Laura and I got up at 4:30 this morning to be in Boston to meet her “2nd opinion” oncologist. He seems like a good man. Pragmatic, bow-tie sort of guy who plays a good detective. He’ll rapid fire a number of seemingly unrelated questions, skip over other questions we’ve heard from others, and quickly size up the situation. We hadn’t seen him since August, so all of Laura’s neurological symptoms and her response to chemo were all new.
The upshot was that he advised Laura to stay with some standard “baseline” treatments for mets (monthly bone strengthening IV and estrogen suppression) and to see a good neuro-oncologist to figure out what’s causing her headaches and treat them. He didn’t feel that there was a rush to begin any treatment immediately and was upbeat about her prognosis because she wasn’t burdened with other systemic disease problems. He gave us the names of several Dana-Farber neuro-oncologists.
He was certainly more optimistic than Laura’s primary oncologist, which was nice to hear, but that’s partly his style. He also told us in August that Laura’s mets could be put into remission for a “very long time.” I remember how we hung on those words.
Anyway that was about it for the consultation. But I suspect that his optimism might have diminished when Laura collapsed as he was leaving the room. I say this because he called us at 10 o’clock tonight apologizing that he couldn’t do more for her when she fell this morning and he wanted to make sure that we had got an appointment with a neuro-oncologist.
When Laura fell she probably passed out briefly because she didn’t remember it. She often shakes during falls or loss of balance and when the oncologist witnessed the episode he wondered aloud whether she might be having a seizure. That might suggest a worse state or complicate the diagnosis, but he was very confident that a good neuro-oncologist could handle the case.
So Laura has an appointment back in Boston on Thursday.
We got Laura in a wheelchair, and she and I went to get some breakfast in the hospital cafeteria. It was probably not yet 9 o’clock and so we decided to go to a museum in the city before heading home. Laura usually recovers fully within ten minutes of an episode, 
so by the time we got to the
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum there was no way of knowing that anything serious had recently happened. We were briskly walking down the wintery streets of Boston just like everyone else.
The museum itself was very interesting. It’s the legacy of a wealthy, eccentric, and strong-minded Boston woman from the turn of the century. Part of the fascination with the place is that her will stipulates that every piece of art and all the building must remain just as she left it.
We got home late this afternoon and then many of Laura’s girlfriends drove up to Ashfield and met her at the Lake House — our local pub. She said it was great.
Despite the five hours of driving, vomiting, half a dozen bad headaches, and possible seizure, we both agreed that it was a really good day!
It’s all relative.
Referred to a neuro-oncologist
Tue, Jan 29th, 2008 11:20pm by dkulp
Tags: Uncategorized
6 responses so far ↓
1 Elena // Jan 30, 2008 at 6:47 am
Thanks for the medical update. I am so happy to hear that you made time to kick around Beantown. It really is a very interesting city! Love to all 🙂
2 Carol // Jan 30, 2008 at 7:52 am
Hi Laura. We do not know each other. My friend Linda Navarro sent the link to your blog and asked for comments and prayers for your healing. I am truly sorry that you have to go through this in your life. I need to share a recently story about my friend Martha. She was diagnosed with stage 3 lung and brain cancer several months ago. Only give a few months on this planet. This was a real shock as Martha is the healthiest person that I know. She teaches yoga, is a vegetarian, and a massage therapist. She made a decision to fight and won! After 4 months of chemo coupled with some major life changes and lots of prayer groups, she has no sign of the cancer in her body. Her doctor’s are amazed. The point is that miracles can happen and I will send all the positive energy I have to you for a similar outcome. The power of the mind is a powerful tool. You can beat this! My prayers are on the way! I wish you the best!
3 Heather // Jan 30, 2008 at 8:32 am
“Despite the five hours of driving, vomiting, half a dozen bad headaches, and possible seizure, we both agreed that it was a really good day!” — ok, sans the seizure, this sounds a bit like a road trip we had one time. I do recall where we were going, but all us girls were wearing dresses MawMaw Cassie had sent us. I think we had fried chicken for lunch on the road. A little later, I upchucked my chicken on Laura’s new dress — ugh!! I think someone had tried to empty a ziplock bag full of crayons for me t get sick in … which to this day reminds me of “Wayne’s World” and the little dixie cup, “If you are gonna spew, spew in this”. Ok, for some strange reason this cracks meup to this day …. but for Laura, I’m not sure if she’s found the humor in that recollection … not unless round’s funny. (Sorry, inside joke).
4 donna casey // Jan 30, 2008 at 8:42 am
Yes,I guess it is all relative,and also that attitude is everything!
5 Katrin // Jan 30, 2008 at 8:56 am
“Not unless round’s funny” Ha! Nice one, Heather. “I’ll be taking these here Huggies and, uh, whatever cash you got.” Glad to hear you both were able to enjoy a bit of Boston. Wishing you lots of laughter! 🙂
6 Karuna // Jan 30, 2008 at 9:58 am
David & Laura:
So great to see you in the pic, and to hear the very optimistic news, and to read that you had a full, enjoyable and Love-Filled day!!
May hope remain eternal, and may the stories I am hearing (like the one from Carol above), be manifest in your lives too!!!
Many Blessings with Love,
Karuna