Tough Day

After a really long day, via Mom, we got the update from today. This might ramble on a bit, so hang on....

Amy woke up and was throwing up for 4 hrs straight. Attempts to get a hold of the Dr were unsuccessful, but were finally able to talk with an intern who asked if Amy was taking her anti-nausea medicine. This was a big surprise as none had been prescribed. Jeff scrambled to fill the new prescription and once that was added to the meds, Amy stopped getting sick.

As the day progressed and there was no response from the local Dr., Jeff talked with a co-worker who put him in touch with a very well known neurosurgeon in the LA area. This referral contacted Jeff right away and they talked through the situation. As Jeff described what had happened, the Dr was very surprised about the direction the local surgeon was going in terms of performing a biopsy. He believes that you don't do a biopsy if you don't know for sure what the "mass" is. He offered to see Amy first thing on Monday to run some additional test and review the CAT Scans. Not feeling too certain about the local diagnosis, they decided to take that offer.

Later in the day, Jeff finally got a call back from the local neurosurgeon and got some information. However, to Jeff''s frustration, there was no update on when any follow ups would occur. Jeff also asked for clarification on the diagnosis, asking if a biopsy was the right thing to do without knowing for sure. That is when the Dr. told Jeff that he now believes that the masses are not an infection, but 1 big tumor that is rooted in two spots on the side of brain, above the ear.

Soon, they finally got a call from the Intern who informed them that the biopsy was set for Tuesday morning. Jeff told the Dr that he was getting 2nd opinion with the LA neurosurgeon on Monday. Depending on the outcome of that appt, they may or may not be there for that appt.

So, that is the latest. They are clearly frustrated with the lack of responsiveness of the local Dr. as well as the lack of attention to detail not prescribing the anti-nausea medicine. However, they are hopeful that this new contact with a top notch neurosurgeon in LA will provide more information on how this will all proceed. The concern that Jeff feels right now is about how far from home LA is. But he realizes that they need answers and will go where they need to.

Continue to keep Amy and family in your prayers as they go through the weekend. It has been a tough few days, but we pray that Monday will bring some additional information that will help them move forward.