Results of testing: Not so good

July 19, 2012

Our day started at 4:30 am this morning with a 5:15 PET Scan. It ended as we walked out of Dr van Rhee's exam room about 7:30 pm.tonight. The news was not what we had hoped for. Bottom line: Immediate action required: Deb has the first appointments in the morning to have a line installed and a full day of strong chemo. 

Dr van Rhee

Before each visit, vital signs are checked once more.  After that we were sent to wait in the exam room. Diana,  the transplant supervisor came in to talk about the possible Killer Cell transplant and give us more paperwork. Then Dr van Rhee came in and logged into the hospital computer system to look over the MRI and PET scans. We could easily see that  the lesions on the breastbone had greatly expanded. He showed us that the cancer had grown from the interior of the bones to the outside surface of the bones.  It had grown from the lower range of the breastbone to the upper part near the chin. No doubt that in a months time, even with weekly chemo at our local hospital, this cancer had spread. Dr van Rhee called it 'aggressive, high risk.' We could see it with our untrained eyes.

Dr van Rhee proposed a 2 step plan:

1-Stop it and shrink it as much as possible over the next 3-4 weeks

2-Use the month  to determine the best of these options

He said these were solid options to consider:

A-Polimides

B-One of the new experimental drugs in trials 

C-A third stem cell transplant

D-Carfilzomib + a cocktail of other strong chemos

E-The killer cell experimental program

He reminded us that Deb's body will only tolerate so much chemo before organs are greatly damaged. Eventually the toxicity and infections could kill her. The immune system takes a real beating.

Option E is his most favored option we felt. He is the head of that test and very familiar with it. He said it either works and puts one into extended remission, or doesn't work at all. 

We had a whole list of questions about  this option. It would require one of Deb's children to come to Arkansas, have blood tested and matched, have a line put into their neck like Deb uses for chemo, have their blood circulated through the same machine that is used to remove stem cells. Certain cells would be separated out and sent to Baylor University science labs for growing them into greater numbers (cell expansion). Meanwhile, Deb would receive a number of chemos and treatments here in Arkansas to prepare her for her immune system to be destroyed. Then the expanded cells would be injected back into Deb and given special meds that would cause them to expand even more and preform their natural function of seeking out and destroying cancer cells. Fun for all!

We have about a month to decide. We appreciate your prayers.

It took a whole team of nurses and schedulers to put all this together so late in the day. We sensed urgency.

Tanya makes some amazing scheduling for Deb

Diana,  the transplant supervisor

Nurses check vitals 

Kelli, our APN