Earl: Cancer of Pancreas, diagnosed 4/6/07

(You might want to read this post from the bottom up to see order things occurred.)

4/22/07:
Dr. appt in Philly had to be rescheduled due to bad storms along East coast. Moved up one week to April 25^th @ 1:00 p.m.

Earl still tires easily and is sleeping a lot. Being in the hospital for nine days and being put to sleep three days in a row was very hard on him.

4/13/07:

Earl has appt with Dr at Fox Chase in Philly next Wed. @ 1 p.m.

Still trying to get insurance authorization.

Making arrangements for travel and lodging. Lot to do!!

4/10/07:

We received call from Fox Chase Monday morning, 4/9/07. Several calls back and forth. Confirming insurance. Faxing records to them.

4/9/07:

Scan showed stints were still in place. Tube removed. Earl was discharged from the hospital around 1:30 p.m. He was so weak by the time he got home. Used wheelchair to get him into the house. Asked for walker, which he used thru out the day. Fever 100.2 ..... He slept most of the afternoon.

4/7/07:

Well.... I have delayed posting this because the news is very bad and it's hard to write. We were told late Fri night that Earl does have pancreatic cancer. Adenocarcinoma, inoperable, at least here in Knoxville. I just hate so much having to relay this news. Please keep us in your prayers as we research our options and try to make decisions about his care and treatment.

He has been advised by his Gastro specialist and oncologist to go elsewhere for treatment. Apparently Knoxville is not the place to expect survival with this cancer. Depending on how tumor might respond to treatment here, he might have one to two years.

The two Drs. agree that Fox Chase (Univ of Pa) in Philadelphia is the #1 place to seek treatment for this cancer. Here is link for FC. http://www.nccn.org/members/profiles/fccc.asp

We have been unable to make contact with the phone numbers on the website over the weekend, but have left msg and will try again Mon a.m.

St. Mary's is copying all his records and transferring CT scans, ultrasounds, etc. to CD-ROM for us to send/take to FC. Pathology slides also provided.

If you know anything about Fox Chase or have any experiences with pancreatic cancer that might help us, please let us know. We welcome any help.

I guess our biggest concern is going to be if our CIGNA insurance will help much. I'm guessing FC will be "out of network" and benefits will not be near as much as local "in-network" doctors/treatment. But, we've been strongly advised to more or less "get out of town". So, that is exactly what he plans/wants to do.

Please pray that we will be able to work out all the details and that FC will accept him, etc. Finances will be another concern. We just spent 12 years paying off my doctors/treatment bills following colon cancer. We had no insurance at that time. We have no savings now due to this. We just pray we can work things out to get treatment for him and worry about the $$ side of it later.

Earl still has the drain tube in his right side. Dr. is discharging him Monday. Don't know yet if it will be with or without the drain.

At this moment, I feel very helpless and maybe even scared... not knowing what to do or if things will work out. But, I trust that things will fall into place and we'll get him to wherever he needs to be.

I must end this and take him a few things he needs. I thank each of you for your concern and prayers. Those of you who visited have been a blessing to Earl. Thank you, too, for his cards and phone calls. And all the emails have been wonderful! I print and take them each day.

4/6/07 a.m.

Using a CT guided needle thru the stomach, Dr Johnson got good biopsy tissue yesterday. Hope to have results this afternoon or tomorrow a.m. when his Dr. comes in.

Drain to outside is working well. He gets real food today for first time since entering hosp on Sunday afternoon. Has been on clear liquids all week! Has not liked that at all!! He did get a bowl of tomato soup yesterday. Must have tasted good.... it disappeared in a hurry!

He was still yellow yesterday, but don't think he would glow in the dark now! He has been unbelievably yellow since Mar. 19th. His eyes are so yellow, we've been calling him our alien lizard!

Removed his IV bag/pole this a.m. He thinks they might remove the needle from back of his hand, too. At least, he hopes they will.

Thank you so much for your prayers. We appreciate your prayers and emails of encouragement. I have been printing them for Earl. They really mean a lot. I'm just sorry I don't have time to answer each and every one.

I'm taking a little time to take care of a few things at home this morning. Been at the hosp all week. Will go back after lunch.

Will update again when we get lab results.

4/4/07 late p.m.:

Today was better in that Dr Miller was able to put in the stints (2) and placed an external drain tube, which is working well. They had him from 1:00 p.m. until after 4:30. Guess we got back to the room right at 5 p.m. He had to lay on the drain side for four hours. 8 p.m. before he could move. This to ensure the liver did not bleed where the tube was inserted.

The not so good is that the results of the biopsy they took yesterday are inconclusive. We/they still don't know IF it's cancer. I think they "suspect", but don't have clear evidence. BUT.... maybe there is a glimmer of hope.

An oncologist and a surgeon came by tonight. One @ 8:15 and surgeon about 10:15. They seem to agree that another biopsy should be done to confirm. So.... a CT guided probe or whatever they call it, will be done either Thurs or Friday. May depend on how the bile is looking. It is very dark now and should be a light yellow before the drain will be removed. Not that they said they would wait for that to do the biopsy.

So, we're in that holding pattern again and he remains in the hospital.

We appreciate your emails and prayers. They are such a comfort. I'm printing the emails for Earl.

4/3/07:

Today wasn't a very good day.

Dr Miller was not able to place the stent or open up the pancreas to drain. It is totally blocked by a tumor at the "head" of the pancreas. Did take tissue for biopsy. Results tomorrow. Dr. said sometimes he can punch or push thru a mass and place the stint, but was not able to do that with this one.

Another Dr. will attempt to go in thru Earl's side tomorrow around 1:00 pm. Was told they would take him down early. Maybe 11:00 or so. Plan is to go in thru his side into the liver, then down the duct to the pancreas coming in from the other side of the tumor. Then attempt to place the stint or put in an external drainage tube to try to drain some of the bile and relieve some of the pressure. If the drain works, it will be changed to an internal drain in a few days.

Assume they will do this regardless of biopsy results.

4/1/07:

Matt and Liana say Earl is dehydrated and insist we take him to the ER. We decide to go to St. Mary's because of the ERCP procedure scheduled there on 4/3/07. Got to ER around 1:30 p.m. ER did ultrasound that shows the pancreas is completely blocked. Also drew blood for lab and did chest X-rays. Admitted him to hospital. He was put in a room about 5 p.m.

3/28/07:

Consultation with Dr. C got copy of CT scan from UT. Has scheduled ERCP biopsy and stint for Tues. 4/3/07. (Dr. Miller)

3/20/07:

Dr. took blood for lab and scheduled a CT Scan at UT for Friday 3/23/07. Also sending him for colonoscopy.

3/19/07

Liana noticed Earl was very yellow, even his eyes.

3/15/07:

Earl called and made an appt to see Primary Dr. next Tues, 3/20/07.

Acid indigestion getting so bad he can not lay down to sleep at night. Throwing up after some meals and sometimes during the night between 3 – 6 a.m.