Not What We Expected

I think my Oncologist and I were disappointed in the PET Scan results. We felt that I was on my way to Remission. Instead they found a 1 centimeter lymph node just below the thoracic inlet worrisome for metastatic disease. There is a similar sized subcarinal node and a right hilar lymph node. The differential for each of these nodes is metastatic disease versus reactive nodes. The two others found in previous study are stable when compared to previous examination.

My Oncologist is going to re-adjust my Tarceva to a higher dosage but less than the 150 mg I started with. Recently I've been taking 100 mg. The dosage he's trying to achieve is 125mg.
I'll be seeing the Radiation Doctor in a few days and I'm sure he'll also discuss this with me.

It's no use getting worried about this new "sighting". All we can do is keep an eye on them and see if they grow. I'm certainly doing all I can with diet, exercise, medication, and a good attitude.

Next time I post it will be with photos of my mother's 95th birthday celebration.

A Lot to Talk About

Sophie and Ben hanging out with the cowboy pumpkin.
Diane pushing Sophie and Gary pushing Ben at Disneyland.
Ben and Sophie in front of the Disneyland Train Station.

Gary and Diane invited me to go to Disneyland with their family as we did last year. I was thrilled because it was another chance to spend some fun time with them. We went by car with our usual stop at the Palm Springs Outlet Stores and again I found some great buys. Stopping there gives us a chance to stretch out legs, use the rest rooms and find some bargains.

Monday was our travel day. We stayed at the Hilton this time which was a 20 minute walk from Disneyland or we could drive and park the car. We chose the walk. The rooms were next to each other and overlooked Disneyland. Sophie and Ben spent hours sitting at the window looking at the park. The rooms were very comfortable and the staff was very friendly.

Tuesday we enjoyed the rides and seeing the Disney characters. It's fun to watch Sophie and Ben's enjoyment. We started with the Soaring California ride which is one of my favorites. We walked miles around the park sometimes going on some of the rides twice. Wednesday we spent at the California park and had a great time on all they had to offer.

Thursday we went to Long Beach to visit the Aquarium. It was fantastic. By far it was the best aquarium I had ever seen. We all enjoyed the hands on with the small sharks and other fish.

Thursday evening we went to the Disney Park for Trick or Treat. What great fun that was. We received a bag and there were stations all over both parks with candy. There were lots of other entertainments too. It was such a great time.

Friday we were back at the Disney park and a little surprised at how crowded the park was that day compared to our first days. Then the light went on--it was a holiday weekend (Columbus Day on Monday) and some schools had Friday off which made for a long weekend. It was so crowded that I waited in line as long to use the rest room as it was to get on a ride. Too many people for me and I went back to the hotel to take it easy. When Gary, Diane, Sophie and Ben came in the evening they said Disneyland had to close the park because they were full. That was also the day the Indiana Jones ride opened for the first time.

Saturday we started back to Phoenix. Another stop at the Palm Springs Outlets netted us more bargains and by the time we arrived at my house it was pitch black outside.

Sunday I rode my bike, did my laundry from the trip and watched my waterfall overflow. The upside of that was all my plants and trees in the back received a good watering. My neighbor helped me turn it off so that Don could fix it when he came home two days later. As it turned out my neighbor had fixed the float so there was nothing for Don to fix.

Don arrived on Tuesday morning and had a good trip. He's readjusting to the higher temperature and with the golf course closed he's able to relax and catch up on TV shows. He isn't able to pick up any television stations on the island although most islanders have dishes. He's out and about so much that it's hardly worthwhile to have one installed for 4 months.

We went to Sophie's school carnival with Gary's family Thursday evening. Don and I had a chance to spend time with just the grand kids by having them over on Sunday to the pool for a swim . There were quite a few kids their ages in the pool so they had a great time. Once we changed clothes we took them to McDonalds for lunch and the play area. From there we went to the movies to see CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS. Don and I are embarrassed to say that we both fell asleep during the movie. The kids loved it. We finished the day with a trip to Culvers for grilled cheese sandwiches and Culver's frozen custard.

The sun is up so it's time for my bike ride. I've brought you up to date for now. See you when I get the results of my PET scan at the end of the month.