Not What We Wanted to Hear

Well Mom went in for another Octreotide scan this week and today is the day she received her results. I got a text message from her in the evening asking me to give her a call when I had a chance. I dared not hesitate so I called right away with anticipation eating at my gut. She said that her doctor has told her that she will no longer be a possible candidate for a liver transplant as he had thought a month before. This latest scan (much more powerful than a CT Scan or MRI) showed that her cancer is NOT contained in the liver, it has actually progressed and spread to other areas of her body. Huge blow of devastation right there! She calmly went on to tell me that there is a spot in her mediastinum region (the cavity in the chest that holds the heart, esophagus, trachea, etc.), a spot on her left shoulder blade and a third spot on her left arm bone between the shoulder and elbow. At this point the doctor had not had an opportunity to review the entire report and scan results so he couldn’t tell her how large these new tumors are or where we go from here. She says there is no point in worrying about something she has no control over, but of course I worry. I am heartbroken. So we wait. Wait to hear back from the doctors on Monday or later and wait for an appointment with the oncologist to devise a treatment plan..........