Movin the chains

To use a football analogy, we're on our opening drive and got a good first down!

We just got done meeting with our oncologist, and it's good positive news. The CAT scan shows that the tumors have shrunk slightly or are unchanged. For the radiologist to say that they've shrunk they have to be 20% smaller in one dimension. This means that volumetrically they have to have shrunk by 50% in order for the radiologists to say that the tumors have shrunk. Also, the liver tumors are nearly the same density as the liver, which makes it more difficult for the radiologist to determine the boundary of the tumor to take the size measurement. The easier tumors to measure are the lymph nodes, and Dr. Donehower said that those tumors are definitely smaller, just not at the 20% threshold. The tumors in my liver and esophagus are harder to spot, but they looked smaller.

Dr. Donehower is pleased that things are moving in the right direction, and we're going to keep up the treatment and get another scan in about 6 weeks. We're pretty happy about these results too, especially considering that I've only had two cycles of chemo. I feel great - much better than when I started treatment.

So to bring it back to the football analogy, it's the opening drive, and we've got a good solid first down. There's a lot of game left to be played, but we're off to a good start and moving the chains.

Good luck to the Tigers, who are undefeated and are playing Augusta at home in the MT 6-man semifinals. Kick some ass dudes!

Thanks again to everyone for all your prayers, cards, letters, calls, and thoughts. They have helped so much through all of this. We'll keep you posted through all of this!