Needless to say, I was extremely anxious as yesterday approached since I knew that many decisions would be made based on the information I received. My blood pressure in the infusion room, prior to my visit with the doctor was 170/77, very high for me.

Thankfully the news was all good! All of my lung tumors, as well as my adrenal tumor, are still shrinking. Thus this chemo cocktail (avastin + abraxane) is still working, which means I can continue with this regimen indefinitely.

My oncologist agrees with me that radiation therapy is not necessary at this time, since I am managing the pain pretty well and the vertebral tumors are very small. Thus, the decision about starting radiation can be postponed until I return to RI.

I was concerned about the lesions that were found in the iliac bones (a section of the hip). My doctor ordered an X-ray of the hip which showed that there were no bone lesions and no fractures (he was much more concerned with the possibility of fractures). Therefore I dodged another bullet.

My Florida doctor also had no problem with my beginning a chemotherapy cycle here and completing it in RI. Thus, we are able, finally, to make the decision to leave for home on May 8th. I also asked him how I’m doing with my cancer. He feels that I am doing very well. When asked how much time he thinks I have, he responded, “there are new treatments becoming available all the time.”