It's very hard to get the computer out and write a post when you don't know what to say. Maybe better yet, you don't want to say it.
We drove over to Newnan on Wednesday and had Jody's ct and blood work done. Thursday morning we met with oncologist. His cancer markers in his labs are still going up and now the ct is showing left side pleural thickening. The onc felt that all the cancer may be gone everywhere but, in the chest wall. He said he wanted a pet scan to confirm this. He also wanted him to meet with the thoracic surgeon to have a procedure call HiTec once this was confirmed.
HiTec, Hyperthemic Intrathoracic Chemo - This has only been done a few years in the thoracic cavity. Previously it was just done in the peritoneal cavity. Not much is found on the internet about it. They would cut him open, try to scrape out the cancer they could see, and then pour heated chemo into his chest cavity. The chemo is heated because cancer cells can not withstand as much heat as normal cells. As major as this surgery is and as much healing time as it would be the idea had grown on me in the 24 hours. This could actually be an end to this nasty cancer.
Friday morning we received a call that the they were moving his consult with the surgeon up to immediately after the pet scan and his onc immediately after that. Shortly after the pet scan our nurse called and the appointment with the surgeon had been cancelled. We knew that meant the cancer was in other areas. When we talked to our onc he confirmed it was still in the one lymph node and now a second one and the chest was has thickened on the left side. The means increased disease to that area.
We started a new chemo today. His onc told me it would be hard. It is very aggressive. Jody is on the pump asleep next to me. As soon as these bags finish today he will be hooked to some different ones that we can leave an go back to the hotel with. He will be on a pump for five days.
It seems to be rare to have esophageal cancer with mets to the plueral. Normally it would be a different organ or the lungs it would travel to before the pleural. Not my husband. He has to be a difficult one and go straight to the pleural. The thickening is what mesothelioma would do to this area. It is not mesothelioma but, the HiTec procedure they were going to do was what they would do for mesothelioma.
It is very discouraging to walk in and here we are right back where we were when we started and possibly a little worse. We both feel very good that this chemo will work as long as he can tolerate it. one of them is in the same family as the one he was on that landed him in the hospital but, hopefully no bad reactions like that one.
I will try to do quick updates on here as we see how he tolerates the pump for the next few days until we get home Thursday.