They have received the pathology report on the mass they removed from Suzanne. Here is the news from Tim. Please continue to pray for this family in this hard, hard time. Tim lists specific prayer needs at the end.
Hello friends. We know
that you have been praying very fervently for Suzanne and awaiting news, with
just as much concern as we have had. We are sorry to have kept you hanging this
week but the implications of Suzanne's diagnosis have made for a very busy couple
of days.
Unfortunately, the final results of the pathology report confirmed the surgeon's previous assumption that this mass would be malignant. At this point we were not surprised by the news as most of the preliminary information pointed to that, but it is still very discouraging overall and especially given our present circumstances already. The report also indicated that the surgery may not have been completely successful in removing all of the cancer cells and probably left behind a small amount around the margins of the tumor in a place or two. The encouraging news was that there was no evidence of the cancer having spread to any other organs, lymph nodes, etc.
Suzanne is recovering fairly well now at home. We were discharged from the hospital Monday at noon and literally limped our way home. She went up our stairs to the bedroom Monday afternoon and Aunt Bea is keeping her up there for her own good, until the next doctors appointment tomorrow morning. She was feeling a good bit better yesterday with less pain, soreness and stiffness related to her incision. She was very glad just to get back home as she had realized that she does not like hospital stays quite as much Collin. She didn't say this exactly but I think she was thinking that she didn't get nearly as many presents as Collin has, so what's the point :)
Specifically what we are dealing with is called Adrenocortical Carcinoma (ACC), or more simply Adrenal Cancer. It is an extremely rare type of cancer; quite a bit more rare than Collin's type of leukemia. That is not a distinction she was looking to have, in order to one up Collin. In fact, she has already taken great courage in this process from what she has seen Collin have to do.
Because of rarity of ACC it has not received as much attention and funding for research as more common types of cancer. There are limited treatment options if it is discovered in the later stages; fortunately we seem to be catching it in more of a middle stage. There are also only a few places that have any significant experience in treating ACC. At the very least you want to be evaluated at one of those to get recommendations on best course of treatment. You can then choose whether to receive treatment at their location(s) or to do treatments at a location or cancer center closer to home. So, we've immediately begun researching and speaking to different cancer centers around the country to determine where would be the best place for us to get an evaluation and determine next steps in Suzanne's treatment.
Speaking of which I've got to get back on the phone now. Quickly some immediate prayer requests would be:
Wisdom and God's leading for us as we try to absorb a lot of information from many sources and then make a fairly quick decision about which place(s) to go for evaluation and where to pursue Suzanne's next step in treatment.
Some periods of quiet and rest in the midst of the new flurry of activity to be able to absorb the reality of our new circumstances and hear from God how we are supposed to go about this.
Freedom from fear and discouragement for Suzanne, especially as she considers all the possible implications of this.
The same especially for Caroline, Collin and Ethan aswe try to guide them in dealing with their own concerns about their mommy and what the future holds for our family.
The same again for myself and all of our close family that are fully engaged in this, as we try to provide the right support to Suzanne, Collin and the other kids at the right place and time.
God's mercy to be poured out again in this situation, much like we saw with Collin's sudden remission just six short weeks ago.
Thank you for how you have stuck with us for the long haul in our circumstances with Collin and new baby Owen. Despite the extreme difficulty of our new circumstances we feel very blessed to already have such a huge number of friends supporting us in so many ways, especially in prayer.
Unfortunately, the final results of the pathology report confirmed the surgeon's previous assumption that this mass would be malignant. At this point we were not surprised by the news as most of the preliminary information pointed to that, but it is still very discouraging overall and especially given our present circumstances already. The report also indicated that the surgery may not have been completely successful in removing all of the cancer cells and probably left behind a small amount around the margins of the tumor in a place or two. The encouraging news was that there was no evidence of the cancer having spread to any other organs, lymph nodes, etc.
Suzanne is recovering fairly well now at home. We were discharged from the hospital Monday at noon and literally limped our way home. She went up our stairs to the bedroom Monday afternoon and Aunt Bea is keeping her up there for her own good, until the next doctors appointment tomorrow morning. She was feeling a good bit better yesterday with less pain, soreness and stiffness related to her incision. She was very glad just to get back home as she had realized that she does not like hospital stays quite as much Collin. She didn't say this exactly but I think she was thinking that she didn't get nearly as many presents as Collin has, so what's the point :)
Specifically what we are dealing with is called Adrenocortical Carcinoma (ACC), or more simply Adrenal Cancer. It is an extremely rare type of cancer; quite a bit more rare than Collin's type of leukemia. That is not a distinction she was looking to have, in order to one up Collin. In fact, she has already taken great courage in this process from what she has seen Collin have to do.
Because of rarity of ACC it has not received as much attention and funding for research as more common types of cancer. There are limited treatment options if it is discovered in the later stages; fortunately we seem to be catching it in more of a middle stage. There are also only a few places that have any significant experience in treating ACC. At the very least you want to be evaluated at one of those to get recommendations on best course of treatment. You can then choose whether to receive treatment at their location(s) or to do treatments at a location or cancer center closer to home. So, we've immediately begun researching and speaking to different cancer centers around the country to determine where would be the best place for us to get an evaluation and determine next steps in Suzanne's treatment.
Speaking of which I've got to get back on the phone now. Quickly some immediate prayer requests would be:
Wisdom and God's leading for us as we try to absorb a lot of information from many sources and then make a fairly quick decision about which place(s) to go for evaluation and where to pursue Suzanne's next step in treatment.
Some periods of quiet and rest in the midst of the new flurry of activity to be able to absorb the reality of our new circumstances and hear from God how we are supposed to go about this.
Freedom from fear and discouragement for Suzanne, especially as she considers all the possible implications of this.
The same especially for Caroline, Collin and Ethan aswe try to guide them in dealing with their own concerns about their mommy and what the future holds for our family.
The same again for myself and all of our close family that are fully engaged in this, as we try to provide the right support to Suzanne, Collin and the other kids at the right place and time.
God's mercy to be poured out again in this situation, much like we saw with Collin's sudden remission just six short weeks ago.
Thank you for how you have stuck with us for the long haul in our circumstances with Collin and new baby Owen. Despite the extreme difficulty of our new circumstances we feel very blessed to already have such a huge number of friends supporting us in so many ways, especially in prayer.
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