Going Back To Michigan On Wednesday

Sorry I haven't written anything in a long time. I have been having a terrible time dealing with everything. Lauren's Oncologist, Dr. Zalupski, called last Thursday and said that the MRI had been interpreted that Lauren did have a new tumor. He didn't tell me much more other than he wanted to start her on a new chemo this week. A nurse called Friday when we were at my Mom and Dad's in Oak Harbor. Of course Lauren's phone was dead and she didn't hear the message until Saturday. She called her back today and she has to go for chemo on Wed. She will be starting Oxaliplatin and will also take pills called Xeloda. The Oxaliplatin can have some weird side effects. She could get neuropathy which means your hands and feet can burn, go numb, or hurt really bad if they touch anything cold. She will not be able to eat or drink anything cold or it will feel like her throat is closing. The Xeloda is a pill form of the 5-FU she was on before. She will only have to go for chemo once every three weeks and take the pills for two weeks. I want to get a copy of the MRI report to see what it says exactly. I don't think they are positive the new tumor is in fact a tumor for sure. I asked the doctor a million questions, but felt I didn't get the specific answers I was looking for. He still needed to talk to a few of Lauren's other doctors to see what they thought. After thinking about it, Lauren and the rest of us are happy she will be on a different chemo. She has been on the other ones for ten months, which is a really long time. I think at first, Dr. Z didn't give her much more than six months to live, but she is still doing really well and we hope she will be around for a long time. She is very tough and strong. I will let you know about our trip to visit my parents in the next couple of days along with pictures. Right now I am just too tired. Thanks for continuing your prayers.

Love, -Pam