UPDATE - All Good? RE: Surgery Tomorrow... But Not in the "Normal" Spot

SilentRenegade

Update 9/10/15:

So they couldn't remove the mass... mainly because it's very large and possibly lymphoma, meaning it's very treatable and there is no reason to go through with a massive surgery. They inspected his vocal cords and found that they were not involved nor are his airways. The doctor spoke to us and said he spoke to multiple pathologists and some fellow doctors, because the first biopsy came back as colon cancer that had moved to the thyroid... which as he put... is pretty much impossible. They are leaning towards lymphoma because of how the mass is acting. This thing first appeared on a CT scan about 19 months ago (2/11/2014) and hasn't even doubled in size. 

There is a slight possibility this is anaplastic thyroid cancer, in which they said he would have less than 6 months to live. However, the doctor said if it was that, it would have already killed him. That **** grows at a rate of like double the size per week. This took almost 2 years to get to this size... and his oncologist continuously said it wasn't a big deal. Needless to say, he will be going to another oncologist for his thyroid treatment. 

Imagine, pretty much destroying colon AND rectal cancer (yes, this man has THREE, no, not one, not two, but THREE types of cancer) just to be killed by a random thyroid cancer. Ridiculous. From a family perspective, his mother had three types of cancer, but none of them killed her... All three were in her uterus and they have no idea where they originated (This is back in the late 80s/early 90s). So, they removed her uterus and suggested to see what happens. Cancer didn't kill her, she died 10-15 years later from Alzheimer's disease... In fact she was buried on this day 14 years ago (the day before September 11th). 

I did my own research on thyroid lymphoma (which is highly treatable with chemo and radiation) and anaplastic thyroid cancer (which is a death sentence due to it growing so rapidly). On top of reading his CT scans from 2/11/2014 and 8/19/2015, where the mass didnt' even double in size, I feel pretty confident that the doctor's guess of lymphoma is correct.

There is a third, strange option, that it isn't cancer at all... but then they don't know what the hell it is. 

So that was my day. All they did was a biopsy and he's home with minimal pain. I can say that's a win for today. 

 

Hey All,

I wrote a few weeks ago regarding my dad bleeding profusely. That has stopped... on its own. They found something concerning regarding his thyroid, though. Quick backstory: About a year and a half ago after having radiation treatments, a nodule appeared on his thyroid that they dismissed. It was getting larger, but they were saying that it was okay, and not a concern. Fast forward to about two weeks ago at the endocrinologist and now it's a big deal. 

They have to remove the entire thyroid. They also don't think it's cancer (weird). Not sure what the heck it is. However, on top of that, they also are going to clear out his carotid artery on one side since it's 70% blocked and remove two jugular veins. One vein was damaged severely from a blood clot around the same time (year and a half ago) and has already started growing new veins. The second is being hit by whatever is going on with his thyroid. So, it's not just a full removal of the thyroid, it's also the carotid artery roto-rooter and the removal of two jugular veins. Honestly, I didn't know you had more than one (you have 4 apparently)... Learned something new here. There's a slight chance he'll never talk again and a very small chance he won't make it through the surgery, but I think that's how it goes for all surgeries. 

I'm not going to lie, I'm nervous, and I think he is too. This past week he has been mean and hasn't wanted to talk about it much... He just wants the damn thyroid out because he's blaming that for a lot of his exhaustion. 

As a side note, the tumors in his colon and rectum still aren't back. He still has a few spots on his lung and one or two on his liver, but they said they will go to proton therapy at Penn when he's recovered from the neck surgery. 

 

Any thoughts, prayers, good vibes, whatever you believe in, would be much appreciated. 

JanJan63

Prayers for your dad. A

Prayers for your dad. A friend had her thyroid out a couple of years ago and it wasn't bad at all, surprisingly. But she has gained weight since then and can't get rid of it.

SilentRenegade

JanJan63 said:

Prayers for your dad. A

Prayers for your dad. A friend had her thyroid out a couple of years ago and it wasn't bad at all, surprisingly. But she has gained weight since then and can't get rid of it.

Thanks for your prayers. It

Thanks for your prayers. It would be a good thing if he gained weight. He has always been thin - 175 I think was his max (he's 6'1ish). After his first round of chemo, he was down to 135 and has slowly gotten back up to 150. 

I'm glad to hear that your friend is doing well. 

lizard44

Sending

positive vibes that all goes well with your  father's surgery. Has a date been set  for the surgery yet?

SilentRenegade

lizard44 said:

Sending

positive vibes that all goes well with your  father's surgery. Has a date been set  for the surgery yet?

Thank you for the positive

Thank you for the positive vibes. He is having surgery at 9:30 tomorrow morning. 

janderson1964

SilentRenegade said:

Thank you for the positive

Thank you for the positive vibes. He is having surgery at 9:30 tomorrow morning. 

I will pray for him.

I will pray for him.

Cathleen Mary

janderson1964 said:

I will pray for him.

I will pray for him.

prayers and best wishes for

prayers and best wishes for your Dad. He is blessed to have you. May he soon feel much better.

CM

Trubrit

Thinking of dad today

I hope all is going well and that he will bounce right back. 

Keep us posted

Sue - Trubrit

SilentRenegade

Trubrit said:

Thinking of dad today

I hope all is going well and that he will bounce right back. 

Keep us posted

Sue - Trubrit

Thanks, Trubrit.. I hope all

Thanks, Trubrit.. I hope all is well with you! I have posted an update above.