Meet Dr. Eckardt

Wow! What a drive! Scott and I met Dr. Eckardt this morning. He is a really nice man. He explained that this is a benign condition with very aggressive, abnormal markers. These tumors are in the family of sarcomas but they are not a matastatic disease. He also isn't so sure that surgery would be helpful. He explained that these tumors are similar in make up to the muscle tissue they are sandwiched between. It is difficult to determine where one ends and the other begins. There is often microscopic amounts left behind as well. He feels I would benefit from a "fair amount" of radiation.

I took in my MRI images and the pathology slides from both surgeries and he will have the radiologist and pathologist at UCLA look at them and present their findings to the tumor review board. They will meet one week from today and discuss my case. It is here that my treatment plan will be devised.

I have not gone in for the second MRI. I don't know if it is necessary. It has been approved if I need it.

An Appointment....Finally

I put a call into Dr. Eckardt's office and as luck would have it, his usually telephone greeter wasn't there. The very helpful woman on the other end tied up all the loose ends and offered an appointment for tomorrow. Scott and I are off to Santa Monica for an 8 AM appointment in the morning.

MRI Approved

The MRI is approved. I have an appointment on Thursday. It is for the lumbar spine, with and without contrast. Still no appointment with Dr. Eckardt.

Prayer Quilt

A good friend of mine had a prayer quilt made for me at her church. She delivered it to me this morning. The ladies did a beautiful job and I was so very touched. Thank you Karen :-)

Spring Break

The kids are off this week for Spring Break. I won't try to push anything this week. I am going to enjoy a week off from homework and enjoy my kids. They are enjoying the pool. It is going to be a great week and I won't let anything spoil our relaxation.

Another MRI

Dr. Eckardt's office wants another MRI. Why? Nobody knows. The last MRI was 3/26/09 and another MRI wouldn't show anything different. Mary does all the work anyway to see what they will say.

Still No Appointment

Dr. Eckardt's office still won't schedule an appointment with me. It seems the authorization lists the Los Angeles address and Dr. Eckardt works out of the Santa Monica address. Nothing seems to go smoothly, at all! Mary from Dr. Newman's office works her magic again and gets the ball rolling.

Visit With Dr. Newman

Scott and I saw Dr. Newman today. He explains that the tumors are deep within the muscle tissue. I asked him to clarify if they had reached any organs or my spine. He said NO! Sigh of relief! He also thinks they need to be taken out again. He and Mary work the phones to get my authorization approved for Dr. Eckardt at UCLA. The authorization was approved yesterday but not for Dr. Eckardt. Twenty minutes later, it is done. I will see Dr. Eckardt.

Mary and Dr. Newman are awesome!

What's the Hold Up?

I put a call into Dr. Z's office, he is out for 2 weeks. The authorization can take up to 10 days because it was submitted as a routine authorization. Dr. Z said it would take 48-72 hours. There had to be a mistake. After several calls I find out only Dr. Z can change the status. I didn't really have the patience to sit and wait.

So I called Mary from Dr. Newman's office. She was an angel and stepped in and made it happen. She also made an appointment for me to see Dr. Newman and he could explain exactly what the MRI showed. He had ordered a copy of the report.

2:30 PM Dr. Z Calls

Just after picking up Justin from school, Dr. Z called. He heard the kids all in the background and asked if it was a good time to talk. I lied and said yes. He continued, your MRI came back with a questionable area. You will need surgery again. He had already called Dr. Newman and they collectively decided that I needed to go see an expert at UCLA. My mind has a great ability to protect my emotions and after too much, it just shuts down. I couldn't think. I just wanted to fall apart! I called Scott, he had come home early from work that day. He was home when I pulled in the drive way.

Scott's first question was, where is it this time? Why hadn't I thought to ask that? I don't think I could handle the answer at that moment. I called Dr. Z back and he would only say same area but deeper. Naturally we think it is either at my spine or my intestines. The previous surgeries were already there. Deeper had to mean that they had reached those places.

Referrals are submitted and we wait.

Radiation Treatment Planning Visit

I went to see Dr. Z today. This visit was to do a brief treatment planning CT scan. They made the markings on my back where they would deliver the radiation. The CT scan images would be sent to the radiation department for Dr. Z to map out exactly where the radiation would be delivered. Once they were done with this they would call me in for a simulation appointment.

On the way out I asked the tech about my MRI results. I indicated that I had not heard anything about them and I was very anxious because I didn't have a good feeling about it. He said if I hadn't heard anything then not to worry. They always call when something shows up.

Scott and I went to breakfast and rationalized that they wouldn't have gone through the charade of the treatment planning scan and the money wasted if the MRI turned up something, right? I was coming to terms with radiation and what it meant for out family. We had hopes this was the answer to ending this cycle of growths and we could return to normal life.

We had also decided not to tell the kids anything because I couldn't quite get through a sentence about it without crying and I wanted to be able to tell them, especially Justin exactly what it was like. It was truly no big deal, but I needed to believe that also.