I met with the doctor yesterday and got the results of last weeks MRI to determine the cause of the pain in my lower back. The doctor I met with was different from my regular doctor because she’s off “having” a baby (they adopted). This doctor’s the head of the hematology oncology department at the center. It’s been determined that it’s another tumor, and the radiologist says it appears to be a myeloma deposit. The doctor said it would be very strange for it to be a different kind of cancer, but it’s also strange that the tumor seemed to grow while I was undergoing the chemo and steroid treatments. It was also brought up that my blood work seemed normal and there was no sign of the M-Protein, again indicators there was nothing cancerous going on. I mentioned that my case had been a little strange all along, and he just grinned and said he knew, he’d been aware of my case from the beginning!

I’d just received my schedule from the Siteman Center in St. Louis Wednesday and sent back all my consent forms, but that schedule may now be in jeopardy. Dr. Gaur here in K.C. is going to talk to Dr. Vig in St. Louis to determine what action to take. The radiologist says he can radiate the new growth, and we know that myeloma reacts well to radiation, but radiation can also burn the bone marrow, which provides the stem cells I need to have harvested. So we don’t want to do anything to damage the bone marrow before harvesting.

This stuff seems to keep coming at me, but I’m up for the challenge. I’m taking it all in stride, just another little hurdle I’ll get past and proceed onward. I still feel good most of the time except for that occasional little pain in the back. But then, I’ve been a pain in a lower region for some time now, so I guess what goes around comes around, huh?! We’ll see what the doc’s come up with and I’ll keep you posted.