So we begin...
Monday, March 17, Mom had an appointment in Nashville, TN, at Vanderbilt Hospital for 9 AM. She was scheduled to see an otolaryngologist (what a big word). Wikipedia describes this medical professional as an ENT-surgical doctor and states that it is the oldest medical speciality in the US. We were treated with such courtesy and compasssion while there but the most compassionate person cannot blunt the shock of what has to be done. Dr. Mannion did examine Mom and there was a screen where I could watch the camera scope as he took pictures and looked all around her nasal cavity. I have to admit, it was interesting and really didn't bother me as I thought it would. I was able to see the tumor but I couldn't tell where it was exactly other than it is in her nasal cavity. It was hard to tell where he was looking. After the examination, he talked with us about the options and about what she is facing. His recommendation for a cure, a cancer free life, was surgery to remove the tumor and adjoining area to make sure everything is taken and nothing is left to cause problems later. The tumor has broken through the narrow bone between the sinus cavity and the eye and has invaded the muscle there. I can't tell you how hard that announcement was. It is very hard to comfort someone when you, yourself, are falling apart. Dr. Mannion sat and waited and touched Mom gently and we got through it but oh, how hard it was.
After this visit, we were told that we had appointments with 2 other doctors which we didn't know when we went down. Apparently, his office had scheduled these and set them up so we could see everyone that day and save another trip down. Nashville is about 200 miles west of us and it takes around 3-1/2 to 4 hours driving time. Mom was still weak and having trouble walking so my sister, Mom and I went down on Sunday so we could have time to rest before the doctor appointment on Monday. It would have been much too hard on Mom to try to do it all in one day and after we found that we would be seeing 3 doctors in total, I was so glad we had made that decision.
The next appointment, at 10 AM, was with the radiation doctor, Dr. Cmelak. Luckily we were told we could call me Dr. C. Vanderbilt is a HUGE place. We had to walk across the street (luckily on a sky walk) and then down this long, long, long hall. Thank goodness we had borrowed a wheel chair for Mom. She would never have made it if she had had to walk all that way. As it was, we ended up at the wrong elevators and a super nice young lady, after finding out who we were trying to find, took us into his area through the back way and stayed with us to make sure that's where we were suppose to be before she left us. Like I said, super nice people. Dr. C's assisant came in and talked to us and explained about radiation and how it is done. She also explained the side effects and what we could expect if Mom chose that option for treatment. Dr. C, however, told Mom that he didn't feel radiation alone would get rid of the tumor and could do damage to other areas. He told her the best option was surgery and that they were going to get her to 99. She said she wanted to live to be 100 so she could get on the jelly jar. This perplexed Dr. C as neither of us could remember the name of the man who does the "Smuckers Jelly" 100 year old shout outs. He is Willard Scott, a long time weather person on NBC's Today show. Now, once a week, he annouces birthdays of people who have made it 100 years old. Radiation seems so harsh and the side effects are awful but, when if it's your only course of action to rid yourself of this beastly disease, I believe I would jump at the chance. So at this point, we had two opinions that surgery was the best option.
The next appointment, with Dr. Murphy in chemotherapy, was scheduled for 4 PM and we couldn't get in any sooner. So we decided to get away from the hospital for a while and have lunch. Thank goodness, my daughter Abby and sweet baby James had come to be with us for these appointments. She lives close to Nashville and knew a good place for lunch. We all went to Noshville, a deli type restaurant and the food was delicious. Bless James' heart, he was such a cut up and such a delight. He kept all of us smiling. When they brought our food out and set my plate down, he grabbed a french fry off it and grinned. He did eat the french fry so I put 2 or 3 on his little plate for him. He politely put them back on my plate and continued eating them from there. :) This child makes my heart smile and he was just what we needed at that point. He is such a good baby and so happy most of the time. He really enjoyed flirting with the waitresses and getting pick at by everyone. Abby and James had been with us since the first appointment and now it was nearly 2:30 and he was getting tired and sleepy so she decided to go home and let him have a nap. She sent me a picture of him cuddled up in a blanket sleeping on her chest.
At our last appointment with Dr. Murphy, we were told a lot of what the reports said. She took her time and explained a lot of what was being said. We had been told by the Morristown ENT that the pathology showed that the tumor was melanoma. However, Dr. Murphy said it was carcinoma, which is confusing but I trust the Vanderbilt doctors since this is what they deal with everyday. They were going to order copies of the CT scans and the slides of the biopsy to help make a better determination of exactly what kind of cancer it is. I asked about the stage because I have always heard that the stage determines the treatment. Dr. Mannion said at this point the stage wasn't important, it was just a number. He said if he had to stage it, he would say stage 4. The most important thing is that it is an agressvive form of cancer and hopefully, it was caught early and hasn't spread anywhere. There is no indication that it has spread except a suspect lymph node in Mom's neck which they will remove and examine at surgery. It bothered me that I wasn't told to get the CT scans along with the MRI and PET scans to take down. All I had was the MRI and PET scan but we were told they would get them.
There will be a cancer team meeting this coming Monday, 3/24, and these 3 doctors will get together and discuss further about the options. Then they will let us know when Mom's next appointment will be. One of the good things is that Mom has been healthy for much of her life. She only takes a BP pill and other than some back pain and arthritis, she is very healthy for 82.
As she and I were waiting for my sister to get the car and pick us up after the last appointment, she told me she had decided to have the surgery. She said she had had all day to think about it and about the options and she felt that having the surgery was the best way to defeat the cancer. I had told her I would stick by whatever her decision would be because it really is her life and she is lucid and aware and can very well make her own decisions regarding this.
I saw Mom yesterday and spent the afternoon with her and she seemed more her old self than she has in a long while. She had been dealing with this blockage which was thought to be a sinus infection since before Christmas and now dealing with the prospects of surgery, I wasn't sure how she would be, but Mom is a positive person and tries to always look on the brighter side of things. She has been my rock so many times and has kept me looking toward the bright side. I know that frame of mind will help her deal with all this. That is not to say that there won't be meltdowns. There will be and it is expected, but as Dr. Murphy said, "Allow yourself the meltdown and eat chocolate"! Sounds like good advice to me.
I will close now. Again thank you for all your kind, caring comments. I love you all, my bloggy friends. I'm sorry if this seems rambling, but my mind is still trying to wrap itself around all this.
Thought I would leave you with the photo that has been putting a smile on my face this week.
Hugs,
Sharon
