This week there was once again matter/antimatter annihilation in the Meso-man (see July 4, 2010 post). I had a PET scan on Wednesday and received the results today in my final visit with my oncologist at Scott and White. The PET scan identifies areas of greater-than-average metabolism within the body. Bright areas that are not typically hypermetabolic are usually associated with cancer because of its rapid rate of growth. My scan showed no new areas in my thorax or anywhere else. Furthermore, some previously observed activity was not evident this time. That probably doesn’t mean that the body cleared out some cancer cells but that tissue that was hypermetabolic in response to my previous surgery returned to normal. At this time there are only two small areas of hypermetabolism, and they remain stable when compared with my last PET in January.
That is all good news. At this time, I don’t think I have any symptoms that are the direct result of the cancer; however, I still become more short of breath than I should when I exercise, but that may be the result of my surgery and my lack of exercise. We met briefly with the surgeon who did my pleurectomy last July, and he was really surprised at how good I look. He mused that it may be better that they did not remove my lung then because my quality of life might not be as good as it is now. For all medical science knows and can do, there is still a lot of uncertainty associated with some medical decisions. It has been a year since I was diagnosed with mesothelioma. While the data for determining survival rates is not very good, the expectation is that half of mesothelioma patients die within a year of diagnosis. I feel very lucky to be where I am with the disease and continue to hope to remain in the long tail of the survival curve (see “The Median Isn’t the Message.”).
Because we are moving to Denver in two weeks, this was a time to say goodbye to the doctors and nurses who have taken care of me here. They are uniformly impressive human beings—friendly, competent, caring, and of excellent character. I already have an appointment with an oncologist in Denver, and Jana should get her appointment today or Monday. We are hoping that they are equally as impressive.
David
