The Beirne Blog

We went to Sunnybrook today expecting to deal with the cancer spot on Mom's rib. It didn't end up that way. It turned out that the biopsy results arrived while we were sitting there. So they changed the doctor assigned to us to Dr. Yee Ung (radiation therapy specialist). Dr Ung walked in with pretty well full knowledge of Mom's case. Right away he explained that Mom has  small-cell lung cancer . This cancer "responds well to chemotherapy". In a regular patient, the treatment would be chemo either  with  radiation or  followed b y  radiation. Then he stated that we should arrange for chemotherapty as soon as possible. To establish a chemo schedule, he felt the chemo manager needs to know whether the cancer has spread Mom's tolerance to chemo To answer these questions, Mom's tests will be: bone scan (scheduled) respiratory test (scheduled) PET scan (a test which shows where cancer cells are) MRI  For a healthy younger patient, a full rou...

Everyone (Mom, Mike, Cathy, John) were out the door early for the 7:30am appointment. The procedure went well. The doctor got lots of samples for biopsy. Mom stayed in the hospital for a few hours, but is back at the condo now (noon on Tuesday). She's fine, will have a sore throat for the next few days. It may be difficult for her to talk for the rest of today. Next Tests: DONE : Tues. Sep 26, 7:30am bronchial endoscopy Thurs. Sep 28, 2:30pm CT scan   Fri. Sep 29, radiation oncololgy to look at her rib Tue. Oct 3, eye specialist Wed. Oct 4, 10:30am bone scan Thurs. Oct 5, breathing test (respirology)

Here we are at Thursday, everything is in limbo while we wait for tests & results. Pat & Nora stayed over after the Monday doctor's visit, right through Tuesday until early Wednesday. John picked up and held the fort until Paul arrived on Wed. evening, and he's still there now. Life is business as usual. Mom watches lots of TV (cnn) and talks to friends on the phone. A typical day starts around 5am which she goes straight to the sofa and clicks on the news. There's usually a mass on the TV around 8am, and then breakfast is coffee & orange juice. Lunch is noonish and is a bowl of granola, yogurt & fruit. Dinner varies, but make sure it's available between 5pm and 6pm, or else you'll get grief :) And Jeopardy is at 7:30! Mom usually retires at 10pm. If you're on duty, please record medications in the log book. Kathleen is coming in each weekday morning 9-11, so there's a chance for the caregiver to scoot out for a break. ...

Dr McDonald Today was our first visit to Sunnybrook. After doing the incoming paperwork, we met with Dr. McDonald around noon today. After reviewing the history of the last week, she informed us that the 2nd cat scan revealed two things. there is a mass in the chest; most likely cancer; "extensive involvement", most likely originating from the lungs there is a "cancer spot" on the 6th rib on the front At this point we don't know what kind of cancer, how fast it's spreading, or if the two things (the mass and the rib spot) are related.  Dr McDonald tried for a quick biopsy by feeling for lymph nodes around Mom's neck. None were palpable, as she thought they were located too far inside her chest cavity, so she recommended going for a "endo-bronchial ultrasound". This involves mild sedation, and an endoscope probe into the lungs. Dr. McDonald will scrape or swab some cells and have them analyzed at their lab. This is an out-patient ...

It's Friday Sept. 15. Nora just spoke to Zameera, who's our Nurse Navigator. She explained what we can expect on Monday. The plan at this point is TESTS -> DIAGNOSIS -> TREATMENT PLAN -> TREATMENT Tests At this point, the only facts the doctors have is that there's a mass locating in Mom's lungs. On Monday we meet with Dr. McDonald to set out a plan of tests to determine exactly what's wrong. She will describe the tests that she'd like to have done, and discuss the pros & cons of the various tests. If certain tests are going to be inappropriate, she may suggest alternatives. Mom, Mike, Nora & I will be at this meeting. We don't expect any decisions at this meeting, but we're welcome to ask questions. We don't know how long this testing will take. Some of the tests can be done at Sunnybrook, and others may be in different parts of the city. Diagnosis, Treatment Plan Once enough tests have been done, Dr McDonald will brin...

I'm writing this on Thursday, but things seem to have started a week ago. Friday Sept 8 Mom hadn't been sleeping well. Mike & Mom went to the local clinic, met some doctors that Mom seems to be comfortable with. Saturday Sept 9 Mike & Mom went to the new local clinic for chest x-ray. As Mom was complaining of lower pains, the doctors guessed at either a back sprain or intestinal congestion. Sunday Sept 10 Mike, Cathy, John & Mom went to the N.Y.General for the abdominal cat-scan.  Mom was given laxatives (for the stools) Monday Sept 11 Mike got a call from the hospital to say that they wanted another cat-scan, there was something suspicious in Mom's lungs. Tuesday Sept 12 Wednesday Sept 13 Mike & Mom went back to N.Y.General for the chest cat-scan. Thursday Sept 14 Mike and Mom went back to the clinic and were given the possibility of lung cancer. Mom continues with the medication for the back pain, just in case. We...

The time has come for of us to pull together and help mom through what lies ahead. I'm sure everybody is going to want to help. A place to coordinate I thought this might be a good place to coordinate information about looking after Mom. We're going to have to keep track of medications, appointments and support schedules. In addition, it'd be nice to note Mom's mood & progress, so that those of us who are remote can stay informed. This is a blog that you can write notes in. If you have something new to say, it's a "Post". If you want to add something to what someone else has said, it's a "comment". I've also invited you to use a calendar so that we can keep track of doctors' appointments, nurse visits and our own family stays. Technical You can always get to this blog at https://beirne-blog.blogspot.ca The calendar is a Google calendar at https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=lifgdaa7d3r3n8gucsh2qpqgtc%40g...