Pet scan

Nate had a PET scan and bone marrow biopsy done at Northwestern last week.  The PET scan brings up anxiety for me.  I felt confident it would be clear, but the reality is you just never know.  The PET scan is annoying, but not painful for Nate.  The bone marrow biopsy was quite painful this time.  I have watched his other bone marrow biopsies, but this one shook me up.  I hate that he has to do all of this medical stuff.  It makes me angry that these appointments are just part of his life.  This was his third biopsy in 8 months.  That sucks.  We both hope he never has to do another one.  Nate's blood work looks good, his numbers are continuing to rise. His next appointment at NW is in 3 months- that's encouraging! And the next PET scan is in 6 months.

The Northwestern Dr wants Nate to begin maintenance chemo next month.  He recommends once/month chemo for 2 years. I was a little peeved with the Northwestern Dr at this visit.  He did not seem to take our questions and concerns about maintenance chemo very seriously.  I left the appointment wondering, "who is our Dr that is on our side?  Who will listen to our concerns about quality of life and chemo and cancer?" Our Northwestern Dr is a stem cell transplant Dr and now that we are past that, maybe he views his work as done?  I don't know.  We know that we are going to do some research about maintenance chemo, talk to our local oncologist and reach out to Mayo Clinic for some direction too.

We got the PET scan results and there is no evidence of lymphoma! That is great news.  There was some kind of abnormal activity near Nate's thyroid so he needs an ultrasound done to figure out what is going on there.  Please pray it is nothing serious.  The initial bone marrow results also show no evidence of lymphoma!

Nate has been feeling great.  He is working and just doing normal life.  He gets tired a little more easily, but not enough to negatively impact his life.  Our family has been enjoying a fun summer of vacations and spending time with family/friends. I am so grateful.

Personally, I am getting to a better place.  For about 6 weeks there I felt like I was clawing my way out of a hole.  I just felt hopeless when I thought about the future.  I was depressed and trying to process everything that happened and the losses we have sustained.  Taking an anti-depressant and talking with a counselor has helped me feel more level.  The road ahead is unknown, but I am feeling more grounded.

Please pray for a clear thyroid ultrasound and for wisdom regarding maintenance chemo.