Dr. Coris assured my Dad that he needs to remain positive. He prescribed liquid forms of his medicines, took him off some to save his liver for the chemo and prescribed some anti anxiety/depressing medicine as well. He chatted with my Dad for over an hour. He was great. Said some people don't react to the chemo and some do. We won't know until we start.
Which, is going to start with Moffitt, which is where we went today. My Dad met with 5 doctors today. This morning he met with the radiologist. I missed these earlier appointments as I was at work so this is all the basic information I was told about when I got there. They will set up the appointment to start the mapping and radiation for the week of the 13th. He has to have the radiation for 5 days straight for 6 weeks. He is off on weekends. He also met with the Moffitt surgery team and when I got there he was meeting with the endoscopy team.
Remember how our hopes were built up when we were told it was ust a mass to be surgically removed? Well, Tampa General got our hopes up too when they told us it was Stage 3 Cancer and they were going to proceed with chemo and radiation at Moffitt. Tampa General also told us that the cancer hadn't spread to the lungs or liver. Huge relief. Well, Moffitt wants to run their own tests which there is a slight chance that the results will be different. They want to do a PET scan where my Dad gets a nuclear chemical injected and they run a scan. Wherever there are cancer cells, he will light up like a Christmas tree. Obviously we all hope that this test is confined to the esophagus. It just absolutely SUCKS because we were under the impression that it hadn't spread. Now, we have to wait for this test, which the doctors wanted done tomorrow! Well, discharge didn't happen until 6 p.m. so they were unable to schedule it for the next day. So, they may be able to squeez him in or they will do it Dec. 7th at the latest.
Waiting to get that test is the worst feeling. Hopefully it is confined and then the endoscopy team can run their test to determine if it is Stage 2 or 3. If the PET scan shows it has spread it is Stage 4 and they will just do chemo and make him comfortable. I don't think I can handle that option.
If it is Stage 2 or 3, they will proceed with the 6-8 weeks of chemo and radiation and do surgery regardless of if it shrank away or not. Even if ONE cancer cell remains it can grow. I've learned so much about this disease. I was naive about it before and fear I still am. The American Cancer Society sent up a lot of literature on the Esophageal Cancer. They have come a long way with this form of cancer. Any information online that is older than three months, they told us might as well be 10 years old. It is very agressive so it will act agressive to the chemo as well, which is positive. With the surgery they will remove his esophagus, re-attach the stomach and move everything up. After surgery he will be on a feeding tube for three months while the esopha-stomach-gus heals. This was difficult for me to hear. My Dad is going to get so frail and skinny with all the treatments and then being on a feeding tube.
So here we are again with no definite answer.
I hope Moffitt can get my Dad in tomorrow or Friday for the PET scan. The nuclear injection costs them $7,000. Crazy.
Please pray that it isn't Stage 4.
Please please pray.
I feel the more people I tell and the more prayers and positive thoughts there are out there the more God will hear and help with strength.
Positive thoughts and prayers everyone as we play this waiting game.
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