I was happy to learn from a nurse who called yesterday, while we were on the road homeward bound, that my gastrointestinal specialist (GI doc) would perform the upper GI endoscopy at the same time as the colonoscopy - that means, instead of having to go through the prep twice and instead of waiting another month for answers critical to the decision of which treatment is best in my case, the question will be answered on Friday. They are looking for internal bleeding. Why? Because I have been anemic and we don't know the cause, and because I had two surgeries last year with resection of my small intestine and colon. One possible cause of anemia could be that I am leaking a small amount of blood in my gut. We have to rule that out before I can start lymphoma treatment, because one of the medications has a risk of causing bleeding and if I'm already bleeding internally, I could die from it. So..."do no harm" is the first rule of doctoring.
I'm just glad I only have to starve once and get an IV once instead of twice.
The final step is a bone biopsy to see if this cancer has gone to the bone marrow, to see if that is disrupting the making of new blood cells. That exam is scheduled on May 19th. It will also tell us if the cancer is Stage 3 or 4. Then, with all questions answered through the process of elimination, and risks duly assessed, we will decide which treatment option is best for me...
One medication for the rest of my life. Or two medications for two years, which has a strong chance of putting this type of cancer in remission permanently. I previously wrote about the two medications (see Lymphoma Treatment). Wish me a luck dragon! 🐲
No comments:
Post a Comment