Dear Friends,
First of all, a quick apology to those of you who have been awaiting news regarding how our appointment went on Monday with Joey's oncologist. I guess it can interpreted as a positive sign that even though we do covet your prayers, we did not feel the need to get this email out as quickly as possible. I've been taking the time to gather my thoughts these last few days and anticipating what these next 9 months or so may look like for our family.
Our meeting with Dr. Fisher and Joey's treatment team went as well as can be expected. Dr. Fisher spent a long time with us. He began by having us look two screen shots of Joey's MRI's—one from nine months ago and the other from last week. It was clear to the naked eye that his tumor had grown. Dr. Fisher talked us through what the different treatment options were and quickly steered us to another course of chemotherapy.
The plan is to get insurance clearance for this medicine (Avastin) and then proceed with surgery for a port in Joey's chest so that the medicine can be infused. We are hoping that all this can happen in the next few weeks and that Joey will begin treatment next month at the latest. The plan is that he would get the infusion once every 2 weeks for about 8 to 10 months.
You can pray that the Avastin will be approved by our insurance company (it is quite expensive). You can also pray that Joey will tolerate the port surgery well, as he had a hard time undergoing anesthesia last week. Although there are some side effects to watch out for with Avastin, it does not carry the dreaded side effects of decreasing the immune system or of nausea.
Avastin inhibits the growth of new blood vessels. The tumor in Joey's brain has a lot of blood vessels so the idea is that this drug would cut off blood supply to the tumor. Even in the past when I've thought about Joey's tumor, I pictured the tumor collapsing on itself. As I sat listening to Dr. Fisher describe how Avastin works, it was a word picture of how I had imagined healing for Joseph. The tumor would get weakened from the inside and then implode. May this indeed be the case.
With joy,
Jane, Jon, Joey and Nathan Kuo Paris
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