Hi All,
Firstly, thank you all for the support, prayers, best wishes, and good vibes sent to me in my fight with pancreatic cancer. Although I may not have time to answer each of you individually, I do read every email, and they do lift me up, so THANK YOU!!!
Unfortunately, I have bad news and not so bad news this morning.
With the biopsy results performed last week completed, Dr. Abrams at Dana Farber in Boston confirmed the diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. The bad news is that the cancer has "showered" through the abdominal cavity, thereby classifying this as Stage 4 Cancer. Therefore, neither surgery nor radiation are options at this time. Chemotherapy is the only choice at this point. So, I begin two months of chemo on December 7th with treatments every two weeks. After four treatments, another scan will determine if the chemotherapy is working to reduce the cancer. I'm also investigating alternative approaches to mitigate the effects of the treatments and methods to "starve" the cancer through diet and supplements.
The not so bad news is that because I am otherwise in good health with no underlining conditions and physically fit (thank you tennis!!), my chances of withstanding the Chemo with beneficial effects are increased. So, for now, it is eating as much as I can to stabilize my weight, taking pain meds so I am comfortable, and staying as positive and as active as possible. It doesn't sound too hard!
So ... that's the news from Lake Wobegon.
Stay healthy, take care of yourself and be safe,
All my best,
Mas
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