Tuesday, January 13, 2009

MRI's Done Today

This morning, while we were still sleeping, the phone rings at 9am! Who would dare call so early? Oh - it's Sally from Dr. Kwongs office. Glad I answered it. She got all the info she needed from Dr Hamid in Santa Monica and sent the info over to the radiology dept. So I called to set up my appointments. Just as I was talking to the radiology department they had a cancellation. At 10am. It's already 9am and I was still in bed. But of course I'm gonna take it. So we rush out of bed and get ready to go to the appointment. I hadn't eaten anything, so I had a quick english muffin before we left because there would be one MRI at 10 and the other at noon and I didn't want to starve. I was fine for the most part, but my body is really weird when it comes to my eating, medication taking, etc. So I was hoping I'd be fine. Of course not. I check in and as I'm in the waiting room, my english muffin starts re-appearing. Luckily I had a bag with me that I always carry. I was so mad because I hadn't taken my pain pills yet, which I knew I was going to need. Luckily they took a long time calling me and I was able to take 2 percocets and hold them down. First they did the brain MRI which was about 25 minutes long. We had some time in between the two scans, and I had to leave and get some fresh air. Sure enough, when I got outside I started throwing up again. I had some time to sit and rest, and then we went back to the waiting room. By the time my final scan came, I felt much better. This time they were scanning my left shoulder to see if they could see if there was any explanation for the recent pain. After my second scan, I went and got my lab work done and then picked up my contrast (a dye that you have to drink) for my CT scan tomorrow. I have to drink two huge bottles of something that doesn't look very good. I just hope I can hold it down.

Since those scans took a lot out of me, I was quite tired when I got home and have been resting ever since. At about 6pm I got a call from Dr Kwong that he already had my scans back. The results, as normal, are not good. The brain MRI showed that the cancer has now spread to my brain. Right now it's pretty minimal, but that is still news that I never wanted to hear. And the scan of my left shoulder showed that it has spread more over my clavicle, hence the reason for all the pain I've been having. It's to the point where I can not even pick up a glass of water and bring it to my mouth. I have to use my right arm for that.

Since the new scans show more cancer, Dr Kwong is referring me back to Dr Fisch to do radiation on my head & shoulder. So I might do the radiation before heading down to LA for chemo treatments. I just need to consult with both doctors again and discuss this with my family what is right for me at this time.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Linda, Please; I beg of you; don't ever give in. As bad as any message the docs give you may be, there is and always will be hope. If things get too hard physically, please think about talking to your family about home care or hospice. I learned first hand that they are a God-send to you and your family, and just because they are involved, that does not mean any of you are throwing in the towel. I have a wealth of information from Rachel's life that I need to share. I want to share stories like your's and Rachel's with a national or even international audience. I would like to have them told on a show like Oprah. Our fight needs to be used as an example to people across the world. Just know that you have my support and you can email me any time. I will even give you my phone number if you want to talk. I haven't ever met you but I know that you are someone special. Godspeed sweet girl.