A Slight Update On Dad 8/14/2018

Okay, I have slight update on Dad. As always, I like to keep you all in the loop as we continue on this crazy ride...

Literally the same week we found out about Dad's brain tumor in 2013, we were told he also had melanoma on his face- literally near his tumor location. We dealt with the brain tumor first, and then we tackled the melanoma. A quick trip to the plastic surgeon, and we received "all clear". Dad's been visiting the dermatologist every 6 months for full body checks- which if you know me, you know why I STRESS these types of visits to everyone! Family history of melanoma means you're twice as likely to be diagnosed!

Fast forward to our last MRI and this "brain lesion", where we thought it could be Glioblastoma or a stroke....all of us completely forgetting about this melanoma diagnosis almost five years ago. I literally woke up one morning and thought- could this be melanoma on the brain? But before making any calls to our oncologist, I checked with the nurses in my family first, as I told them, "Not sure if this is a dumb question..."

Turns out, it wasn't. 

Melanoma can appear like a "brain lesion" when moving to the brain. Hearing that from our oncologist made my heart sink. We scheduled a PET scan to rule out melanoma- and honestly I'm not sure what is worse, melanoma that has spread to the brain, or another glioblastoma. 

We received preliminary PET scan reports last Friday, which did not indicate anything negative on the report, with our oncologist confirming Monday that there is no evidence of cancer anywhere on PET scan- only decreased metabolism on the left side of brain (but that is typically from radiation and surgery). 

We were so relieved. 

So now, we wait a little bit more- with an MRI next week, followed by appointments with both our oncologist and neurosurgeon. With each day that passes of Dad not showing any physical signs of tumor growth (slurred speech, headaches, right side weakness, etc) is a positive sign that the lesion is from an old stroke. Right now, we can't tell of anything Dad is doing physically that would indicate growth.

On August 18th we will celebrate Dad's birthday. We are so thankful for each and every day with Dad. He's strong, faithful, and above all, an amazing dad. He loves his family filled with girls (okay, and now some son in laws!), and thinks the world of his grand babies (and they do the same!). He's shown us all what it means to truly slow down and appreciate the little things in life. 

We look forward to celebrating this birthday, and many more in Dad's future. 

Thank you all for your continued thoughts and prayers, and thank you all for helping us BTHO Brain Cancer!