I haven't posted much since the radiosurgery because I wasn't quite sure what to say. There have been a lot of doctor visits, more tests, and a possible diagnosis, but not anything concrete yet.
So here is where I stand:
I meet with the Radiosurgery doctor tomorrow. There is not much to talk about since I have not had another MRI yet to see how successful the surgery was. I was told that the MRI needs to wait a couple of months to see how successful the process was. So I will wait and assume that the tumor was blasted away.
The eye issue is still there. I wear a patch pretty much full-time now. The only real issue I have has to do with steps. I have a hard time judging the depth of the steps so I have become a big user of handrails.
The fluid behind my eye is decreasing, but not gone. So every time I see my eye doc in Madison I get a nice little shot in the eye to help dry the fluid out. They numb it up nice, so it really isn't all that painful. There is a possibility that if the discoloration behind the eye every grows that I may need a special type of radiation to deal with it, but the is not something we are considering now.
As for the double vision and drooping eye lid, it appears that my main doc was right, again. When I first saw her, before any of the tests, she made an educated guess that it was Myasthenia Gravis. This is an auto-immune disorder. It is not related to my cancer at all. It is a new, and rare, disease that has reared its ugly head in my life. I have had a number of blood tests that were highly abnormal and are starting to confirm this diagnosis. Next week I will have an EMG to test the muscles and confirm it.
There is no cure for Myasthenia Gravis, but there are treatments. The treatments vary from surgery to blood filtering to medications. With the treatments there is hope that the muscles in my eyes will work normal again and I can hold of the symptoms for a long time.
Once again, I realize just how special I am.
Most of the time I am pretty upbeat about everything. I enjoy what I am, doing and the activities the girls have us running to. I am busy and, I think, doing some good work.
But there are days that I am tired of all the doctor visits, the tests, and the waiting. To go a month without a doctors appointment is a dream.
And now we are in Lent, one of the seasons of the church year I appreciate the most. And it is this seasonal trek that keeps me grounded as I deal with all of the health stuff.
I will post more as I know more. As for now, my you always be blessed by having your eyes opened to gifts you have in your lives.
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