So as I said I wanted to keep you up to date on my progress.
Wednesday, I met with the Oncology team from Indiana University and VA Hospitals in Indianapolis to discuss the path of treatment. They told me that a liver transplant, which they believed was a viable option was off the table (no pun intended) due to not meeting Mayo protocol. Apparently the tumor is too large, and the chance of the cancer coming back worse after the transplant is higher than 60%. Having previously reviewed the transplant option, there is only a median survivability of 5 years including the 4 to 9 months of rehab. Than you have to stay on auto-immune medicines for the rest of your life to keep the body from rejecting the new liver. This was the best chance at a longer term survivability. We discussed how the portal vein and bile duct is still encased by this Cholangiocarcinoma (cancer aka “the Beast”) and what that really means and the discuss went something like this. Worse case scenario, if we did nothing at all maybe 9 months, with chemotherapy treatments possibly 14 to 19 months, but because the treatments could weaken the vascular wall in the portal vein if that were to give way, than I would just bleed out internally and go to sleep and that could happen anytime. Like I said before, it is what it is. Live every day as if it were your last, continue to lift others up around you and stay the course. I left the office with a smile on my face, and joking with everyone. Don’t let this kind of news, get you down, remember that you choose how you let things effect you either positively or negatively! I always choose to be positive, because the alternative will tear you down.
Then on Thursday they brought me in to extract eleven teeth, my understanding is that you can not have any separation of crowns from the gums, anything that could cause particles to get under to cause infection for the upcoming chemo treatments that are set to begin in the next two weeks. Let me tell you, this is not fun! It’s Saturday morning and my face is still swollen, my gums are inflamed, and I am wondering if this was truly necessary. I understand the mindset, and the reasoning behind it but I don’t wish the discomfort on anyone. So I sit here typing this blog with a smirk on my swollen face, staying positive and looking ahead to my next step on this journey.
Let my journey be a reminder to all of you, that no matter what we are faced with, no matter what happens in our lives, we can face it with courage, dignity, and grace! That the best way of living is to be Dying Defiantly! Each of us have our own path to walk but none of you have to walk it alone, I am here to listen, to talk too, and encourage you to live your best life each day!!!