The Results Are In ... sort of

The good news is that there is no bad news. The bad news is that things are still a little up in the air. First, the really, really good stuff. These new scans confirmed that the node that was in my lungs is gone. The tumor behind my kidney, the one behind my liver and the one in my breast have all decreased in size "significantly." This means that all of the disease that we really thought was most threatening is reacting and shrinking.

Now for the confusing bit. I still have little nodes hanging out right underneath of my skin. A couple seem to be getting a little smaller, some are stable and a couple may be getting slightly larger. Usually these are the first nodes to react to treatment, and then the interior disease follows. I see to be working in reverse which is par for the course in my experience with melanoma. Nothing has followed any of the normal "rules."

So.... the verdict is, they aren't ready to stick me in for round 2 of treatment just yet. They want me to wait another 8 weeks, have more scans, and make a decision on what to do then. They'd really like to see everything reacting and shrinking by that time.

Overall, we're extremely happy. I know from a rational standpoint that this is really great news which I should be jumping for joy over (and have.) From an emotional standpoint, I've got some mixed feelings which I'm sure will pass given a little time. Living scan to scan is no way to live and we just added 2 more months to the timeline. I had hoped to start round 2 of treatment next week, have time to recover and then look forward to a vacation this Fall. It's just not happening. Yes, I realize that Africa will always be there, but it is difficult when you are in a situation like this to think of "next year." We've learned to live day to day, not year to year. Again, I know the emotion will pass in a couple of days. For today, I'm just letting things sink in, and appreciating all of the wonderful news that came out of this. Thanks again for all of the support out there.

P.S. I have a gorgeous wedding to share with you all tomorrow.... No more of the medical posts for awhile.