Saturday, May 2, 2009

Medical jargon made simple

So I have been lax these last few days in getting all the info out from our various Dr.'s appointments. I am sorry, Internet...please forgive.

Andy had an appointment with an oncologist a few days ago. It was informative as well as not so much...let me explain. He was very nice, as well as very technical (to some this is fascinating...to me, it goes right over my head....I need layman's terms. I want them to pretend they are talking to a kindergartner...then I might get it.) We did find out the name of the Captains tumor...other than "The Tumor" which we have lovingly referred to it as...it is an Oligodendroglioma. Yes, folks, that is really a word...I do not know the country of origin, nor will I repeat it or use it in a sentence. These are the types of tumors that can be dealt with one of 2 ways...we do not have the results of the pathology yet (the one that would tell us if the tumor would react well to chemo or not). However, the Doc said even if it came back as that type of tumor...he would not put the Captain on chemo right away. He would wait until an MRI came back abnormal...if it ever did. This is the outcome we are praying for...that it never returns...scratch that...we are praying Jesus comes back...in the case where He does not come back in our lifetime, and we are made to live out our days here on this earth...we pray it never comes back. So the PLAN is to watch it...Andy will have MRI's every 4-6 months for the next 5 years....then maybe longer in between if everything looks fine.
It is kinda like having a little black raincloud hanging over your head threatening rain...we will learn to live with the shadiness as well as always have our umbrella handy. It is always good to be prepared when the rain comes...if it comes, let us all continue to pray for sunny skies.

On this past Thursday we went to IU/Riley to speak with a specialist regarding Caden's death...or really Riggs life...again, let em explain. They have found nothing, and will not find anything conclusive about Cadens death. This Doc has a theory...but that is all it can come to because what they have of her tissue samples to study, tells them nothing, but does hint at clues of what MIGHT have been. She could have had a metabolic disease...but she just as easily could not have had one...I know, really helpful. What they can do is test Rigg after he is born for some of theses diseases to make sure he is not a carrier. If he is...then it will depend on what they find, if anything, to see what we would do. Some of these diseases are controlled with diet, others with enzyme shots, and still others there is no cure...but these (all of them, mind you) are extremely rare. The doc we saw is a specialist...the only one in the state. And he thinks if Caden had a metabolic disease (and they cannot prove she did) then being sick, eating not so normally, and sleeping longer periods (thereby fasting) could have caused her to go into a seizure because of low blood sugar...he said it was really kind of like setting up the perfect storm...but this is all a theory. SO, what we do with this info, is like I have stated previously. We look ahead to Rigg...and test him. With prayers that everything comes back negative and he is healthy as a horse...or just a healthy baby boy...either is fine by me...horse, boy...I will take it! All metabolic diseases are kinda rare, and the doc assured us more than once, we did all we could have for Caden, and we, nor any Dr. was to blame...nice to hear, but we have already made our peace with that.
Thursday was a very hard day for Andy and I...we had to recount EVERYTHING about my pregnancy, birth, care and death of Caden. It as extremely emotional and just an all around heavy day.
At one point I addressed the counselors we were talking to, saying Andy was very tired and I would be doing most of the talking, not mentioning his recent, ahem...medical ailment. However, we had to complete what is called a pedigree (a chart detailing our family tree and their health issues) I completed their questions about my side, then they proceeded to the Captain...the first question...How is your overall health. We just looked at each other and laughed...the truth came out. He had brain surgery 3 weeks ago. Their mouths flew open and disbelief clouded their expressions...priceless.

I had a Dr. appointment on Thursday morning...it looks as if my blood sugar might be high...I have to go back in on Monday morning and take a 2 hour fasting blood sugar test...pray that it was a fluke ( I passed my glucose test just 2 weeks ago) If it is not, and I have high blood sugar, I will have to say farewell to my newest love...the Golden Oreo. And yet, if that is to be the case...I can say with much certainty, and absolutely no sarcasm...worse things have happened.

9 comments:

Princess Heather said...

Medical jargon is never simple. My prayers are with you all. Cari for lower blood sugar, Andy for continued recovery and good health in the future, and of course Rigg, for testing NEGATIVE for anything and everything they test for.

Justin said...

I love you Captain!!

Sallye said...

Thanks for the update. Still praying for you, the Captain and Horse Boy Riggs.

Though I have never met you, you all have become quite dear to me, and I consider it an honor to pray for you all.

Sallye

Jackson said...

thanks for the update! i left you something on my blog!:)

Joyce said...

Oligodendroglioma kind of sounds like a sentence in itself, like... Ollie, got any drug llama?

Praying for you all.

Did you forget to stop by with the fabric? We shovelled our lunch in and headed for the baseball diamond in a big hurry, so maybe we missed you. Let me know when you are coming this way or if you want me to come and get it.

LisaL said...

I was shopping the other day and walked past a big Oreo display with the golden ones were right there in the middle... it made me think of you and wonder how good they really were! Luckily I was able to resist the urge to find out, lest I become addicted to them! Thinking and praying for you.
Lisa

Anonymous said...

Hey, call me later with the sugar details. b

Julie : ) said...

I hear the remedy for high blood sugar is feta cheese and raw egg....

let me know how the appt goes.

Psalm112 said...

We understand that "black cloud." However, Ben doesn't worry one bit about it. He has so much faith. I, on the other hand, am constantly looking at his neck (where we found the first tumor) making sure nothing new has popped up...so, know that there is someone else that understands to a degree.

Constantly praying!