I wrote a blog yesterday but I never felt comfortable sending it. We should heed the nudge from the Holy Spirit when He speaks.
After the education session on Tuesday things were in flux. Medicare refused to pay for the chemotherapy pill and we were told that the drug could not be given by IV. After consultation between the oncologists at Baptist Health with the oncologists at Mayo Clinic it was determined that two drugs could be used, one an affordable pill and one that could be given by IV or by slow injection. If things go as scheduled I will begin the treatments on Tuesday. It looks like we have a plan. On Wednesday I had a previously scheduled appointment with my endocrinologist. She looked over the portal from Mayo Clinic and realized that there was a concern from the PET scan about a nodule on my thyroid. The doctors at Mayo will not proceed with the plans for the stem cell transplant until the concern has been removed. After some discussion she said, “I can do the ultrasound that Mayo Clinic has scheduled for you in June.” I agreed to that and then she said, “If you can stay for a while I will do that here in the office.” About half an hour later I was lying on the “table” having my neck scanned. Near the end of the scan she says to me, “If you weren’t having the prospect of the stem cell transplant, I would watch it for six months or a year. But there are a couple of nodules that I believe need to be biopsied to be sure for Mayo Clinic.” Not the word I wanted to hear, as you’d expect. “When could the biopsy be done?” “If you can stay for a while longer, we can do them now.” A very loving doctor put her schedule in disarray and likely gave up her lunch for me. For that I will be grateful for a long time. The thought of having a needle stuck multiple times into my neck would have been more than concerning had I known about it in advance. I liken having a “surprise” ultrasound and biopsy to walking into the warehouse and my mom saying, “Oh, by the way, you have a dentist appointment in half an hour.” She knew how much I hated going to the dentist and she figured that there was no need for me to worry about it in advance. It might be a hard tossup if you asked me if I would rather have a tooth drilled to cap a tooth or a thyroid biopsy. We now wait for about a week to get the results of the biopsy. Seems a bit like DeJa’Vu. Hoping it’s not a trifecta. On the bright side, it was a beautiful day today. I had breakfast with a special friend, worked in the yard, took Teresa to a rather frequented restaurant, and took care of some stuff in Cynthiana. I did not, however, feel that I was yet willing to test my IQ level again against the fish at Beaver Lake. Maybe tomorrow.
2 Comments
June C. Lee
4/14/2023 05:23:20 pm
Continuing to pray my friend! Everything now a days is hurry up and wait! Our patience is being tested!❤️
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Sue Fultz
4/14/2023 05:33:29 pm
We are praying fervently.
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Chuck Cooper
Pastor at Daybreak Community Church Archives
November 2024
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