Let's Talk About Something WONDERFUL

This helps me feel better, I am soooo happy!!

Joe, my eldest son and his exceptional fiancee Sarah are heading to Jamaica on May 9 and will be married on May 11th. They will return to Pittsburgh and have the marriage blessed in their church. The priest there has been wonderful in helping them through this decision and logistics.

CONGRATULATIONS JOE & SARAH

Just putting a face to this mess....

It STARTS May 14, 2009

We are scheduled to arrive at HMC at 9:15 Am on the 14th for Lab work and than a consultation and then 8 hours of infusion, which is a combination of chemotherapy drugs.

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers as I must admit, now that it is becoming real, I am a bit worried/scared, BUT we will beat this beast!!!

May 11, 2009 Mediport

I am scheduled to have a Mediport implanted next to my collar bone on May 11th for ease of administering drugs and taking blood samples. Below is a description.

A Mediport® is a device that is implanted under your skin so that medications may be delivered directly into your blood system. The Mediport® is designed for safe, long-term use in your body. It can stay in place permanently if necessary. When not in use, the only care a port requires is flushing once a month with a solution of heparin and saline to prevent blood clots from forming inside the line and causing a blockage.

The round part of the device that can be felt under the skin is called the reservoir. When the port is “accessed”, a special needle is placed through the skin into the reservoir through a plastic membrane called a septum. The raised “septum” is made from a self-sealing rubber, which allows repeated injections into the port so that you do not need to get injected directly into the skin or have an IV (intravenous) line inserted each time you require medication.

You may also hear the terms Port-A-Cath®, Infuse-A-Port®, or other similar terms, these are other products that serve similar functions.

Things are Progressing

Hi Mr. Lyons--Here is your schedule for Tues, 5/5/09.

Nothing to eat or drink starting at 5:15 am (In preparation for CT scan)

9:00 am--Bloodwork; Outpatient Lab, East Campus Location, 30 Hope Drive, Hershey (Map attached--just down the road from the Med Center less than 1/4 mile)

10:00 am--CT; East Campus Location--I will meet you in the CT waiting area to sign clinical trial consent prior to CT

Grab a Snack (There is a Cafe located on 2nd Floor of the University Physician Center.)

12:30 pm--Ste. 400 of University Physician Center--Appt. with Dr. Jiang

1:30 pm--ECHO--1st Floor Main Hospital East Hallway

Please note: Both the labs and the CT are at our East Campus. I've attached a map if you haven't been there yet.

It's probably best to print this and bring it with you the day of screening. If there are any problems while navigating the system, please call the main hospital 531-8521 and ask them to page Renee Kessler at 1735. All orders are faxed to the various depts.

I'm working on lining up your mediport and chemo start date. It's shaping up as:

5/11--Mediport Placement

5/14--Chemo start date

I'll confirm the above two appts. with you once your eligibility for the trial is verified.

Looks Like GOOD News

I received a phone call from the Clinical Research Coordinator telling me that she received everything needed from Holy Spirit Hospital to pre qualify me for the clinical trial. Next step is on May 5th we go to HMC for tests and a visit with the Oncologist.

If all the tests (ct scan, cardiogram, blood work, etc... ) come out positive my name is submitted for the clinical trial. We don't expect any issues with these tests.

Thanks to ALL for your support

Chemotherapy

The regimen and dosage and length of time has yet to be determined.

HOWEVER - I am a prime candidate for a clinical trial. Hershey Medical Center (HMC) is permitted to have 20 patients in this trial. Pat and myself (we from here on), met with the Clinical Research Coordinator running this program for HMC. She spent a good hour with us explaining the entire process. There are three regimens in this trial and once you are accepted, a computer will randomly generate which regimen to which you are assigned.

Because each one is lenghty in description, I will fore go delving into them until I hear if I am accepted and which one the computer assigns.

We received an email today from the Clinical Research Coordinator and she sounds positive and will hopefully get back to us today to start lining up the screening tests for the trial.

Keep the prayers coming, they work in many different ways.

Biopsy Results

Final Cytologic Diagnosis:

Right superclavicular lymph node, fine needle aspiration, direct smears prepared:
Satisfactory for evaluation.
Positive for malignant cells consistent with metastatic adenocarcinoma (a cancer that originates in glandular tissue).


Final Pathologic Diagnosis:

- Poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma.
- High-grade dysplasia (bad formation of cells).

Bottom Line - no surgery will be performed. Chemotherapy will be administered.
See next article - Dan

Biopsy 4/21/09

It did not take long or hurt.
Good news is that the doctor advised us that the results will be available when we go back on Friday for the oncology consultation.
Possible ( and I mean possible) bad news is the the doctor today said that what he saw was not normal, but that was just his eyeball evaluation.

I am sure that with ALL the support and prayers that I am receiving that ALL will be well!!!

Hershey Letter

Still in a Holding Pattern

Nothing much new. Waiting is about as bad as having this beast.

We (Patricia is ALWAYS part of this journey) head to The Penn State Hershey Medical(Cancer Clinic) Center tomorrow for a biopsy of the lymph nodes that appear to be active near my collar bones (each side of the throat).
We will not have any results until at the earliest Friday, but I expect not until May 1st (more waiting).


Thanks for ALL of your support - It means EVERYTHING

Love - Peace - Health
Dan

Some Good News

I have been informed that the biopsy's taken from inside the esophagus leading down to the 'mass' have come back benign from pathology.

I need to have another biopsy taken on 4/21/09 for the lymph nodes that appear to be active detected near my collar bones. These were found from the PetScan that was performed.

I also have an appointment with an oncologist on 4/24/09 and a feedback on the biopsy on 5/1/09.

March 2009

I can no longer swallow solid food and liquids 'hurt' being swallowed.

I decided to see a doctor.

The Dr. decided I should have an endoscopy, which is putting a tube down your esophagus and removing any blockage and expanding any sections that are narrowed.

The endoscopy failed as the tube could not pass through the esophagus into my stomach. The doctor (Dr Rengen) took many pictures and biopsy's inside the esophagus.

I was admitted to Holy Spirit Hospital in Camp Hill Pa and stayed there four nights. While I was there I had a CT Scan and a colonoscopy. The Ct (cat) scan indicated that the only problem (cancer) was at the base of the esophagus and was not spreading. The colonoscopy came back with a clean bill of health.

I was referred to The Penn State Hershey Medical Center for more tests.

I had a PetScan and another CTScan as an out patient.

Continuing swallowing problems

The initial episode passed. I occasionally had trouble swallowing. Food seemed to be 'caught' in my chest area but eventually passed and was swallowed.

The Beginning

It all started about three years ago at the ComiCon in Monroeville near Pittsburgh PA.
I sat down to eat a hot dog and after a couple of bites I could not swallow. I ended up in the men's room choking and finally expelling the food.