Update on the Cancer Homefront
|
|
A lot of people have shown interest in the welfare of my dad, and I do appreciate the concern and support I have been given in this matter.
For those of you who do not know, my dad was diagnosed with throat cancer in December of 2008. A common question is, “was he a smoker?” The answer is no, he was not. He quit smoking 41 years ago, when he had his first bout with cancer in 1968, at the age of 23.
My uncle, on my mom’s side, died of esophagus cancer in June. He quit smoking 20 years ago.
Once my dad’s cancer diagnosis was made, I recommended the Cancer Treatment Centers of America to him, especially since the Tulsa Cancer Center is only two hours away. I primarily made the recommendation, because through what I had heard online and about town was that Cancer Treatment Centers is one of the two best cancer hospitals in the United States. The top ranking has always gone to M.D. Anderson in Houston, Texas.
I also like Cancer Treatment Centers, due to their dedication to a holistic approach to medicine, which is more in line with what I believe makes for a better health care system.
He rejected my suggestion outright. He declared he was going to the OU Cancer Hospital in Oklahoma City, and that was that, period.
His first round of medical diagnosis and treatment was at the Oklahoma University hospital. They offered surgery, but could not offer him an extended life based on the surgery. So he declined their offer and went home to live out his remaining days.
About a month later, he called me on the phone, letting me know that he would be checking into the Cancer Treatment Center the following day.
Things were looking up.
His initial treatment was scheduled for 7 weeks. Once that was done, they sent him home for six weeks to recuperate from his chemotherapy and radiation treatments. They scheduled a follow-up appointment in June to track his progress.
In June, the tests showed a mass at the cancer location, but they were not ready to say that it was not malignant. They were unwilling to say anything more than there is a mass in that location. The good news is that the cancer was reduced from the size of a golf-ball to the size of a pea.
They scheduled for him to return at a later date to do another follow-up test, to explore the mass.
In August, he was back at the Cancer Treatment Center for his tests. They were able at that time to validate that the cancer was still present. So they scheduled for him to start follow-up chemotherapy at that time.
He received one chemotherapy treatment, and he had what appeared to be an allergic reaction. They kept him under observation for 36 hours, then sent him home.
The intent was to have him return two weeks later for another chemotherapy treatment.
A few days later, he went into the hospital at home, because he had pneumonia.
Right now, he is still in the hospital and has been there for a few weeks. He is on an IV, and he is taking his feedings through a feeding tube, but his body is not consuming all of his liquid food received through the feeding tube.
His doctor suggests that the reason is due to the pneumonia.
His doctor was also very forthright today. Basically, we are waiting for a bed to open at a hospital in Tulsa that specializes in lung problems. Once that bed opens, my dad will be transferring to Tulsa to the long-term health care center that specializes in lung treatments.
The doctor explained today that the situation was that if they could not clear the pneumonia in the next three weeks or so, then his last chemotherapy treatment would wear off, and then the cancer would likely accelerate again. If the pneumonia clears before the cancer gets a new foothold, his prognosis is good. But, if they cannot whip the pneumonia before the cancer starts growing again, then the prognosis is a matter of just weeks.
So that is where we are today.
Over the last several weeks, we had been dealing with an absolute lack of information from the hospital. We were simply piecing things together from our own observations and a lack of clarity from my dad’s wife, concerning his condition.
Between trips to my hometown – an hour up the road from me – and constant back-and-forth phone calls with my sister, who lives in the same town as my dad, work has been on the back burner. This week has been a complete burn at my end of the equation.
For the most part, my sister is on the scene, and she is in the trenches dealing with my dad’s illness. But after her visits with doctors, etc., she always calls me for feedback into the situation. We had more than six hours phone time today, until which time she could talk directly to the doctor and ask him the right questions to get to the truth of the matter.
Once my sister was able to ask the doctor the right questions, we were finally able to get the right answers – the whole, undistorted truth of his condition and prognosis.
I anticipate that I may be at a meeting with my dad’s doctors and the insurance company tomorrow. As we all know, the insurance company will make the final decision on what care my dad will actually receive from the hospital. He has resources of his own to cover what the insurance company will not cover, but it is yet to be seen whether those resources will need to be tapped, or if he will allow them to be tapped.
I am trying to get back on the positive side of my work flow, but it is really hit-and-miss at the moment as we deal with this medical situation.
I know I am behind on article distributions and ghost writing, but I am working on those, as I have time to do so.
Thank you for your understanding and patience.
Bill Platt – owner of The Phantom Writers
Related posts:
- Larry Platt of Ponca City, Oklahoma Passed Away This Morning (11-13-09) After A Long Illness
- 2009 Has Been A Rough Ride
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.
Sir its Darren your Twitter friend. I lost my dad in 96. Sir my prayers are with you for your Dads health. All of us take for granted our loved ones and their health. Again sir my Prayers to you Bill.