Brain Tumor Board to look at MRI

• By ravir
• Reply 3626645
• December 15, 2012 at 10:04 am
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Wupishng you good luck.

• By Colerkjseak1999
• Reply 3627131
• December 15, 2012 at 1:19 pm
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sending prayers your way :) Merry Christmas.

• By AdeleFrances
• Reply 3627214
• December 15, 2012 at 2:00 pm
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You will be in my prayers, please let us know how Monday goes. Adele

• By CCATRON
• Reply 3627882
• December 15, 2012 at 7:58 pm
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Give it to God and trust in him!

• By agbecky
• Reply 3629524
• December 16, 2012 at 3:15 pm
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I'm praying for you, Kathy, and for Tom. Let it just be contrast enhancement, not new growth. Praying for comfort, peace, and rest, until you are able to get the answers tomorrow and have a plan of action.
Becky

• By briggs
• Reply 3629698 · In reply to 3629524 by agbecky
• December 16, 2012 at 4:36 pm
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Thank you, we are so nervous. Kathy, Toms wife

• By Eva100911
• Reply 3629898
• December 16, 2012 at 6:18 pm
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Praying for you both

• By Belle1106
• Reply 3630394
• December 16, 2012 at 10:26 pm
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Kathy, Toms wife,

I wish you both peace and hope during the holiday season!

i also have a Gbm4 and I have an MRI coming up in January. The last time they checked at Johns Hopkins I had scar tissue, and I am staying hopeful mostly but do get nervous sometime too.

Take care of you and Tom and I will remember you two during the Christmas season. Be well, and I wish you both the best, Belle1106

• By Colerkjseak1999
• Reply 3630553 · In reply to 3629524 by agbecky
• December 17, 2012 at 12:15 am
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agbecky what do you mean by contrast enhancement? I have not heard this term before?

• By agbecky
• Reply 3631191 · In reply to 3630553 by Colerkjseak1999
• December 17, 2012 at 9:41 am
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Contrast enhancement was the term our radiology oncologist used to discuss my husband's MRIs. When he had his first MRI after the 6 weeks of chemo & RT, there was a bright white spot next to the tumor cavity that really scared me. It is common after radiation to have some areas where the contrast injected during the MRI shows up more in certain areas. This means it isn't tumor growth, it is just a spot on the MRI. Our NO wanted to be sure that it wasn't something else and so Dennis had monthly MRIs several months in a row. Over time, the spot faded and is now gone. He finished his initial chemo and radiation the end of February '12. He has been having MRIs every other month now after June. The latest in November showed no signs of tumor or progression and the tumor cavity continues to shrink and collapse in on itself. We are so thankful for this good news. Next MRI will be early February.
Becky

• By agbecky
• Reply 3633877
• December 18, 2012 at 8:34 am
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We're still praying and watching for your update on the MRI news.
Becky

• By briggs
• Reply 3633983 · In reply to 3633877 by agbecky
• December 18, 2012 at 9:10 am
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Thanks, I am still waiting on a call. it was supposed to be yesterday. I am so so nervous. Kathy, Toms wife

• By briggs
• Reply 3635456 · In reply to 3633877 by agbecky
• December 18, 2012 at 6:29 pm
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Ok, finally a reply from the Brain Tumor Board from John Hopkins. They could not all agree on whether it is a new growth or not,but feel it could be. It is not in a place that can be taken out,so they will treat it like new growth,and start him on temador again. He is still doing good,and does not have any new symptons. Thanks so much for all your prayers,and keep praying that the temador will do the job. Kathy, Toms wife

• By AdySin
• Reply 3636828
• December 19, 2012 at 9:26 am
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You can get another opinion. Three cancer centers reviewed my case, but they couldn't agree with each other. :-@

• By briggs
• Reply 3638180 · In reply to 3636828 by AdySin
• December 19, 2012 at 6:55 pm
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We are going to send a copy to Duke. Thanks

• By butterfly0
• Reply 3639302
• December 20, 2012 at 8:03 am
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Thankyou for your reply. My next visit is in 3 months to look at " scar tissue ". I decided to not worry too much about it and determined to not let life to pass me by. This is another worry that I surrendered over to the Lord! Have a very Merry Christmas

• By suzieta
• Reply 3639665
• December 20, 2012 at 10:17 am
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My husband was diagnosed with GBM4 this summer, had craniotomy, radiation and 2 rounds of chemo. The first MRI showed re-growth, that was on 11/27. We were very disappointed to say the least, but we have not given up hope. He is trying a ketogenic diet and we will be seeing a doc in Philadelphia next week to guide us better with that.

Even if you husband's image is regrowth, don't give up and don't ignore your feelings. My friends are such good sounding boards for me to vent my fears and feelings.

Even if my husband completely recovered tomorrow, this event has completely changed our lives and perspectives (and for much of that I am grateful). Life will never be same no matter what.

• By jaypaul
• Reply 3640473
• December 20, 2012 at 3:33 pm
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Briggs- after my tumor was surgurgically removed successfully, we were shocked that another one grew from the surgurical cite as if it had been a weed root that decided to bloom again. I had this successfully removed through my radiation treatment which was just beginning, and they were able to increase the dosage and it paid off to remove the new growth and we were very happy about that. Good luck and I hope you are able to find out and take care of the new growth. Peace to both of you over the holidays.

John

• By briggs
• Reply 3640999 · In reply to 3640473 by jaypaul
• December 20, 2012 at 7:58 pm
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Thanks, we are so confused. Some think it is new growth,and others think it is scar tissue from radiation. They say it is in a bad spot this time,and can not be removed. It is not very big yet,and he is not having any symptons. We will start Temodar,and try for two months. Hope this works, we are still looking at the trial vaccines,but most he does not qualify . Briggs

• By momsnelsen
• Reply 3641721
• December 21, 2012 at 7:27 am
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Briggs,

I am sorry to hear about this and pray the Temodar works. Did the care team tell you what they hope to see as they monitor your husband? I thought I would share my experience in case this is what your care team expects... in my case the tumors still show up on each of my MRIs. I have 3 tumors with the largest being close to the motor strip so they did not do surgery to remove my tumors. There is some confusion among the different pathologists about the grade of my tumors so we say they are astrocytoma grade II/III. I did 12 cycles of Temodar that ended October 2011. I have MRI scans every 3 months to monitor for new growth.

To me the MRIs I have now do not look any different than my MRIs from when I was diagnosed 2 years ago. My care team says that the Temodar killed most of the cancer cells in the tumors, but this cannot be seen on the MRI. I wanted to share this with you so if it is the same with your husband you do not get disappointed when he starts the chemo and if his MRI looks the same. I would love for you to tell us that when he has his next MRI there is shrinkage, but also wanted to share that this is not the case for me and you might want to ask what to expect when you go in for his next MRI.

Praying for you and your husband!
Susan