Friday we went to Bozeman for the Cat scan and to get prepared for radiation treatment. Little did we know the changes that were about to take place. We were meeting with the technician that would actually do the radiation, when she asked us about meeting with the medical oncologist. Something in our body language suggested we were not pleased with our medical oncologist. We hesitated in our answer is all we can figure out. She gave us the option of using the other oncologist and within two hours we had met with him twice. He called Seattle and talked to the surgeon, Dr. Park. The entire treatment plan changed. Tentatively at this point, Gus will have 3 weeks of chemo, then 1-2 weeks of rest, followed by 6 weeks of radiation, then another round of chemo. We are very impressed with our new doctor. He wears jeans!! He accomplished more in just a few hours than the female doctor had in a week. Gus' cancer didn't intimidate him. This is the most optimistic we have been since hearing the news June 12 that Gus had a tumor on his pancreas. We now have the confidence we needed in our medical team.
Gus now sports three very stylish Xs on his chest and one on each side. Right now they are just with ink, but within the week they will be tattooed. Gus is very excited that at the age of 60 he will be getting his first tattoos. I do not share in his enthusiasm.
We also met with a dietician. Gus' whole lifestyle of eating will be replaced with dense, low fiber, high calorie nutritional food. We also will try to avoid fat as much as possible. It is vital that he not lose anymore weight. This will definitely be a challenge considering he will not feel like eating and will have difficulty with the nausea. Yesterday was the first time he needed more for the pain than Advil. Our first stop when we got home was to the pharmacy for pain medication. We are hoping it was just the position he had to be in for the tests that gave him the pain in his back.
Today he feels fairly good and is out checking on his water. Our haying crew is doing an incredible job. The horse hay is excellent quality and that is so important to Gus. The weather has cooperated which makes all the difference also.
Our spirits are up and we feel much more prepared for our immediate future.
1 comment:
I say, "Praise God" for the change in doctors. We could all sense the level of apprehension that Gus and Kathleen had towards the first doctor. I am happy that God has led them to the new one.
Thank you, Bob for doing the Blog. So many people love these guys, and it saves us from the constant calls.
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