Loose Strife

Laura decided today to have surgery to relieve her spinal fluid pressure. If all goes as expected, she’ll be in the hospital on Friday for a day.
We’ve had busy days meeting with doctors yesterday and today (Tuesday). Meanwhile, Laura and I have the strong impression that her symptoms are worsening significantly from a week ago — as do her doctors. All of her doctors (three oncologists and a neurosurgeon) are all in agreement that her symptoms are due to intracranial pressure, that the symptoms should be addressed quickly, and that the way to do so is via a shunt, which relieves the extra fluid pressure.
Right now Laura is miserable and fatigued. We’ve had some depressing episodes recently and mobility has become a major issue. This afternoon we tried to stop for a bite at a favorite cafe in Northampton, but as she walked passed the back of the car she started to fall and I had to drag her limp back to the car. She was very upset to acknowledge that she can’t go anywhere anymore without a wheelchair.
On top of that, her headaches seem to be more severe, longer, and more frequent. Now vomiting sometimes precedes the headaches and is associated with loss of muscle control in her head and arms — which has twice been a sad mess in the car on the way to an appointment. Her eyesight is deteriorating slightly.
It’s all understandably very upsetting for her. Laura’s frightened that she’s already missed out on the opportunity to do things that she wants to do and hopes that the the surgery will restore some of her former self quickly.
So radiation is stopped for now. We met with a top-notch neurosurgeon this morning at Baystate hospital in Springfield and he will make room for Laura on Friday. The surgery is relatively low risk — not nearly as risky as we initially thought it to be. If the surgery works, then Laura’s symptoms could be immediately relieved. It does nothing to fight the cancer and over time there’s a fair chance that it could stop working, but it seems to be the best option to try right now. Her doctors are all very hopeful and optimistic. After the surgery we can revisit the cancer-fighting options — choosing among them depending on whether surgery is successful in relieving her symptoms.