Miracle Appointments
Dear Friends and Family,
Thanks for all the kind notes and messages we have received over the last few days. They have boosted our spirits and meant so much. And thank you for all your prayers - we have experienced so many miracles in the last few days.
Over the weekend we discovered that Evan’s aunt and uncle had personal connections with people of influence at the Huntsman Cancer Institute. Also, some friends in our ward served in the same mission as one of the surgeons we were trying to see. They all graciously agreed to help us. As a result, by the end of the day on Monday, we had scheduled appointments on Tuesday and Wednesday with the only Neuro-Oncologist in Utah (Dr. Choucair), as well as two of the best Neuro-Surgeons in Salt Lake, (Dr. Jensen) at the University of Utah/Huntsman Cancer Institute and (Dr. Rich) at LDS Hospital. These appointments could easily have taken 3 or 4 weeks to get on our own. There are no words to express our gratitude for the help we’ve received.
All the doctors agree that it would be extremely foolish to try and remove the tumor surgically, so a biopsy to determine what type of cancer it is will be the next step. Dr. Rich will be out of town for the next two weeks, so the biopsy will be performed by Dr. Randy Jensen at the University of Utah Hospital next Thursday, August 23rd. We won’t know the exact time until the day before.
Although there will be several hours of preparation to map Evan’s brain before the surgery, the biopsy itself will only take about 2 hours. If there are no complications, Evan should be able to come home the next day. The procedure is done using a GPS system and computer-controlled instruments, so the chance of complications with this procedure is relatively low (about 5%).
We’ve been told to expect the results from the biopsy within 3-4 days after the procedure. From that point on, Dr. Ali Choucair will oversee Evan’s treatment. Radiation will be the main form of treatment. However, we won’t know how often the treatments will be, how long the treatments will go on, or what level of radiation Evan will receive until we get the results back from the biopsy. If the cancer turns out to be extremely aggressive, a pill form of chemotherapy may be used in addition to radiation.
That’s pretty much where we stand right now. We won’t have any more appointments between now and the biopsy, so you probably won’t hear from us again until then.
Evan is still quite tired, but they started him on an anti-inflammatory medication to shrink the swelling in his brain and that seems to be helping. His short-term memory and other symptoms have improved a little bit. So that’s reassuring.
Thanks again for all your love and support! We love you all!
Love,
Margot
