"Good News"

(by The Skatalites)

Good News by Skatalites on Grooveshark

If you read my last post, then you saw that we got a good report at the ocular oncologist on Monday! We actually received several bits of good news, though unfortunately none of it affects his prognosis or anything {because of this stupid type of cancer & its potential to micrometastasize long before anybody has a clue that they even have a problem ~ have I ever explained how all of that works?} But we like good news any way we can get it!

Anyways, Chris actually has more improvement in his visual acuity. You may recall that he was CF at face before cataract surgery. He is now CF 3-4'. It's really just in his peripheral vision & hasn't changed his life, but it's still an improvement. And Dr B was able to see much better, which is what they were all hoping for.

I'm pretty sure I explained in the very beginning that the tumor will never completely go away, but it should flatten. Upon examination, Dr B could tell that the tumor had flattened quite a bit, & he is quite pleased. He sent Chris for pictures that proved it. And he showed us that it is also losing some of the pigment, which he seemed happy about, too. So basically, the tumor flattening is indication that the radiation did what it was supposed to do: sterilize the tumor. And as the cancer cells have died, they have been absorbed into his body, causing the tumor to shrink/flatten. So the flattening confirms that the tumor isn't active, which is definitely a good thing.

And guess what else the whole flattening thing means?... It has flattened enough that he won't have to do ultrasounds anymore! Ultrasounds used to not be a big deal. They would use a little wand on his eyelid, & the most difficult part was looking the direction the technician told him to look. {That sounds easier than it actually is, but my main point is that they weren't painful or anything!} I had read other patients' descriptions of ultrasounds that were performed directly on the eyeball, and it really sounded quite torturous. I was glad for Christopher's sake that he didn't have to have that kind...until he did have that kind last time. He would agree with the other patients' torturous descriptions. So needless to say, he was quite happy to hear that he won't have to go through that again!

And lastly, I think I've complained about how much time & money are spent seeing Dr C (the retina specialist) each time we would see Dr B, even though they were basically doing the same exact thing. So Chris asked Dr B about it, and he didn't think it was necessary to continue to see Dr C right now! How about that?! His pressure is good, and there isn't currently any bleeding inside the eye. Those crazy radioactive vessels still have the potential to do some damage, but for now they're behaving. So we were able to cancel the appointment with Dr C & won't see him unless/until there's more radiation damage discovered in the future. And we're pretty happy to save a specialist co-pay 4-6 times a year!

So we don't have to see anyone for a few months. I'm not getting too excited about that, though. Last time I wrote something like that in all caps, he ended up going to the dermatologist every two weeks or something crazy. So I'll calmly say that I'm glad & hope it stays that way!

Amy

Comments

Brooke said…
sounds like good news all the way around :)
I am so happy to hear the good news Amy!! :)
Amanda said…
Yay! That's GREAT news! :)
melissa said…
So thankful for your great news !
Zion said…
Fantastic. I am so glad to hear all of this!

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