Partial Results From Karen’s Scan

Friday May 1st, 2015

Hi Friends,

First let me say THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS.

Second let me say that I know many hundreds of friends are eagerly awaiting the results of the scan. Let me share with you what we know today.

I know that everyone is eagerly awaiting the scan results that Karen had taken on Tuesday. I only have a partial result that I can share with you at this time. We have been notified by our clinical nurse that the scan has come back with the radiologist’s two-part results. The really good news is that Karen’s pleural effusion has responded very well to the chemo-therapy. This is great news. Before her two rounds of chemo-therapy Karen was producing large amounts of fluid radiating from the mass. The chemo has stopped mass from producing the fluid to the point that her vascular thoracic surgeon removed the pluerX catheter several days ago. So that is good.

Everyone is eager to hear if the mass is still the same size. Sorry that I can’t completely answer that question. The radiologist simply reported that it is “stable.” Next Tuesday the mass will be measured by reading the scan more fully by the same radiologist that took the original scans. By stable at least it would appear that the mass didn’t grow or ignore the chemo-therapy. The clinical nurse told us that they didn’t expect a major difference after only half way through the chemo-therapy. I know this may sound disappointing to you because of course we all would love to hear that the mass had miraculously disappeared. We won’t know if it has decreased any at all until Tuesday.

We all need to be prepared to understand that unless the Lord removes the mass Himself, this will be something that Karen and I and you as our friends will have to live with the rest of our lives. The chemo-therapy goal is to reduce the mass and get it so that it can be managed with maintenance chemo-therapy. The nurse referred to the fact that “we will never actually get rid of it entirely.” Karen says she heard that statement before; but I was taken back by it as I had never heard any of the medical personnel actually say that. So perhaps you didn’t understand that fact either. We are hoping that the chemo will reduce the mass to the point that it can be managed and that Karen and I will, Lord willing, be around together a good long time.

On Tuesday I will post with any additional news on the mass measurement. Please be assured that we love you and thank the Lord for each of you.