Caroline keeps us updated the day of the biopsy. We don't expect to talk to Bobby but he calls. The anesthesia made him sick. He sends a picture of his neck where they did the surgery. It's much bigger than I expected. Pathology is suppose to take 5-7 days.Thursday, May 20th I'm on my way home from work. Bobby calls and asks if it is a good time to talk. The pathology is back. It is cancer. Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma. I have to ask how to spell it. It is rare in Caucasians. Found most often in Asians. He will have a PET Scan. That will show any other "hot spots". We'll have to wait for those results.So far the results have not been what we wanted to hear. I hear all the words Bobby is saying. Doesn't mean I understand. We talk until I arrive home.
David is upstairs. I say "we have a diagnosis. It's cancer".
We are on the web for days looking for all the information we can find. The information is overwhelming. David tells me to stop searching the Internet while I'm at work because it causes such distress.
We start planning to go to him.
Monday, May 24th. We're at friends when Bobby calls. He has been researching and searching for answers the same as us. He's met with the radiation oncologist and the medical oncologist. He does not like the idea of chemo and radiation. He wants to try alternative methods. Maybe in conjunction with the other treatment. He has started a method called the Gerson Thearpy. No animal products, no dairy. Mostly organic fruits and vegetables and whole grain oats.
We research the Gerson Thearpy. We have concerns.
The PET Scan shows hot spots on his sternum (very small) and on his spine at L3 and his sacrum. The doctor say's not to assume those hot spots are cancer. It just means there is activity in that area. Could be from an old injury. He needs an MRI of that area. So, we'll wait to hear.
The MRI results are inconclusive. Another biopsy is ordered. Bobby wants to know for sure if the cancer has metastasized to the bone. He gets scheduled for another biopsy of the sacrum but on the morning of surgery, the surgeon decides it's too risky.
We will arrive in San Rafael on June 7th. Bobby asked us to be there at that time to attend a class with him that will educate us in what to expect when treatment begins.
