You Got That Right, Eleanor!

“You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, “I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.” . . . You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt~

You got that right, Eleanor!  When you are looking fear in the face, this is exactly the mind set you must have.  Believe me when I say we are looking...right now.

We heard from Dr. Haughey about 11:30am.  It has taken us a minute to wrap our minds around these options and to call our kids before posting this to the blog.  Here are the options as they were presented:

Option 1: Surgery.  All the doctors have viewed the MRI.  All are in agreement this is the same type of cancer they have been fighting since 2004.  None felt the need to do a biopsy.  Dr. Haughey said if Denny chose surgery, he would have to have his left eye, left upper jawbone and left side of the roof of his mouth removed.  Tissue would then have to be taken from another part of his body and grafted into those places.  When he healed, he would start chemo and remain on chemo the rest of his life.  Dr. Haughey said they have no way of eradicating this cancer.  It is microscopic and so they will never know if they got it all.

Option 2: Chemo.  This option is just that: chemo for rest of his life.  They would keep trying to adjust the types and dosages to extend his life for as long as he responds.

Option 3: Transnasal Operative Debulking of the Tumor: This option would allow the surgeons to go up through his nasal passage and remove as much of the tumor as possible without taking his eye or causing damage.  Then, after healing, he would have to go on chemo the rest of his life.

This is Denny's decision (and I support him 100%).  His choice is Number 3.  He wants a quality of life for as long as he is here.  So, tomorrow at 7:30am, he will have a port put into his chest for the chemo.  If the surgeon can do the surgery in the next 2 weeks, he will wait for chemo until after the surgery.  If the surgeon cannot fit him in, he will begin chemo tomorrow and do surgery in about 3 weeks.  Denny cannot wait.  The tumor is aggressive and growing at a very rapid rate.

Most people, I think, would be giving up after hearing this type of news.  Don't get me wrong.  This is devastating to our whole family.  However, this family fights back.  Denny is healthy, otherwise, so that gives him an advantage.  We will continue to build his strength; making him strong enough to keep fighting as new chemotherapies become available.  Medical science advances everyday.  He is looking fear in the face and saying to himself, "I can do this because I have done it before."  Dana, Daniel, and I are standing right behind him.  We have not lost this battle.  We have just begun to fight.