March 7

Happy Saturday morning!

This weekend will be as close to What Life Was Like Before as we've had. Last night we went to Shannon and Doug's for supper and a movie and then we stopped by Chip and Jenn's for a short visit. So, we got our grandbaby "fix", as all were in rare form.
It was a great way to end the work week.

Today we will head to Madison to see our own baby. Dave has been working there for two years but he usually makes the trip home to see us. We know that a car ride even that distance will require a couple of stops along the way so that Den can keep the circulation going in his legs. Those blood clots are surely taking a long time to dissolve, but without taking blood thinners, I guess that's what we can expect.

There is some news to report and I am cautiously optimistic in doing so. I'll try to make it brief, but that may be difficult. Here goes.

About three weeks ago we were made aware of a procedure being done on patients who have inoperable stage 4 glioblastomas, which is what Denny is being treated for despite the difference in the Mayo diagnosis. This procedure is being done at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. Since that time I have contacted all of the people listed in the various web links and made all of Denny's doctors here aware of this new procedure, which is in the trial phase with expectations of being approved yet this year.

In the past, the only treatment for tumors like Den's was stereotactic radio surgery, which is a radiation mega boost. There's no "surgery" as we think of it involved. The hope there is that by hitting the tumor with radiation like an atom bomb, the tumor would be be shattered and the DNA within would be scrambled with hopes that those cells could not reproduce as cancer. But this would be a risky procedure given the location of this tumor, which is in his thalamus.

This new, groundbreaking procedure, called AutoLITT, uses a laser probe which is placed inside the tumor (somewhat like when the biopsy was done) and heat up to 160 degrees literally cooks the tumor. Heat destroys cancer cells--they die on the spot.
The patient is under anesthesia and is having an MRI as the doctor does the surgery, so it's done in real time. When it's over, the patient is, literally, cancer free.
There is no damage to healthy surrounding tissue and the recovery time is amazingly short.

Cleveland Clinic is only accepting nine more patients for the trial, so our chances of having Den chosen are slim, mainly because one of the criteria to be included is that the cancer is recurrent or non responsive to current treatment. Den's tumor has not diminished in size, but appears to be dead in the middle. However, they have asked for the doctors' reports as well as the most recent MRIs. My assumption is that we will hear from them within the next few weeks. That is a start and even if Den isn't chosen for the clinical trial, we know this will be available when things are approved.

Maybe only people who have experienced any kind of shock will understand what I am about to say, but when this all started (June 11, to be exact), I had some difficulty praying, although it seemed like that was all I was doing. I felt so guilty praying for a miracle because that seemed so selfish, yet it was really what I wanted. I kept apologizing to God for my self-centeredness and kept praying for acceptance of what is and hope for what might be. God granted me those indulgences and over the months I've gotten past the panic mode. What I know now, is that the prayers for hope and the miracles lie within the hands of those medical researchers and surgeons who will use these new techniques and their incredible skills to literally cure the inoperable cancers like Denny's.

So, please keep praying for Denny and all that might be. You have our eternal gratitude for all you have done for us thus far. As soon as we have news, you'll be the first to know!

Love,
Carla