A Lot to Consider

Hi all,
Feeling very beat at the moment. There are a lot of questions and we have some things to consider.

The good news is that her blood counts look GREAT. Everything has come up where it needs to be.

Dr. Tye does want to attempt another surgery. Given that her brain has had time to heal since the last surgery, he should have a better view of the tumor and will hopefully be able to get as much as possible. The odds of defeating these types of tumors are greatly increased when they are smaller. Obviously, the risks of surgery (coma, seizure, blood loss, weakness or paralysis, etc.) are there and were discussed. We also talked about the option of getting a second (or third) opinion and we got names of colleagues/peers at UVA, DC Children's and Johns Hopkins with whom we could speak if we want to go that route. If we don't feel the need for a second opinion, she could have surgery as early as May 13th (next week). Roger and I are currently weighing these options.

On the oncology side of things, Dr. Khan met with his former supervisor and mentor at MD Anderson Clinic in Houston, TX. They have a new method for treating PNET that would probably benefit Charlotte. What they do is take samples of the tumor and treat it in the laboratory with multiple agents to determine the "best" method of treatment for her specific type of tumor. Instead of using a standard protocol, she would get a customized treatment just for her tumor. This tends to work better in cases where the tumors are "ill-behaved". Here is how it would work: Once Charlotte was well enough to travel (but before we would need to begin chemo/radiation), we would travel to Houston and they would see Charlotte as well as get a set of slides with the tumor on them. That part of the process would take just a day. We would return home and within about two weeks, they would develop a treatment protocol for Charlotte which would involve some combination of radiation and chemo. They would share this treatment plan with Dr. Khan and we would proceed from there (with her continuing to get her treatment at MCV).

Meanwhile, in all of this we "lost" Mickey Mouse. We accidentally left him in the lobby of the clinic and by the time we realized he was missing, he was gone. Kinda interesting because he had a name badge on him with her name on it. Anyway, we have already received a "loaner" Mickey and are probably getting another one very soon thanks to some Disney connections (thanks Annette!). Just one more thing to slam us down while we're already on the ground. Roger's pretty upset about it.

Anyway, hope everyone is enjoying the weather. It is GORGEOUS. Roger and I have to get to work and we will update everyone as we know more.

Rachel

We are strongly leaning on this option. We just have to consider timing, logistics, and the reality of leaving our business for about a week's time.

Right now we have a lot to think about and we let everyone know that we would consider our options and let them know on Monday.