A Merry Christmas

Tue 12/25/07
After our morning gift exchange at home with our family and a delicious breakfast of Adam's famous pancakes, we remembered six months earlier when I had sat at the table with the kids the day after Susan's first surgery. I had told them their mom didn't remember them and that death had been near. With Susan with us at the table today, we celebrated the contrast between July 5th and Christmas and how far she's come. Then we spent a while giving each other verbal gifts by sharing what we appreciate about each other – these are gifts that I know will last forever.

Thu 12/27/07
We had a neuro-oncology visit at UCLA with a scheduled MRI and consultation with Dr (Leia) Nghiemphu. Since it's a digital scan, we're able to review the images right away with the doctor. Dr Leia was concerned about increased brain swelling this time as compared to Susan's October scan and was ready to recommend a different chemotherapy drug to combat tumor growth. However, when she witnessed how well Susan has progressed in alertness, memory, and strength, she reasoned that this was Susan's first MRI since going off the anti-swelling steroid decadron, and this may be more a normal condition for her. Had Susan's symptoms not improved or worsened, there would be more cause for alarm. To be safe, Dr Leia will have Susan return in one month (instead of the usual two) for a comparative MRI.
She advised us to take a few precautions for our Hawaii trip, but otherwise encouraged us to enjoy the journey and time with family. She raised Susan's dose of temodar chemotherapy to its maximum and agreed to have us wait until we return home instead of starting treatment on the cruise.