The ride continues! [TITLE CHANGED - AGAIN] (3 Viewers)

Thinking of you Bleu. I was only given a 25 per cent chance of making it out of the hospital alive when I had a heart attack 3 years ago. Now I enjoy every day of my life because I know how precious it is. Sure you feel the same. You’ve fought this battle and won every round so far. Keep punching and knock that sucker out for good.
 
I started radiation (a very interesting process) today and will be done on December 16th - just in time to take a couple of weeks off of work.

PLOT TWIST: It was never lung cancer. The findings for this tumor are a type of skin cancer, it's just inside my lung. A review of the previous tissue along with some additional tests should confirm the initial (primary) cancer was also skin cancer. Interesting, to be sure, but we don't know how this affects things going forward. Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows that I have had rounds with skin cancer since 2000. It brings in a different set of doctors with specific knowledge, I am happy to have a team!
 
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Here we are, again...

I had the scan to follow up on the radiation done at the end of last year. The nodule we attacked before is much smaller and has all of the signs of being radiated properly. It takes a while for radiated tumors to be completed mitigated.

There is another pea-sized nodule that has been on the scans for a while but now is a little bit more bulbous than it was before. It is on the edge of the left lung and appears to be attached to the same rib where we had tumors before.

Today we will be talking to the radiation oncologist. The discussion there will be to determine if we can do radiation again, based on the location of the nodule and previous radiation doses received. All of my doctors will have a pow-wow prior to that appointment.

If radiation is not recommended then we will discuss starting treatment with Opdivo or Libtayo. Keep in mind that the tumors so far have all been skin cancer, not lung cancer, so infusion decisions will be based on that.

I don’t what I am going to say next to sound flippant so please read it in the spirit of the words...

This will be OK. I will be OK. This is something that we’ve all known could be a possibility, that I will likely have something going on where cancer is concerned for the rest of my life. The plan is the same - we will attack the problem just as we’ve done right up until this point!
 
Here we are, again...

I had the scan to follow up on the radiation done at the end of last year. The nodule we attacked before is much smaller and has all of the signs of being radiated properly. It takes a while for radiated tumors to be completed mitigated.

There is another pea-sized nodule that has been on the scans for a while but now is a little bit more bulbous than it was before. It is on the edge of the left lung and appears to be attached to the same rib where we had tumors before.

Today we will be talking to the radiation oncologist. The discussion there will be to determine if we can do radiation again, based on the location of the nodule and previous radiation doses received. All of my doctors will have a pow-wow prior to that appointment.

If radiation is not recommended then we will discuss starting treatment with Opdivo or Libtayo. Keep in mind that the tumors so far have all been skin cancer, not lung cancer, so infusion decisions will be based on that.

I don’t what I am going to say next to sound flippant so please read it in the spirit of the words...

This will be OK. I will be OK. This is something that we’ve all known could be a possibility, that I will likely have something going on where cancer is concerned for the rest of my life. The plan is the same - we will attack the problem just as we’ve done right up until this point!
good luck Bleu, praying for you
 
I hate health insurance companies. In December they approved SBRT treatment because no one at the time knew that it was a skin cancer variant that had metastasized to my lung. Now they have refused approval and the doctors are having to appeal. If the appeal is lost I am having to look at having surgery or going back on the immunotherapy drugs for up to a year. The surgery does not sound appealing to me at all.
 
After fighting the insurance company we have chosen surgery (the first week of June). Fortunately, the location of this little tumor is on the edge of the lung and they will be able to do everything laparoscopically so it is minimally invasive. Like any other skin cancer, they will take out a wedge and run it to the lab right away to make sure they have clear margins. If they aren't clear, more will be removed until they get the result (100% removed) needed.

I have said this about insurance companies before, but it is time for health insurance reform. I don't give a flying poop about their medical "experts", especially when they come into direct conflict with the medical experts who have been treating me for a long time and know what is involved and how to get the best outcomes.
 

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