My latest round of tests produced very mixed results. All my lung tumors continue to shrink. The bone lesions in my hip, my spine, and other locations are basically the same as before, but, at this point are not problematic. However, the tumor on my adrenal gland, which shrunk when we checked it out in April, has grown significantly again. It is now over 40 millimeters. This is obviously of some concern because it suggests that the cancer cells here have mutated and are no longer responding to chemotherapy.

As a result of this development, we have decided to consider irradiating this tumor before proceeding again with the chemotherapy cocktail of avastin and abraxane. I will be seeing a radiation oncologist very soon to discuss the matter. He will tell me if radiation is possible and if it is worthwhile in my cancer situation. If his response is a go, we will suspend chemo for several weeks and replace it with a radiation program of his choice.

Following that treatment, we plan to resume chemo, using the same two drugs, avastin and abraxane, until we are sure that they are not working any more.

My cancer doctor also told me that there is a new drug, not yet approved for my type of cancer, which should be available in the next few months, that we can try after the current cocktail is no longer effective. It sounds like the future is promising despite the bad news about my adrenal tumor. Cancer is so complicated!