist is open to our continuing for all long as we want or Keith is stable.
One last bit of additional good news: over the summer Keith has been busy gradually taking away the various antiseizure meds he was on. This week marks the removal of the last bit of these drugs. This is a very significant achievement as it now means that Keith feels much more like his "old" self and is less "foggy". With all of these drugs eliminated, we are busy working to get him driving again.
Even more exciting, the pre and post contrast images on the latest MRI look virtually the same. This is significant because the "post contrast" is taken after they inject Keith with a glucose solution that stimulates the active cancer cells so that they "light up" on the scan. In our case nothing really "lit" up. So, for now, the cancer is being very quiet and we are at a winning equilibrium.
This news is further confirmation that the regime we have right now is working very well. While we have been advised that there is a strong likelihood that there are tumor cells still hanging around - we just don't see them. So for right now, we are ahead of the game.
Given our success with the current regimen, we discussed how long Keith will be able to take Temodar - the chemo which is helping to hold the tumor at bay. The FDA has approved the drug for 24 cycles, but our doc reported that he has a patient who has been taking Temodar for 5 years. The concern is that eventually the drug may harm Keith's bone marrow and cause other problems. However, our oncologist is open to our continuing for all long as we want or Keith is stable.
One last bit of additional good news: over the summer Keith has been busy gradually taking away the various antiseizure meds he was on. This week marks the removal of the last bit of these drugs. This is a very significant achievement as it now means that Keith feels much more like his "old" self and is less "foggy". With all of these drugs eliminated, we are busy working to get him driving again.
posted by Keith and Kathy | 4:23 AM
3 Comments:
fantastic. Well done.
The Latest news sounds very encouraging. Keep up the good work.
La Luta Continua!
With much love,
Jos and Ken
Really good news.
Helene
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