I’m not trying to bring everyone down by my last couple of posts. I am trying not to be preachy either, but I would however like all of you to go home and give your wife, kids, parents whom ever it may be, a big hug and a big kiss and tell them how much you love them and how much they mean too you. Life is just too short and you just never know what it might have in store for you. I have been just as guilty the last couple of months, working long hours and just plain ole’ caught up in my own life. When I got home last night at 9:30 (D*mn it) I actually woke up Isaac just to give him a hug and say good night. I spoke with Logan last night and he’s coping, but it’s a tough go right now. We’re thinking of you Tjossems, stay strong
Here is Jamie’s latest post…
Yesterday Kaden had a CT scan of his lungs along with other routine tests post-chemo. We had the CT at 8:30 in the morning and of course I was nervous because I know that if his cancer comes back it’s going to be in his lungs. Once the test was complete I asked the technician when we would hear from the doctor…she said in a few hours. Logan commented as we were leaving that he thought he sensed something bad in the technician’s facial expression. Of course the technician can’t say anything to us one way or the other. But now that I think back to the first CT, the technician’s had smiles on their faces…this one did not. But we had more tests to worry about so we moved on. The next test was an X-ray of his leg to see how things looked (we don’t know those results yet). After a two hour break we headed to Audiology for a hearing test. The hearing test showed no change from the last time…still borderline. Finally, some good news!! We ended the day with an echocardiogram. We were finished by 4:30pm…long day! We were surprised that we still hadn’t gotten a call about the CT scan. After being home a few hours I simply couldn’t take the suspense of not knowing something so I called the hem/onc doctor on call. Compared to other times I’ve called that number it took an extra long time for her to call me back…but she finally did. The first thing she said was, “You have an appointment with Dr. Arndt tomorrow.” I knew that wasn’t good so of course I probed her more even though I knew she really couldn’t tell me anything. I did get out of her that they had found 2 spots in one of Kaden’s lung…my heart sank. I knew this was bad. Logan was at his work meeting when I found out that we were up against “something” again. Somehow we managed to get a little sleep last night. We headed to the Clinic at 11am and met with Dr. Arndt. She showed us the CT and explained that this looked like osteosarcoma in the lungs. This was the worst possible thing we could hear because the tumors were not there in December which meant that they had grown while Kaden was on chemo. These cancer cells were resistant to the 3 chemo meds that he had been given…even though his primary tumor was killed 90% by them. As you can imagine this is devastating to us. Just when we thought we were done…after such a smooth ride the last 8 months…BAM, we’re hit with this. Dr. Arndt said herself that she and her colleagues are shocked; Kaden had done so well on chemo and the surgery. But as we know cancer is unpredictable. Of course MANY tears were shed in the procedure room. At one point Kaden asked me why I was crying…I told him I was sad and he went back to playing his DS. What was sad and comforting at the same time was that he was carrying on in typical Kaden fashion. In fact, last night (before we knew) we asked him if we had kicked cancer’s butt…he very matter-of-factly said, “No, I think I still have cancer.” Logan and I both looked at him and basically brushed it aside…..yeah, right, you don’t have cancer anymore. And today when we told him that we would have to go to the hospital more, it didn’t phase him. He said, “My body is strong…it’s still fighting cancer.” He didn’t cry or fuss.
Dr. Arndt spoke with her colleagues in the osteosarcoma community (around the world) and they all agree on the next steps. A bone scan to rule out any new bone tumors and a PET scan to rule out other cancer in other tissues. We had the bone scan this afternoon…it came back clear…no change in his bones….great news! Kaden actually fell asleep during the bone scan; no need to worry about him moving around! The PET scan will occur on Thursday. The radiologist said that since he was so still (even before he fell asleep) for the bone scan that he might not need to be under anesthesia for the PET scan.
The only way to get osteosarcoma out of the lungs is to remove the tumors. Before that happens Kaden will undergo 2 rounds of chemotherapy with two new drugs – ifosamide and vp16. These two drugs will be given together over a 5 day hosptial stay…YES, more hospital stays!!! Then he will have a 2.5 week break followed by another 5 day treatment. After that they will go in and remove the tumors. We know of the two “larger” tumors (7mm and 1.5cm) but there very well could be some smaller ones in there that aren’t showing up on the CT. We won’t know until they get in there and pluck them out; this is called a thoracotomy. The tumors will be biopsied to see if the chemo is having an effect. That will determine where we go from there but it could mean 6-8 more treatments. Needless to say our summer schedule has been cleared and I’ve decided not to teach summer school so that I can focus on Kaden and his health. There’s still great hope and we are going to fight hard. Cancer doesn’t know who it’s dealing with!!! I have talked with Sherrie and Shanna Decker and they have given us encouragement with success stories that started like ours. Shanna also had a tumor in her right lung but hers turned out to be benign. Nonetheless she had to endure the same surgery that Kaden will have…and she didn’t lie, it hurt worse than leg surgery.
I am coming to terms with what we are up against. Logan is doing well too. I’ve cried and now I need to put my positive fighting gloves on. We will be strong, Kaden will be strong. We will need your support!
