further explanation and some more good news!

Okay, so today I'm sure I have good news. Trish's tumor markers (for breast cancer) are totally NORMAL!

A little lesson in tumor markers for the non-cancer folks . . . certain cancers cause certain tumor markers in the blood to rise. Not all cancers have reliable tumor markers, but Mom's particular breast cancer (BC) has always resulted in elevated tumor markers when it's growing. Usually the markers will rise before the cancer is big enough to show up on a scan. Tumor markers are not used to diagnose (it's more like they give little hints), so we still can't rule out a recurrence of breast cancer until after Thursday's PET scan. But normal tumor markers are definitely a good sign. :-)

I should also mention that, although there is a tumor marker for pancreatic cancer (PC), it is not nearly as reliable as the BC ones. In fact, Dr. Tauer wouldn't even run it if we didn't ask him to. We don't know if it's normal right now or not - they'll do that test on Thursday (per Mom's request, per my request).

And now for some further explanation of yesterday's visit with Dr. T . . .

These every-3-months CT scans are mainly to check for recurrence of Trish's pancreatic cancer (PC). Her surgeon once told her that PC has a 90% chance of recurrence after surgery, and, as I've mentioned before, it's very difficult to treat. So we have to keep a close eye on it. If the PC returns, it's likely to show up in the abdomen (probably the liver, which could get tricky since that's the last place her breast cancer was!). Because the CT scan of Mom's abdomen was all clear, Dr. T feels pretty certain that Mom is still free from pancreatic cancer. This is great news! Miraculous, actually.

As I said yesterday, the scan showed some enlarged lymph nodes near Mom's original breast cancer site (from way back in 2001). Any number of non-cancerous things can cause lymph nodes to swell, so we're hopeful this is nothing to worry about. Dr. Tauer did not act alarmed or grim (both of which we've seen from him before). However, given Mom's history, this is something that needs to be further investigated and quickly - just in case it is something to worry about. Hence the PET scan on Thursday.
 
And that brings me to my next lesson for the non-cancer peeps - PET scans! If you're wondering why Trish needs a PET scan when she just had a CT scan, keep reading. A CT scan shows any type of lesion - it's basically a bunch of x-rays. It can't differentiate between malignant and benign tumors/masses/lymph nodes. A PET scan can (usually). With a PET scan, the patient is injected with a radioactive substance that makes areas with abnormal metabolic activity "light up" on the scan. Thus, cancer will show up as a "hot spot." A PET scan cannot differentiate between different types of cancer. So if Mom's enlarged lymph nodes show up as hot while her breast cancer tumor markers are normal, a biopsy would probably be the next step. Hot lymph nodes could mean the pancreatic cancer has worked its way up to the chest (possible, but not likely), the breast cancer has returned without affecting Mom's tumor markers (also possible, but not likely), a new cancer has started from scratch (possible, but seriously?!), or something else weird and random has happened. The point is this: pray for no hot spots on the PET scan!

Trix will remain radioactive for several hours after the PET scan. But she will not glow in the dark. Bummer, I know.

Typically, Mom sees Dr. T after a scan and gets the results immediately. But since they didn't have a lot of notice with this one, it had to be scheduled on a day that Dr. T is out of the office. :-( So it's possible - if not probable - that we won't find out the results of the PET scan until Mom sees Dr. T again next Tuesday. Can you say 'long weekend'?

Anyway, here are the latest prayer requests . . .

• praise and thanksgiving for a clear abdomen and normal tumor markers!
• praise and thanksgiving for the fact that Trish is still feeling great!
• a clear PET scan on Thursday (i.e., no "hot spots")
• complete healing from pancreatic cancer and breast cancer and whatever could be causing enlarged lymph nodes
• God to reveal his glory every step of the way . . . us not to miss a moment.

Lots of you have asked how we're doing. We're doing great! Really. I'm not sure if that means we have a freakishly unshakable faith (doubt it) or we're crazy (probably) or that cancer has beaten us down so much we've become desensitized to the punches. Probably a mix of all of the above. Whatever the reason, we're having a good week here at home. Thanks for being a part of it. Your prayers and encouragement mean more than you know. :-)