The Good Fight

For those of you who have not been involved since the beginning...Mark was told in early June that the lump was probably nothing. Then he was told that it was probably lymphoma, then he was told that it was stage four lung cancer, then the PET scan showed the cancer only in the area of the lump under the arm. Then we were told that it was squamous cell cancer that probably originated from the skin cancer removal in November of 2004 and that it was very treatable because it appeared to be all in one place. Radiation was temporarily arranged to start at Cape Cod Hospital next Monday, August 21 and chemo would start soon thereafter if the doctors in Boston agreed with the diagnosis. We expected to go to Boston and get the "go ahead" today from the specialists but we got thrown yet another curve ball!
First we met with a dermatologist, Dr. Werchniak, at Brigham & Womens who decided on the spot to take off several of Mark's small facial skin cancers. He agreed with the doctors on the Cape that the squamous cell tumor must be the result of the skin cancer removed from Mark's chest in November of 2004. Although it is rare for skin cancer to spread like this, he has seen it before. The only thing that has him baffled is the distance of the tumor, near Mark's armpit from the original site of skin cancer. It's odd that there is no sign of cancer between the tumor and the original site of the skin cancer removal in the center of Mark's chest. The stitches on Mark's face from today's skin cancer removals will be removed on the Cape so there is no plan to see Dr. Werchniak again.
Then we walked up the street to see Dr. Sarah Russell, a surgeon at Dana Farber. We were repeatedly told that she was running late and the 3:30 appointment did not take place until 5:45 but by the time we were done, we wished it had been an even longer wait to hear the news she delivered. We were very impressed with her and thought she was extremely knowledgeable and very detail oriented but it is difficult to sum up what she said. Basically, she needs much more information from tests previously performed that was not provided in the packet we brought. After she reviews more specifics, she will consult with Dana Farber's Thoracic physician to talk about that tiny mass that had previously been detected on the other side, Mark's right lung. If, after reviewing all tests and performing any additional tests that she deems necessary, there is no cancer found elsewhere other than the general area of the tumor under his arm then he will have the following options: Amputation of his arm right up to the shoulder. This is the only option which would probably stop the cancer altogether for good. Or, have chemo and radiation and most likely follow that up with surgery to remove the lump which will probably not disappear with this treatment. The bottom line is that this type of cancer is very aggressive and chemo and radiation only cures about 5% of cancer patients with this type of cancer. It is very likely that a piece of it will break off and travel elsewhere in the body and result in future bouts of cancer sprouting up in the future.
If you know Mark, it probably goes without saying that she hardly had the word "amputation" out of her mouth before he said "Well, you can forget about that"! I'm trying to urge him to keep his options open because every scenario seems to result in limited use of his left arm and he is right handed. It appears that, one way or another, his erratic golf game will be a thing of the past. It will be a few weeks before she gathers all the information about previous testing and consults with a thoracic surgeon so there is a lot of time to ponder and many questions that, we now see, have gone unanswered. I will update the blog when we get any other news. Meanwhile, we are looking forward to Mike and Steph arriving on
Steph's 26th birthday tomorrow. With Kevin's travels and Mike living on the West Coast, it is very rare that we are all together. We are seizing this opportunity to have a photographer come to the house for a family photgraphing session which the staff gave us as a gift at Christmas. Then ten of us are going to New Seabury to celebrate Steph's birthday. Friday, we are going in style to the Red Sox/Yankees game. A limo arrives at 4 to take 8 of us to Regina's Pizza in the North End and then on to the game at 8 pm.
We have received countless, much appreciated cards, well wishes and pledges of prayers. However, Gary's friends from Boston College united to deliver an unsurpassed gift of compassion. The group of male and female "BC Eagles" sent a portable DVD player, "Caddy Shack" and a Netflicks membership along with an absolutely beautiful card and a thoughtful written message that brought tears to my eyes.
Some of these friends are Yankee fans that have been ribbing Mark via e-mail about the Red Sox' dismal record lately. The combination of sincerity and humor has been greatly appreciated. So this is a "Shout Out" of sincere gratitude to Gary's thoughtful college friends, a few of whom were unfortunately born flawed with the "Yankee Gene"!!
I will write again when there is news to share. Meanwhile, thanks again for all your cards, prayers and entertaining e-mails. They have lifted our spirits!