Mayo Clinic

Anna and I drove down to the Mayo Clinic on Wednesday afternoon. It's only a couple of hours south of here but we wanted to leave enough time to have dinner and get to bed early enough for the 5.30am start the next day. We went for a very good Italian meal, (I'm enjoying my last few opportunities to have wine as I'll be tee-total from Monday), and really enjoyed some quality time together.

The clinic itself is very impressive, unlike any other hospital Anna or I have ever been to. I had some blood tests first thing and then we had a 45-minute consultation with one of the oncology doctors. As I said before, the main reason to visit with Mayo was to get a second opinion on the treatment plan, but also to get more information on clinical trials for other treatments, should I need that option down the road.

There was one change that came out of the visit. When I had the first MRI scan that revealed the tumour in early September, there was another lesion at the rear of my head that showed up on the scan. The doctors couldn't say exactly what it was. The initial treatment plan proposed to target the radiotherapy at the primary tumour site and monitor the other one over the coming months. But, in consultation with one of the Mayo oncology professors, a neurosurgeon, and a neurologist, they suggested that it makes sense to target the radiotherapy on this rear lesion as part of the current treatment. As the chemotherapy is blood-born, it will target the rear lesion anyway. The Mayo team have since contacted the local team to make that proposal.

I'll be honest, it has been a tough few days. Every time we hear the doctors talk about this type of tumour (glioblastoma multiforme), and the poor prognosis that typically comes with it, there are some low moments that follow. Perhaps just having had more time to ourselves over the past few days has allowed us to process some of the information and made us realise what we're up against. I'm sorry to put it so bluntly, but I do want this blog to be authentic.

All of that said, we are still mindful of the factors going in our favour...my age, general fitness, the successful surgery, and excellent medical care. And we keep coming across different stories of people who have survived (19 years and counting, one guy we heard about yesterday) this kind of tumour. I just have to look for a moment at my beautiful family to find the strength and courage to fight this thing head-on. On Monday the fight begins...I'm ready.

It's funny how you don't necessarily think of yourself as a stubborn, strong-willed person as you go through normal life, but the number of people who have told me lately that those are the traits that are going to get me through this is starting to make me wonder! My boss told me to take it as a compliment, so I will for now and channel them into the next few months. (Please feel free to tell me to reign in the stubborness when I get back to work though, eh!)

I just want to end on a word of thanks to our close friend, Carla - she stayed overnight with the boys while Anna and I went down to the Mayo, and it was such a good feeling to know that the boys were not just in good hands, but having great fun (and pickles for breakfast!). Thank you Carla.

(Sunset from Cádiz)
I'm attaching a photograph that a kind friend from Seville sent yesterday with a note that touched our hearts - muchas gracias Pepi!!