Decisions, Decisions

So I went to see the radiation oncologist today (poor Keith stayed home - all this crap is finally catching up with him and he caught a nasty flu bug). As usual, I recorded my appointment. This probably seems weird to all of you, but it is really helpful to replay some of my appointments afterwards and get some of the nuances. This time is was more important than usual since Keith wasn't there and because I have options. The radiation oncologist was very pleasant and laid out the two options for me.

Two weeks of whole brain radiation is the standard of care for my situation. The upside of this is it should kill off any micro-metastases in my entire brain. The downside is that it can cause a certain amount of short term memory problems.

The other option is two weeks of radiation to my posterior fossa (the back and lower portion of my brain). The upside of this is that it won't cause any short term memory problems. The downside is that if there are micro-metastases in the top/front of my brain they won't get cooked.

If I choose the latter, I'll be very closely monitored so if anything new "pops up" they can zap it with a targeted beam of radiation (cyberknife). I've relistened to my conversation with the radiation oncologist to try and figure out what she thinks is the best option and I can't quite tell. I hate it when doctors don't just tell me what to do! They're the ones that went to med school!?!? How the hell am I supposed to decide? I guess I should have just asked her straight up what she'd recommend (maybe I'll do that...). In the hopes of getting some guidance I've emailed my medical oncologist to see what she thinks. In the meantime I'm going to sleep on it and maybe I'll come up with more questions for the radiation oncologist.

In other news, Keith and I had a great day trip to Yosemite on Saturday. It had snowed there during the week, so up in the high country there was still a lot of the white stuff. The views were amazing and we even squeezed in a quick hike in the snow! Here's a shot of my scar with some of that gorgeous scenery.

I went back to work part time last Wednesday. I wasn't sure it was the right thing to do on Tuesday night (I had gotten used to laying around), but it felt good. It's nice to be just part-time while I recouperate and figure things out, but I think after this week I will go back to full time. It sounds like I can work through the radiation treatments pretty easily and they will work with me to create a schedule.

There is some big news on the in-law front! Keith's mom and dad made it home for the weekend!! This is only the second time they've been home since this whole nightmare started back in April. From the sound of it, things went smoothly, although it was a lot of work getting all moved out of the hotel. They've headed back to Duluth for a week of speech therapy and doctor's appointments, but hopefully they'll head home again next weekend.