Wednesday, July 20, 2005 0:49 AM CDT
Hello all. Okay, prayer warriors, it's time to increase the time on our knees!!
Dave has had a hard time these past few days. He's pretty much lost all function on the left side. He can still move his left arm, but can't use his hand at all. His leg shakes so much when he tries to stand that he's been pretty much confined to bed for the past few days. His right arm and leg also have tremors. He's been confused some, too. It's very scary for all of us.
He has had some trouble swallowing, tending to choke. He's eating only sporatically, and he's thrown up a few times.
He has times where he seems to be himself, where he's alert and with us. And there are times when he's pretty blank. His face is droopy on the left side.
We upped his steroids to see if perhaps the symptoms are due to swelling from the gamma knife. Too early to tell if that's working.
The gk folks told us that 3-6 months after gamma knife that he'd have extreme fatigue and that the dying of the tumor cells in the treatment area would cause the same symptoms as the tumor....loss of balance, motor trouble with his left side, confusion and memory loss. Looks like we've got that in spades. He's due for a scan in early August. We see the doctor on Thursday, I'm expecting they'll move the scan sooner. If it shows growth outside the gamma knife treatment field, we'll know this chemo is no longer working. If it shows growth within the treatment field, then it might be necrosis, and we'll ask for a PET scan to determine if the tissue is living or dead. Surgery this time is not an option. Dave is not strong enough to survive a surgery, especially when he's on blood thinners. I don't know what our options are. I do know they are few.
Please pray for Dave. Pray for his fighting spirit to return. Pray for him to feel the energy of the love that we all have for him. Pray for us all to hang on to the hope that's seen us through. These are dark days.
We love you all. Shelley
Hello all. Okay, prayer warriors, it's time to increase the time on our knees!!
Dave has had a hard time these past few days. He's pretty much lost all function on the left side. He can still move his left arm, but can't use his hand at all. His leg shakes so much when he tries to stand that he's been pretty much confined to bed for the past few days. His right arm and leg also have tremors. He's been confused some, too. It's very scary for all of us.
He has had some trouble swallowing, tending to choke. He's eating only sporatically, and he's thrown up a few times.
He has times where he seems to be himself, where he's alert and with us. And there are times when he's pretty blank. His face is droopy on the left side.
We upped his steroids to see if perhaps the symptoms are due to swelling from the gamma knife. Too early to tell if that's working.
The gk folks told us that 3-6 months after gamma knife that he'd have extreme fatigue and that the dying of the tumor cells in the treatment area would cause the same symptoms as the tumor....loss of balance, motor trouble with his left side, confusion and memory loss. Looks like we've got that in spades. He's due for a scan in early August. We see the doctor on Thursday, I'm expecting they'll move the scan sooner. If it shows growth outside the gamma knife treatment field, we'll know this chemo is no longer working. If it shows growth within the treatment field, then it might be necrosis, and we'll ask for a PET scan to determine if the tissue is living or dead. Surgery this time is not an option. Dave is not strong enough to survive a surgery, especially when he's on blood thinners. I don't know what our options are. I do know they are few.
Please pray for Dave. Pray for his fighting spirit to return. Pray for him to feel the energy of the love that we all have for him. Pray for us all to hang on to the hope that's seen us through. These are dark days.
We love you all. Shelley
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