Based on the results from my most recent CT scan at MD Anderson which showed a new mass near my spinal cord that doesn't seem to be responding to my current chemotherapy regimen, I had an MRI last week to get a better view of the area.

Yesterday, I meet with a radiation oncologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center here in Dallas to get his opinion of the MRI and to determine whether or not radiation treatment is needed in my case. I am opting for treatment here in Dallas because the radiation treatment will likely require 10 or more consecutive days of treatment, and travel to Houston for that duration of time would be expensive and impractical. My radiation oncologist at UT Southwestern is one of the very best in the country, so I am certain that the care I receive will be on par with, if not better than, the treatment I could receive at MD Anderson.

The MRI showed that the tumor is growing dangerously close to my spinal cord, and appears to be moving toward one of the areas where nerves leave the spinal cord for destinations further out in the body. Left untreated, the cancer could move into my spinal cord, ultimately leading to paralysis from the waist down. Further, there is another group of tumors that encircles the artery that supplies blood to my left kidney. Left untreated, it could cut off the blood supply completely, leading to the loss of my kidney. The radiation oncologist was optimistic that targeted radiation therapy could kill these most concerning tumors that don't appear to be responding to chemotherapy. 

Tomorrow, I will go back to UT Southwestern for a planning session where they take additional scans and plan for how they will specifically target the radiation to eradicate these tumor groups in my body while attempting to avoid damage to my other organs. Based on his plan, my doctor disclosed that I will likely lose some of my kidney function (it simply isn't possible to hit the tumors where they are without damaging the kidney), but he is hopeful that it will be minimally damaging. I will also likely have some unpleasant side-effects due to the radiation affecting parts of my stomach, bowel, and intestines, but these should be fairly short-lived.

As of now, the plan is for me to continue with my normal chemotherapy regimen next week, and then begin radiation treatments shortly after Christmas. This is certainly not the way I planned to spend my Christmas break, but the timing works out well, and I should be recovered enough to teach classes as planned in the coming Spring semester.

The past few weeks have not been without fun for our family. Last night, Texas Oncology gave our family the opportunity to present the game ball at the Dallas Mavericks game, so we enjoyed great seats and the first half (small children can't stay awake for a whole basketball game) of the Mavericks-Pistons game.

Rob, Melissa, and Raegann at the Mavericks basketball game

We also had the opportunity last week to go visit ASCO equipment and drive some of the construction equipment that they offer for rent and for sale. Someone from ASCO heard my interview on the Kidd Kraddick morning show several weeks ago, and after hearing that Matthew and Raegann both love big trucks and construction equipment, offered to let us come out to one of their locations to drive some of the trucks. Matthew, Raegann, Melissa, and I had a great time driving a wheel loader, a backhoe, and an excavator, as well as moving around some dirt and digging some holes.

Our family with the construction vehicles we got to drive

As a family, we are looking forward to the Christmas break and the opportunity to spend more time together. My parents will be coming to visit for about 10 days over the holiday, so we are looking forward to spending time with them as well.

We are continually grateful for those of you who continue to pray for us. Please keep the following requests in mind:

• That the radiation treatment will be effective at killing the tumor groups that aren't responding to chemotherapy.
• That the side-effects of the radiation treatment will be minimal and short-lived.
• Strength for Melissa as we move into the busy holiday season and as my energy levels don't allow me to contribute to the household duties as much as I would like.
• For joy and peace during this Christmas season. We have so much to be thankful for!