All The News

As promised, here is an update after we visited the Dr. this morning to get the PET and CT scan results. Here are the Medical results:

Considering that less than half of esophogeal cancer patients make it past a year from their initial diagnosis, my results sound really great. The size of the esophogeal growth has been reduced to only a slight thickening of the esophogeal wall. One of the most swollen lymph nodes in my abdomen went from 2.9 by about 2 cm down to 2.5 by .6 cm. The PET values are in something called SUV (standard uptake value). The main cancer mass went from SUV 8.0 down to 3.1. Usually a value above about 2 or 2.5 is cause for concern when cancer is not known; but SUV numbers vary by location of the lab and how exactly the test is done. The main thing here is a marked reduction in both the size and the SUV intensity.

Based on the above results we will continue to have IV chemo treatments on a three week cycle for 3 more cycles, in addition to the oral chemo drug I take daily. Another PET will be scheduled following that, then a decision will be made on taking some time off from the chemo. The scheduling of chemo depends both on how well I tolerate the drugs and how much effect they have on the cancer.

Unfortunately, chemo is not a "cure". No matter how many times you kill the cancer cells chemically, a few billion of the original trillions of cells will survive each cycle. Similarly to the way bacteria develop immunity to antibiotics, the cancer will develop an immunity to the chemo. So it will eventually come back and not be affected by the chemotherapy we are using now. The Dr. was very reluctant to predict anything based on the results so far, though he did say it may take the cancer a year or more to start to develop this immunity.

That is the medical news. Here is the spiritual:

We are thrilled that God has seen fit to carry us along as he has. The improvements discussed above are the results of not just good medicine, but of so many of you praying for us. We know that whatever the Dr. says, God can do whatever He wants. He knows full well my condition and can deal with it and me as His purposes require. If He wants to remove the cancer from my body He can do that, or if He wants to let it run its course as I described He will do that. Whatever His will, we trust in Him to lead us and care for us, which He has so abundantly proven He will do by what has happened thus far. We are in His hands and that is the safest and best place to be.