Friday, March 29, 2019

Clinical trials update

It has been a long, busy week, and I am grateful the weekend is here. Most days I feel really good, but some days I feel shitty, and today was one of those days. Despite that, I do have some good news to share. I met with a new doctor at UT Southwestern yesterday and began the screening process for what seems like a really good trial. There was only one spot left, and I'm pretty sure the Universe was saving it just for me. I really liked the doctor and trial coordinator; they moved quickly and got me scheduled for all of my screenings and necessary procedures. 

Of course, I still wanted to check out my options at MD Anderson, but my appointment wasn't until April 17 -- past the start day of treatment on the UTSW trial. I was in a bit of a conundrum, but I decided to go ahead and tentatively join the UTSW trial and find some way to get into MDA sooner. I could always drop out before starting treatment.

After I left the hospital, I noticed I had missed a call from Houston. A voicemail informed me that my April 17 appointment with one doctor had been changed to April 2 with the doctor I really wanted to see. So, I'm going to Houston on Tuesday to learn about a clinical trial there. 

My hope right now is to be able to stay in Dallas and move forward with the trial at UTSW. I want to be able drive the 2.2 miles from my house to the hospital for treatment once a week rather than uproot my life to be in Houston part-time. I want to sleep in my own bed every night, and I want to keep working and living as normally as possible for as long as possible. However, if I feel MDA will give me a better chance of beating cancer for longer, I will go there for treatment. 

Mostly, I just want to start treatment as soon as possible. This tumor is on my last nerve.

2 comments:

Linsley said...

I have some choice words for that tumor.

L.

stephaniehparker said...

I love you and I’m praying for you! Thank you for all of the updates so we can know specifically what to pray for.