Actually the news right now is that there is NO news.
On Monday, Tom had to exit the MRI scanner sooner than planned. He had been in an hour and 15 minutes, and his back and legs were in too much pain to continue. He managed to hang in there a bit longer, just long enough for them to finish doing the overall scan. Now all that remains is for them to do the part where they inject the contrast dye and re-scan him. Fortunately, they were able to schedule the second half of the test for 8 AM this Friday morning. This part of the test shouldn't take as long, so the pain should be less of an issue.
The PET/CT scan on Tuesday was a bit easier: they had him propped up a bit more comfortably, and in that test, he has to get up and change position part way through, so he made it through the hour long scan with no issues.
The plan was supposed to be that we would have results today, but the PET/CT report has been delayed, and the MRI is not at reporting stage. Instead, we met with the oncologist, transplant nurse and the social worker. They reviewed Tom's progress and the doctor examined him.
They'd like us to defer on leaving Calgary until we have the scan results. Presuming the scans are clear, they'd like to delve more into his physical pain issues, and work on a more aggressive rehabilitation program. And if the results are not as we hope, they want to do some planning as to what the next steps might be. This means that we potentially may not be on the road until Tuesday now. We'll take it as it comes.
Actually, we do have one little bit of good news. The doc says that even though he still has his central line in his chest, provided we covered it with the correct dressing, he could go swimming (long as it is in a chlorinated pool). Tom has missed swimming so much, so he's happy about that. On the other hand, the doctor teased him that since he has the mobility and leg muscles of a senior, we shouldn't throw him in the deep end unattended!
We hope that we'll get the go ahead to schedule the removal of the line, and then he won't even have to worry about it any more!
Meanwhile, we are passing the time very comfortably at Bernie and Eileen's. Tom and I visited at RMH with Marlene - she works there evenings and we became very close with her during our stay this spring. It was great to see her, and they appreciated all the pop can tabs I dropped off (thanks, my clinic sistas!). I still hope to visit with our friend Suzanne and my cousin Carla - and maybe we'll even get to see Mike's nephews and their families over the weekend. We'll stay busy while we wait.
I am somewhat concerned about how much school time Tom's missing, but it is what it is. We'll deal with that later. And sadly, Tom and I will be missing the wedding of family friends this weekend, but Laura, Jeanine and Dad will be there to represent us!
It's been beautiful weather this week - the fall colours and the mountains are gorgeous. Still, there's no place like home. Looking forward to being there soon!
Thomas' Mom
